19-25 April 2014
Saturday
Feeding the mind and the body
Evidence of teachers going above and beyond for their charges - as if proof were needed - was provided by a union poll of UK teachers that found more than a quarter had brought in food to give to hungry pupils.
Sunday
Big Brother is watching you
Almost one in 10 teachers are under surveillance as they work, a UK union survey revealed. A NASUWT poll of 7,500 teachers found that 89 per cent of those with cameras in their classrooms could not turn them off.
Monday
Happy birthday, Your Highness
A right royal knees-up was on the cards - or perhaps not - for Queen Elizabeth II, who celebrated her unofficial but actual birthday. At the age of 88, she holds the title of oldest British monarch in history.
Tuesday
Tudor titan
Henry VIII, poster boy for serial monogamists everywhere, became king on this date in 1509. During his reign he had two religions and six wives - and, if you believe the story, still found time to compose Greensleeves.
Wednesday
For the love of literature
Babble about books, rave about reading and go potty for publishing as part of Unesco’s World Book and Copyright Day, which is held annually and coincides with William Shakespeare’s date of death.
Thursday
Family business
In the US, more than 37 million young people and adults will participate in Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day. The campaign aims to introduce young people to the world of employment.
Friday
On the double helix
On this day in 1953, the building blocks of life itself were revealed when Francis Crick, Rosalind Franklin, James Watson, Maurice Wilkins and colleagues released their work on the structure of DNA.
26 April - 2 May 2014
Saturday
Flight of fancy
The Cuckoo Day Festival will be held in the Yorkshire town of Marsden, where the birds’ arrival is said to herald spring. Legend tells of an attempt to ensure good weather by walling in a nest. Alas, the cuckoo flew away.
Sunday
Holier than thou
John Paul II and John XXIII are to be declared saints today. John Paul II (right), the Pole who led from 1978 to 2005, was the first non-Italian pope for more than 400 years. John XXIII was pontiff from 1958 to 1963.
Monday
Raising a stink
For National Stop Snoring Week in the UK, volunteers will endeavour to end night-time noises using remedies from as far back as the early 1800s, including drinking milk, eating horseradish and gargling with garlic.
Tuesday
Get your groove on
Everybody dance, now! International Dance Day provides the perfect opportunity to dust off those dancing shoes and bust a move, whether it be in ballet, tap, modern, jazz or good old-fashioned dad dancing.
Wednesday
Bring on the piata
In Mexico, teachers will be organising games, music and food for students as part of Children’s Day, or El Da Del Nio, which has been marked annually in the Latin American country since 1925.
Thursday
Spring into action
May Day parades, protests and parties will take place across the world as people mark the spring festival and International Workers’ Day. Celebrations will also be held for Lei Day in the US state of Hawaii.
Friday
Let’s hear it for teachers
Indonesia’s National Education Day, or “Hardiknas”, has been marked every year since 1908. Meanwhile, educators in Iran and Bhutan will be honoured on Teachers’ Day in their respective countries.
