National School Nurse Day was established in 1972 and is celebrated annually on the Wednesday of National Nurses Week. This day honors and appreciates the hardworking women and men who take care of students’ health in schools. In 2024, we will celebrate National School Nurse Day on May 8.
What do school nurses do?
School nurses play an essential role in ensuring that students are healthy, safe, and able to learn. They provide a wide range of health services, including check-ups, immunizations, and managing chronic illnesses like asthma and diabetes. They also respond to emergencies and accidents that may occur at school. We can celebrate and show appreciation to school nurses in many ways. Let’s look at three simple ideas!
1. Collaborative Floral Bouquet
To celebrate National School Nurse Day in a creative and fun way, here’s an idea that involves a digital bouquet! Start by making a copy of this Google Slide Deck and assigning one slide per student. Encourage your students to use their imagination and creativity to design a digital bouquet to show their appreciation for their school nurse. They can use the shape, line, and recolor tools to make a colorful and personalized bouquet. Remind your students to respect each other’s work and to collaborate if they’re working on a shared slide. Once all the slides are complete, you can share the link with your school nurse by email.
2. Digital Puzzle
Here is an exciting idea that combines both physical and digital elements, and it’s perfect for celebrating National School Nurse Day! Get your class involved by having them create individual letter signs with messages like “Thank you, Nurse P.” or “Our school nurse rocks!” Then, take a group photo of your class holding up their signs.
To make it even more special, you can turn the photo into a puzzle using Jigsaw Planet. Simply upload the photo, and it will be turned into a virtual jigsaw puzzle. I would not have students create their own puzzles on Jigsaw Planet as the site has inappropriate pictures for elementary students.
Finally, give the puzzle link to your school nurse and ask her to put the pieces together to reveal the special message from your class. This fun and interactive activity is sure to bring a smile to your school nurse’s face and make her feel appreciated for all the hard work she does.
Jigsaw Puzzle Directions:
- Create a free account.
- Choose the shape of the puzzle.
- Select the number of pieces. Since every adult working at a school is extremely busy, I would recommend 20 pieces or less.
- Name your puzzle “Nurse’s Day 2023.”
- With a student photo, use the private album setting.
3. Candy Grams
To add some fun to your School Nurse Day celebration, here’s another idea that involves creative thinking and a sweet treat! Start by having your class brainstorm puns or slogans related to healthcare or nursing. Your class can either make individual candy grams or create a group poster with all the puns and slogans and put them up in the nurse’s office. Click here to access the candy gram I designed. Here are a few slogans if you need to get your creative juices jump-started.
Candy Slogans for Nurse’s Day
Peppermint Patty or a Mint
- Our nurse keeps their cool when it comes to injuries.
- You were mint to be our school nurse.
Snickers
- Cheers to you for turning our tears into snickers and giggles.
Life Savers
- For the many times you’ve been one.
Starburst
- We are bursting with joy because you’re our school nurse.
Bubble gum
- Nurse Martinez gets us through the sticky situations.
Reese’s Pieces
- Our school would be in pieces without our school nurse!
Crunch bar
- Our nurse always helps out in a crunch!
Kit Kat
- Our nurse is one cool kat!
M & M’s
- Our school nurse is MARVELOUS & MAGNIFICENT.
Milky Way
- You are the best nurse in the galaxy.
Mounds
- You deserve MOUNDS of thanks for keeping our campus healthy.
Whoppers
- You are a whopper of a school nurse.
Remember, school nurses work tirelessly to keep our students healthy, safe, and happy. Let’s take this opportunity to show them how much we appreciate their hard work and dedication on School Nurse Day.
