September 12: National Grandparents Day

Grandparents Day was started to encourage people to visit the elderly in nursing homes. That’s still a great project for this day. Plan a choral concert at a nursing home, assisted living facility, or a community center. Run errands on the weekend for your own grandparents or elderly neighbors. Start planning a senior citizens fall cleanup project. Check www.grandparents-day.com for more activities and resources.

September 17: Citizenship Day and Constitution Day

Honor the signing of the U.S. Constitution in 1787 by volunteering with the campaign of a local, state, or national candidate. Help with voter registration efforts in your area. Educate younger students about the meaning of citizenship and how to be a good citizen. Visit the Center for Civic Education for lesson resources and information on the Project Citizen civic education program.

September 21: International Peace Day

Focus on how you can promote peace in your school and community. Volunteer in a school mediation program to resolve conflicts between students – or help get a mediation program off the ground. Learn about the UN’s “Messengers of Peace” program and get ideas from notable people like actor George Clooney for ways to promote peace through a variety of causes.

September 28: National Good Neighbor Day

What can you do today to be a good neighbor? You might … cook a meal or deliver one. Pick up library books or return them. Fix a fence or plant fall flower bulbs. Play a game or read a book aloud. Get more ideas at www.natgoodneighborday.org.

September: Classical Music Month

Volunteer with a local music society to help with their celebration plans this month. Team up with music-minded teens in your school or community. Organize performances in local veterans’ and senior care facilities. Plan a concert at a local Head Start or Volunteers of America preschool program. Match the music to the interests of your audience or share your classical favorites. Classics for Kids at www.classicsforkids.com is one source of music ideas and resources.

September: Sports and Home Eye Safety Month

Help students and families in your school and community to see the importance of eye safety. Help out with activities sponsored by local eye doctors or vision centers. Team up with school and community sports coaches to educate kids and parents about sports eye protectors. For downloadable fact sheets on sports safety and other topics, go to www.preventblindness.org/resources/fact_sheets.html.

October: ASPCA’s Adopt-a-Shelter Dog Month

Sign up to help at a local animal shelter. Team up with fellow students to increase awareness of animals in shelters that need a home. To find animal shelters in your area, use the ASPCA’s locator service. Check the ASPCA site for other project resources, such as disaster preparedness to support pets.

October: Breast Cancer Awareness Month

“Making Strides Against Breast Cancer” is a noncompetitive walk to raise money for research, prevention education, and programs to support patients and families. Join a walk in your area, or work with a local hospital, clinic, or women’s group to organize a walk. Get more information, including locations of planned walks nationwide.

October: Computer Learning Month

Share your computer knowledge with others as a volunteer. Help the elderly in a senior center get the hang of e-mailing. Tutor elementary students in an after-school program on Internet research skills and strategies. Create an online Computer Careers Fair to post on your school website. Computer Science Career Guide has links to dozens of sites on specific types of computer-related jobs.

October: Energy Awareness Month

Put some energy into promoting conversation activities and alternative energy solutions. Volunteer to research, create and post a page of energy-saving tips on your community website. Form an Energy Team of teen volunteers to look for conservation opportunities at school. Check for ideas and resources.

November: Good Nutrition Month

Go beyond the usual tips for healthful holiday recipes. Promote good nutrition year-around by spearheading the creation of a community produce garden on the school grounds or in an empty lot. For resources, check: City Slicker Farms; Heifer International's Seeds, Hope & Concrete; and Food Share at www.foodshare.net/index.htm. Also, organize a Holiday Walkabout to encourage exercise for good health. Make it a fund-raiser for a local program providing holiday meals for needy residents. Check the American Volkssport Association of walking clubs and get more tips at http://walking.about.com/od/holiday/a/fatholidays.htm.

November: Child Safety and Protection Month

Volunteer to get life-saving information to families. Create a “Child Safety Month” page on your community Web site. Develop a poster campaign to display in local community centers, houses of worship, and other places where families gather. Search online for useful information, such as the “Childproofing Your Home” tips from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and the commission’s toy-safety guidelines.

November: American Diabetes Month

As teen volunteers, get the word out with awareness activities in your community. Get involved with programs being planned by a local hospital or pediatric clinic. Help organize a Diabetes Health Fair in your school and invite the community to attend. Find resources on diabetes and ideas for observing American Diabetes Month where you live.

November 21-27: National Family Week

Brainstorm for activities your class, club, or entire school can sponsor to help families in your community. Get information and resources at www.nationalfamilyweek.org. Also target this week to volunteer with local groups planning holiday programs for families in need. Check with your area Volunteers of America office or www.VolunteerMatch.org.

December: Hi Neighbor Month

Start a winter commitment to shovel snow for a neighbor in need or collect the person’s mail and newspaper when the weather is bad. Put up holiday lights or other decorations for elderly or disabled neighbors. Volunteer at a holiday festival or fair in a neighborhood center or place of worship. If your community holds a family-friendly New Year’s Eve celebration, get involved to help ring out the year as a volunteer. Check www.VolunteerMatch.org for service opportunities where you live.

December: Write a Friend Month

Many elderly and disabled need help writing, addressing, and mailing cards. Volunteer to assist someone else you know or residents of a nursing or assisted-living facility. Get involved to send cards to active-duty service members, veterans, and their families, such as through “Holiday Mail for Heroes” organized by the American Red Cross. Spearhead the effort for a club or group. Visit the Red Cros for details. Send e-cards through Paralyzed Veterans of America to veterans in hospitals around the country.

December 12: International Children’s Day

Plan a toy collection for this weekend. Help with a holiday party for children in a hospital, homeless shelter, or other facility. Set up a “Mitten Tree” project at school or through a youth group to benefit children in a family shelter or a preschool for low-income families. Make this day for organizing or wrapping the mittens, hats, and scarves you collect. (The project is based on the children’s book The Mitten Tree.) Contact Volunteers of America for local nonprofits that aid children.

December 21: First Day of Winter

Make this shortest day of the year brighter for homebound residents. Organize a “Welcome Winter” theme party at a local nursing home or assisted-living facility. Plan “Winter Warm-up” visits to elderly or disabled neighbors: sing seasonal songs and deliver baskets of canned soup, tea, and hot cocoa mix. Also check for winter volunteer opportunities for teens in your area. Access the monthly calendar of events on the home page or your state on the interactive U.S. map.

Feb. 14: President's Day

Like the Martin Luther King Jr. National Day of Service in January, make Presidents Day another day “on” for service instead of simply a day “off” from school. Check www.VolunteersofAmerica.organd www.VolunteerMatch.orgfor ways to pitch in and make a difference where you live on Presidents Day – or any day! – this month. 

February: Canned Food Month

Support a local food pantry or food bank. Collect canned foods as a club, class, or all-school activity this month. Borrow an idea from Seattle Action Team CaptainMackenzie Hammon and make your food drive a competition to see which class or club can collect the most cans or pounds of food. Check feedingamerica.org to find a food bank in your area.

February: National Children’s Dental Health Month

Collect toothbrushes, toothpaste, and dental floss for food pantries and family shelters. Decorate big boxes with toothy grins and prepare fliers about this special month and your collection drive. Then station volunteers outside supermarkets and drugstores and ask shoppers to donate items. Also write letters to companies that produce dental-heath products asking for supplies. Check the Children’s Dental Health Month site at www.ada.org for materials and tips you can use.

February: Responsible Pet Owners Month

Volunteer to help an animal shelter or local vet get the word out on having pets neutered and spayed. Help coordinate a pet adoption event at an animal shelter and find foster homes for animals awaiting adoption. Check www.aspca.org for pet safety and health tips to share.

February: Library Lovers’ Month

Make a pledge this month to support your school and public libraries. Check Friends of Libraries U.S.A. at www.folusa.org for ideas – like student “Volunteens” in Columbus, Ohio, and the “Rag Day” competition in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania.

March: Music In Our Schools Month

Put your school choir or band to service. Arrange a performance at a local nursing home, assisted-living facility, or group home for disabled. Invite a senior citizen club to be your guests at school for a concert. Arrange a sing-along for children at a family shelter. Click here for more ideas.

March: National Nutrition Month

Plan an “Operation Nutrition” food drive to benefit a local food pantry or food bank. Focus on collecting high nutrition foods: low-sugar canned fruits and vegetables; beans and other legumes; low-salt canned soups; whole grain, low-sugar cereals, and so on. Station volunteers and collection barrels outside stores and distribute fliers listing recommended foods to donate. Check the National Nutrition Month site for nutrition resources.

March: Youth Art Month

Donate time and talent to create a mural for a group in need: a family shelter, pediatric emergency room or children’s wing of a hospital, early childhood center, nursing home, or a community center. Ask a local store that sells art supplies to donate paints for the project, and be sure to give them proper credit. Get tips from projects like the MLK Community Mural Project and check the Youth Art Month site for school-based resources.

March 20: Spring Begins

Clean up or set up a playground for an early childhood program. Contact a local service for the elderly for a list of seniors who have requested assistance with home repairs and yardwork, then organize student teams to help. Take the lead from the Chicago Action Team and spruce up a neighborhood with a “street sweep.”

April 19-25: National Volunteer Week

April 15-17: Global Youth Service Days

April: Volunteer Recognition Month

Organize a volunteer recognition fund-raising dinner at school. Invite the community and donate the proceeds to local volunteer organizations. Create a video or digital slideshow saluting school and community volunteers to post on your school and community Web sites. Also offer to local businesses to feature on lobby display monitors. Browse www.pointsoflight.org and nationalserviceresources.org for more recognition ideas. Check here for "100 Ways to Make a Difference in Your Community" (PDF) and ysa.org/planit/ to plan a Global Youth Service Day project. Click here to register your project or find local events .

April: Keep America Beautiful Month

Join in the Great American Cleanup underway from March 1 through May 31. Check here to find recycling locations for batteries, motor oil and other hard-to-dispose-of materials. Turn a vacant lot or other eyesore in your community into a community flower or vegetable garden. Observe Earth Day on April 22 by raising green awareness at school and in the community. Start here for tips. Go to http://earthday.envirolink.org/ to find events happening near you to join.

April: Poetry Month

Hold a poetry reading at a community center, nursing or assisted-living center, library, or early childhood center. Present published poems or student-written verse – like Santa Fe Action Team Captain Jessica Madrid's poem inspired by a service project. Deliver April holiday food baskets to homebound elderly or disabled neighbors and tuck in spring-themed poems. Celebrate Poem in Your Pocket Day on April 30 with ideas here and one more: Collect gently-used kids' clothing and put a fun poem in pants or shirt pockets. Imagine a young recipient's surprise to find "Keep a Poem on Your Pocket" by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers or your favorite verse!

May: National Photo Month

Volunteer to take photos for local nonprofit groups and help spread a visual word about their needs or good deeds. For tips on taking powerful photos, visit the International Center of Photography.

May: National Physical Fitness and Sports Month

Start a yoga club at school; volunteer to help coach a youth sports team this summer; contribute health and fitness tips on your school or community Web site. Get more ideas from the President’s Council on Physical Fitness at www.fitness.gov and resources at www.fitness.gov/resources/toolkit/index.html.

May: National Bike Month

Help out or help organize a bicycle-safety clinic for younger kids; organize a used-helmet collection for child and adult riders in need in your area; take part in a cycling-related fund-raiser for a good cause. Visit the League of American Bicyclists.

June 5: World Environment Day

June 5: National Cancer Survivors Day

June: National Safety Month

Take action to educate others in your school and community about motor vehicle safety and unintentional drug overdose – both the focus of National Council Safety this month. Visit www.nsc.org/nsm/index.aspx for tips, posters and other resources.