Funny Hat Day Activities

National Hat Day is Jan. 15, but it's not the only hat day celebrated in the country. Schools often have a hat day to raise money or awareness for a variety of causes. In general, it's a day when people are encouraged to wear their favorite hat. You can, however, transform the day into one to be remembered by filling it with funny hat day activities.

You can follow tradition and make hats worn by Abe Lincoln, Groucho Marx or Mario and Luigi from "The Mario Brothers." But you can also have a great time by turning hat making into a game. Make a dart board and replace number scores with words like "feathers," "puff balls," "pipe cleaners," "flowers," "horns" and other hat-making materials. Players throw darts three to five times and must incorporate the items they land on in their hat designs. Add to the experience by blindfolding and spinning each player before they throw their darts.

Set a variety of hats such as top hats, baseball caps, cowboy hats, bonnets, berets, bowlers, sun hats, chef hats and helmets on a table. Find music to match each style of hat on the table. For example, country music for a cowboy hat and "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" for baseball caps or baseball helmets. Instruct participants to grab a hat that matches the music they hear and begin dancing. Every time the music changes, tell them they have 30 seconds to grab an appropriate hat and begin dancing again. As the game progresses, shorten the length of time between song styles.

Raise money for Hat Day by selling lunch in hats. Allow people to select sandwich, chip and cookie combinations for lunch. Pack the lunches in different hats like sombreros, child-sized firemen helmets and leprechaun hats. Don't tell them their meal will be served in a hat in honor of Hat Day. Surprise them by delivering the lunches and taking pictures of people in their hats. The funniest photographs will be of men wearing feminine hats and women wearing silly hats.

Before Hat Day, send out flyers inviting people to participate in a hat contest. Write different categories and let contestants know you will be handing out trophies and awards to the best and worst in each category. Include categories such as the largest and smallest hats, as well as the silliest, brightest and scariest hats. Ask all contestants to march in a parade culminating with non-contestants voting on their favorite hats in each category. People watching the parade are exposed to a funky vision of crazy hats on young and old people.