Although most people don’t give crayons much thought, they can be extremely important to a child’s development. Using crayons improves a child’s fine motor skills and dexterity, enhances hand-eye coordination, and allows them to exercise the creative part of their brain. Unfortunately, many children’s families cannot afford to provide them with crayons, so these children cannot derive these benefits.

And that’s why August was designated as National Crayon Collection Month. During this month, crayons are collected on behalf of children. This not only ensures that the children have access to an important educational tool but also ensures that teachers do not have to spend their own money to purchase crayons for the children they teach.

The History of National Crayon Collection Month

Sheila Morovati invented this month in 2016. She is the founder and President of Crayon Collection, an organization that attempts to pair discarded crayons with the schoolchildren who need them. One of their most successful programs is the Crayon Recycling Program, which has partnerships with hotel chains and national restaurants to distribute free crayons to children.

Fun Facts About Crayons

Everyone reading about National Crayon Collection Month knows what a crayon is and how it is used. After all, these coloring tools have been around for a long time. However, we’re willing to bet that there are still a few things that many people might not know about crayons, so we did a deep dive into the subject and rounded up some fun crayon facts that everyone can enjoy.

• Over 3 billion crayons are made by Crayola every year.
• The smell of crayons is the 18th most recognizable scent in the entire U.S.
• Crayola changed the name of the ‘Flesh’ crayon to ‘Peach’ in 1962.
• Almost 250 billion Crayola crayons have been produced as of 2020.
• Crayons were hand-labeled for the first four decades of Crayola’s existence.
• Currently, there are 120 shades of crayons.
• America’s favorite crayon color is blue.
• It has been estimated that the average child will wear down 720 crayons by the time they are 10 years old.
• The second most popular crayon color in the United States is red.

Observing National Crayon Collection Month

Anyone can observe this month. Under the Crayon Recycling Program, slightly used crayons are obtained from restaurants and hotels to be given to children. That’s one way to observe this month. Another way is for people to buy crayons and donate them to a local school. People are also encouraged to spread the word about this month using the hashtag #CrayonCollectionMonth.