August Holidays/Back to School
Here is a list of some August holidays with economic and financial literacy connections/lessons, along with some general Back to School stuff. I also included Labor Day weekend, since 2 of the 3 days are in August (and if you teach about it, it would probably be the week prior).
Jay LeBlanc
8/15/20253 min read
Sorry, I thought I had this post up already - turns out it was in the "drafts" folder waiting. So I updated a few more articles/links and I'm posting it below.
Main topics for August include disasters (with the start of hurricane season, not to mention floods, wildfires, and tornadoes); back to school (mostly focusing on the ECON/PFL, though a little history in there as well; and Labor Day weekend. Yeah, I know Labor Day is on September 1st this year, but 2 of the 3 days of the weekend are in August! And look (as usual) for lesser-known holidays like National Lefthanders Day in there as well . . .
Lesson Plans/Videos/Podcasts on August (and Labor Day weekend) “Holidays”
“10 Classroom Activities To Teach About Labor Day” (lesson plans), WeAreTeachers.com, Sep 2021, https://www.weareteachers.com/whats-the-history-behind-labor-day-7-classroom-activities-for-kids-2/
“Back-to-school shoppers have value at the top of their lists” (podcast w/article), Marketplace, Aug 2024, https://www.marketplace.org/2024/08/08/back-to-school-shoppers-have-value-at-the-top-of-their-lists/
“Fight Like Hell: Music for Labor Day” – Folkways Recordings, Smithsonian Institution, 2023, https://folkways.si.edu/fight-like-hell-music-for-labor-day
“How do natural disasters impact consumer spending?” (podcast w/article), Marketplace, Nov 2024, https://www.marketplace.org/story/2024/11/08/how-do-natural-disasters-impact-consumer-spending
“How Labor Day has changed — and not changed — in its 140-year history” (podcast w/article), Marketplace, Sep 2023, https://www.marketplace.org/2023/09/04/how-labor-day-has-changed-and-not-changed-in-its-140-year-history/
“How Labor Got Its Day” (3-5 lesson plans), Council for Economic Education, Aug 2016, https://econedlink.org/resources/how-labor-got-its-day/
“How retailers can stay ahead of weather-related challenges” (Retail Stays Real podcast), Aug 2024, https://nrf.com/blog/how-retailers-can-stay-ahead-weather-related-challenges
“How song makes the union strong” (podcast w/article), Marketplace, Aug 2024, https://www.marketplace.org/2024/08/12/how-song-makes-the-union-strong/
“Labor Day 2024: Peak travel days, top destinations and best deals” (video), Today (NBC), Aug 2024, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9nBb_KIgzs
“Lesson Plan: Labor Day and Labor History”, Flocabulary, https://www.flocabulary.com/lesson-plan-labor-day-and-labor-history/
“Transaction Costs and Currency: 1808 Road Trip” (lesson plan), Foundation for Teaching Economics, https://fte.org/teachers/teacher-resources/lesson-plans/efiahlessons/transaction-costs/
“Visualizing Annual Working Hours in OECD Countries” (infographic), Visual Capitalist, Jun 2023, https://www.visualcapitalist.com/annual-working-hours-in-countries-2023/
U.S. Government Resources
“2024 Atlantic Hurricane Season: June 1-November 30” Stats for Stories, Jun 2024, U.S. Census, https://www.census.gov/newsroom/stories/atlantic-hurricane-season.html
“Back to School: August 2025” Stats for Stories, Aug 2025, U.S. Census, https://www.census.gov/newsroom/stories/back-to-school.html
“Back to School Fun Facts”, Jul 2025, U.S. Census, https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/sis/resources/fun-facts/back-to-school.html
“Labor Day: September 2023” Stats for Stories, Sep 2023, U.S. Census, https://www.census.gov/newsroom/stories/labor-day.html
Other ECON/PFL/Social Studies articles on August (and Labor Day weekend) “holidays”:
“2025 Deloitte back-to-school survey: Sharpening Pencils and Budgets”, Deloitte Consumer Industry Center, Jul 2025, https://www.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/retail-distribution/back-to-school-survey.html
“5 tips to save money on back-to-school shopping — this weekend and beyond”, NPR, Aug 2024, https://www.npr.org/2024/08/02/nx-s1-5057591/back-to-school-shopping-tips-deals
“Avoiding the Disaster After the Disaster—How To Spot the Signs of a FEMA Scam”, Investopedia, Jul 2025, https://www.investopedia.com/how-to-spot-the-signs-of-a-fema-scam-11772200
“Back to basics: 3 ways the economy is impacting back-to-school this year”, National Retail Federation, Jul 2025, https://nrf.com/blog/back-to-basics-3-ways-the-economy-is-impacting-back-to-school-this-year
“Back to School Shopping Statistics”, Capital One Shopping Research, Jul 2025, https://capitaloneshopping.com/research/back-to-school-shopping-statistics/
“Back-to-School Shopping Survey”, WalletHub, Jul 2025, https://wallethub.com/blog/back-to-school-survey/52395
“Here's back-to-school advice from elementary to high school students” – Up First Newsletter, NPR, Aug 2024, https://www.npr.org/2024/08/18/g-s1-17336/back-to-school-students-education-elementary
“The History of Labor Day”, Investopedia, Aug 2024, https://www.investopedia.com/news/history-labor-day/
“Holiday and Seasonal Trends: Back to School Data Center”, National Retail Federation, Aug 2025, https://nrf.com/research-insights/holiday-data-and-trends/back-to-school/back-class-data-center
“How Disasters Move Money”, Econlife, Jan 2025, https://econlife.com/2025/01/disaster-spending/
“Inflation Hints at Easing and Back-to-School Looks Set to Boom”, Forbes, Jul 2024, https://www.forbes.com/sites/nikkibaird/2024/07/01/inflation-hints-at-easing-and-back-to-school-looks-set-to-boom/
“A Labor Day Look At How Much We Work”, Econlife, Sep 2018, https://econlife.com/2018/09/longest-workweek/
“A Labor Day Look At Invisible Labor”, Econlife, Sep 2022, https://econlife.com/2022/09/invisible-woerkers/
“A Labor Day Look At Our Time Squeeze”, Econlife, Sep 2020, https://econlife.com/2020/09/middle-class-time-squeeze/
“National Left Handers Day: August 13th”, https://www.lefthandersday.com/
“Parents Concerned About Higher Back-To-School Costs Are Pulling Back On Spending”, Investopedia, Jul 2025, https://www.investopedia.com/parents-are-concerned-about-higher-back-to-school-supply-costs-11770155
“Trend-driven and wallet-wise: Back-to-school 2025 is here (Shoppers adapt to rising prices by focusing on essentials and deals)”, National Retail Federation, Aug 2025, https://nrf.com/blog/trend-driven-and-wallet-wise-back-to-school-2025-is-here
“What Teachers Need to Know to Help Left-Handed Students Succeed”, WeAreTeachers.com, Jan 2020, https://www.weareteachers.com/left-handed-students/
“What Disasters Cost Us”, Econlife, Aug 2024, https://econlife.com/2024/08/billion-dollar-disaster-events/
“What’s for school lunch? - This back-to-school season, caregivers are thinking about lunch costs and healthy eating”, Deloitte Consumer Industry Center, Aug 2025, https://www.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/consumer-products/school-lunch-costs-healthy-eating.html