Inspiring neighbourhoods - Day 5 - Neighbour Day

Trivia Question: How many neighbourhoods are there in Calgary?
a) 5000
b) 1 million
c) 198

Mindfulness Activity:

• Sit so you’re comfortable.
• Close your eyes or keep them open.
• Imagine sitting in the warm sun. Feel it.
• Notice how the sun warms your legs. Notice how it warms your back, then your arms, then your face.
• Take 3 big belly breaths.

Supplies:

• Paper
• Pencil

Have your child print or copy the template below. You can think of your own

objects to find and create your own scavenger hunt cards.

On your next family walk see if you can check off all the boxes. The first one to do so wins!

Supplies:

• Different pieces of coloured paper
• Markers
• String
• Stapler

Have your child cut out 13 long triangles out of paper. Write one letter of "NEIGHBOUR DAY" on each triangle. Decorate your triangles.

Fold the end of the triangle over a long string of yarn and staple in place. Hang your banner on your front door on June 20th for Neighbour Day!

Supplies:

• Black permanent marker
• 75 small balls (golf balls or ping pong balls)
• 2 buckets
• Bingo cards

Help your child host a virtual Bingo BBQ Party with your friends on Neighbour Day.

Have each family make foods you would find at a BBQ (e.g. burgers or hot dogs) so it's like you're eating the same foods together.

Ask your guests to print off or make their own bingo cards at home. If nobody has a bingo set, you can make your own by writing the numbers 1-75 on golf balls, ping pong balls or slips of paper.

Connect with everyone through a video chat like Skype, Zoom, Facetime, etc. Eat your food together, then put all of your bingo numbers into a large container or a bucket and draw out numbers one at a time. Make sure that when you call out a number the ball goes into a second bucket so it doesn’t get selected twice. The first one to cross off a line on their bingo card and shout "Bingo!" wins.

Ask your child:

• How does celebrating Neighbour Day make you feel? (Feel)
• Why do you think celebrating Neighbour Day is important? (Think)
• What other ways can we celebrate Neighbour Day? (Act)

Answer: c) 198 neighbourhoods

Trivia Question: Why does Neighbour Day happen in June?

Mindfulness Activity:

• Put both palms together in front of your chest.
• Push your palms together as hard as possible for 15 seconds.
• Which muscles can you feel? What do your muscles feel like when you push your hands together?

Watch the Neighbour Day video

Neighbour Day is an opportunity to get together with your neighbours and celebrate Calgary’s strong community spirit. In Calgary, we celebrate Neighbour Day on the third Saturday of June.

Have your child spread the word about Neighbour Day. Call 3 family members, friends or neighbours and tell them about Neighbour Day. Ask them what they remember about the 2013 floods and what they did or like to do to support their communities.

Challenge your child to pick 3 random acts of kindness to brighten a neighbour’s day. Here are some ideas:

• Say hello or wave each time you see your neighbours.
• Bake cookies for neighbours.
• Write a friendly message or draw a happy picture on your neighbour’s sidewalk using chalk.
• Bring in your neighbour’s garbage bin after it is picked up.
• Offer to wash your neighbour’s car.
• Ask an elderly neighbour if there are any chores you can help with.
• Hand out Connection Cards out to your neighbours.
• Offer to walk your neighbour’s dog.
• Write out your favourite joke and put it in your neighbour’s mailbox.
• Grab a Litter Cleanup Kit, and tidy up your park or natural area.
• Make a big sign reminding everyone that it is Neighbour Day and we should be kind to each other.

Supplies:

• Paper
• Markers/crayons/coloured pencils

A block party or street party is a party where members of your neighbourhood come together to celebrate. There are many ways you can celebrate with your neighbours while respecting physical distancing guidelines.

Help your child plan a Block Party by picking a date/time/location and creating invitations. You can also call your neighbours and ask them for ideas. These are some ideas:

• Get each neighbour to sit on their driveways or balconies while they make barbeque, eat, dance to music or do gardening work.
• Have a neighbourhood picnic at a local park.
• Organize a bike parade with your neighbours.
• Have a dance party in your driveways or balconies.
• If you or a neighbour play an instrument, plan a concert for everyone to enjoy.

Ask your child:

• How do you feel about being a neighbour? (Feel)
• Why do we celebrate Neighbour Day in Calgary? (Think)
• How can you keep the spirit of Neighbour Day alive throughout the year? (Act)

Answer: Neighbour Day is in June to celebrate the incredible outpouring of support and generosity neighbours demonstrated after the 2013 floods, which happened in June.

Trivia Question: How wide are a hippo’s lips?
A: 6 inches
B: 2 feet
C: 4 feet

Mindfulness Activity:

• Sit down so you're comfortable.
• Relax your forehead.
• Relax your jaw.
• Relax your neck.
• Relax your shoulders.

Supplies:

• Paper
• Pencil

Neighbour Day is an annual celebration of what makes Calgary such a great city – our strong and caring communities. Mayor Nenshi asked Calgarians to reach out to him on Twitter and Instagram using the hashtag #yycneighbourday.

Think of creative ideas you have tried in the past 2 months and use the hashtag to share your ideas. Stay connected and see if your ideas are shared on Neighbourhood Day.

Supplies:

• Printable tools and resources

Get inspired and commit to three simple acts of kindness to support your neighbour, community and the city of Calgary. Use the printable tools and resources at the link above for help.

Plan a neighbourhood talent show. Neighbours and friends from your block can each showcase a talent while practicing physical distancing.

Create a sign-up sheet for all your neighbours to pick a time they can each showcase their talent. The goal is to have each household showcase their talent on their front lawn, balcony or park for everyone on the block to see.

Choose 3 judges from your neighbourhood to pick the best act. This is a great way to get the neighbourhood involved and create a positive atmosphere.

Here are some examples of talents that can be show-cased:

• Do a choreographed dance with your family
• Lip sync to your favourite song
• Tell some jokes
• Juggling act
• Show some of your art
• Play an instrument

• How does it feel to be connected in your community? (Feel)
• Why do you think helping our neighbours is important? How does it help with your relationship with your neighbours? (Think)
• How can Calgarians keep the Neighbour Day spirit alive throughout the year? (Act)

Answer: B: 2 feet. Did you know that hippos have pink sweat?