Welcome to the 2026 school year. Thanks for starting your year with Teacher. We’re delighted, as always, to kick off our content with a round up of some key events happening throughout the school year to help with your lesson planning, term by term. If you’d like to add a recommendation, share it with the rest of the Teacher community in the comment section at the bottom of the article.
Term 1
The winter Olympics kick off on 6 February in Italy, followed by the Paralympics beginning on 6 March. The Australian Olympic Committee official website has a range of curriculum-aligned resources for use.
The following week is Safer Internet Day – an international day to bring together schools, organisations and families to raise awareness about online safety issues. Australia’s eSafety Commissioner has collated resources for schools here, including webinars, posters and games.
Another early date for your planning diary is the International Mathematical Modeling Challenge, which takes place from 2 February to 27 April. The annual challenge gives students an opportunity to team up on a complex task that connects their mathematical learning with a real-world situation. Teams have 5 days to complete the task and submit their solution paper for judging. Australia’s participation in the challenge is managed by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER), and you can follow the registration prompts – as well as a range of resources including practice and past challenge prompts – at their website. And you can check out this Teacher article on the 2025 challenge.
For schools using ACER Scholarship Tests and taking part in the cooperative program (where a large number of schools test on the same date), the test dates have been confirmed for 7 February in South Australia and 28 February for Queensland, New South Wales, Northern Territory, Western Australia and Victorian schools. More information, including having your school sit the test on an alternative date, is available on the ACER Scholarships website.
On Thursday 19 March is National Close the Gap Day – a national day to take action in support of achieving health equality for First Nations Peoples by 2032. Close the Gap have produced school resources to assist teachers integrate National Close the Gap Day in the classroom and address learning outcomes.
The UN has declared 2026 as the Year of the Woman Farmer, saying ‘The Year will spotlight the essential roles women play across agrifood systems, from production to trade, while often going unrecognised. Women farmers are central to food security, nutrition and economic resilience.’ Its website has a range of educational videos and downloadable information for use.
Finally, the ACER Advance Awards will return for 2026 in Term 1. Free to enter and open to students in years 7 to 9 from schools currently using ACER assessments, the multi-choice test challenges high-achieving students to apply their knowledge and skills beyond the curriculum in both Literacy and Numeracy. You can read a Teacher article sharing the stories of some of the 2024 school award winners here.
Term 2
National Simultaneous Storytime – the annual event where schools, libraries and families read the same story at the same time – is on 27 May 2026. The book has been chosen, so you can arrange your copy now – Luna Roo: the Kangaroo Baller by Adam Jackson and Adrian Lloyd, illustrated by Jake Minton and published by Little Book Press.
On 5 June is World Environment Day. This day has been held annually since 1973 and is the UN’s principal vehicle for encouraging worldwide awareness and action for the environment.
It’s a sporty time as we head into the middle of the year. The men’s FIFA World Cup begins on 11 June and will be held jointly in the US, Canada and Mexico. Australia has qualified to participate and will play its group matches on 14, 20 and 26 June. FIFA has an article on Australia’s history at the World Cup and, as usual, the event is springboard for lots of learning activities (including statistics and data).
Shortly after, the Commonwealth Games will begin on 23 July in Scotland. The Australian Commonwealth Games Team has collaborated with Cool.org on Borobi’s Classroom – a program named after the Australian team mascot, Borobi the Koala, that aims to engage students from Foundation to year 10 in hands-on learning experiences that celebrate teamwork, inclusion and excellence.
Term 3
National NAIDOC Week celebrations are held across Australia in the first week of July each year. This is during school holidays for many in Australia, but you can still commemorate the week as a school community when you can.
Soon after in August, from Saturday 15 to Sunday 23 is National Science Week. The annual event announces a specific theme for schools each year – for 2026 it’s Seeds of science: Nurturing knowledge for all. A free teacher resource book will be available in late March and there is also a grant applications process to seek financial support for your celebrations.
Don’t forget that registrations for the Australian STEM Video Game Challenge close on 7 August 2026, and submissions are due by 9 September 2026. The free challenge – which is run ACER – invites students in years 3-12 across the country to design and build their own video game inspired by the given theme. In 2026, the theme is ocean and the team has put together a theme sheet, as well as a range of resources designed specifically for primary and secondary teachers. Never participated before? Check out this Teacher Q&A with an experienced team mentor for some words of advice and inspiration.
Finally, R U OK? Day falls at the end of Term 3, on Thursday 10 September 2026 and there are a range of educator resources – from early years to university level – on the official website to scaffold conversations and activities around the day.
Term 4
World Space Week is held annually between 4 and 10 October. The dates commemorate important events in space history – 4 October 1957 was the launch date of the first human-made Earth satellite Sputnik 1, and 10 October in 1967 was the date the Outer Space Treaty came into force. In 2026, the theme for World Space Week is Rocket Revolution, which the organisers say: ‘… is about how launching rockets is no longer reserved for a few countries or big agencies. New companies, universities, and even student teams are sending payloads to space, changing who can take part in space activities.’
Also in Term 4, Thursday 3 December is International Day of People with Disability. The official website has a dedicated range of resources for schools, including lesson ideas and activity sheets.
Finally, ACER’s online store will be getting a major update in 2026. Teachers can subscribe to be notified of when it’s live and also select if they would like to receive emails about PAT news and workshops, and other ACER products.
Consider the key events and themes mentioned in this article. Which do you anticipate will tie in well with your teaching topics this year? What opportunities are there to work with colleagues in other curriculum areas?
Leave a comment below to let us know about your own recommendations for events, anniversaries or milestones this year. We’d love to hear about them!
