Today I’m sharing some ways to make the transition back to school a whole lot more fun with a few fun back-to-school traditions.
In our house, the thought of going back to school receives two very different reactions from our children. Our daughter is thrilled to go back to school this year. Our 10-year-old, however, would much rather stay home with his family and sleep late every day.
For many kids, returning to school is a very emotional time. Sadness creeps in as school gets closer and I have to try hard to make the first week of school a fun time for all of us.
10 Fun Back-to-School Traditions We Love
1. Make Breakfast a Celebration
Our kids love Banana Bread with Chocolate Chips but we’ve also had a tradition of making pancakes with whip cream and sprinkles for the past few years. We like to save those extra special sweet breakfasts for the first day of school or birthdays. Donuts are fun too… you just might want to have them eat some eggs or fruit with it to balance it out a little.
2. Pack a Special Lunch
Make their first lunch of the school year a fun one. Pack a special boxed lunch that they will love. Pick their favorite sandwich, fruit, and snacks. Maybe include a Hershey kiss (I used to send one Hershey kiss in the kid’s lunches every day, it was a fun, simple tradition.
3. Leave a Special Note in their Lunch Boxes.
Lunch box notes are a special way to cheer your kiddo on the first day. They might be missing you if they are younger and finding a sweet note from mom and/or dad can be a real encouragement. Maybe they would love a silly joke instead. It doesn’t have to be fancy, even a quick post-it note with an encouraging word will give your children a fun little surprise at lunch.
* Download my free printable lunch box notes HERE.
4. Take First Day of School Photos
Grab my first day of school signs free printable and start a new tradition of taking first day of school photos. This is one of my favorite traditions and after almost 12 years of schooling, I haven’t missed a year! I love being able to look back over the course of their school years and see their growth.
Maybe they won’t stand still for photos. If this is your child take this as an opportunity to have them dance around and shake off their back-to-school nerves.
* Grab your FREE Printable First Day of School Signs – Click here.. It’s so fun to look back over the years and see just how much your children have grown.
5. Play some fun upbeat music
We love a little Harry Styles in our house and love blasting it to get us moving. Music is a great way to get the kids excited for school and dance off some energy. You can also sing along to your favorite song on the way to school – one year it was anything from The Greatest Showman Soundtrack.
6. Write Fun Messages Around the House
Leave an encouraging message on the bathroom mirror (dry-erase markers work great!). Tuck a note in their backpack, or leave a special letter beside their breakfast. Sending them off to school encouraged and reminded how much they are loved is always the best way to start a new year!
7. Celebrate When They Get Home from School
Greet your kids after school with a silly string attack, confetti, or some other fun celebration when they get home from school. Wanna take it up a notch? Pick up this hilarious dinosaur or unicorn costume and wear it to pick them up from the bus stop or school. Hilarious!
8. Plan for a fun after-school snack
Especially on the first day of school, our kids always come home from school hungry. I love to have a super special snack ready for the first day. Our S’mores Cupcakes or these yummy pumpkin spice whoopie pies are a fun, extra special treat. Not into baking? Run to your local fast-food or local restaurant and get a cheap ice cream cone or head to a gas station and get a sugar-filled slushy (these are REALLY a special treat in our house!)
9. Have your kids answer a fun back-to-school interview.
There is a fun one you can use. Download from the Giggles Galore site HERE
10. Set goals for the year.
Don’t let goal-setting sound intimidating it really doesn’t have to be complicated with your kids. Goals can be as simple as, “I want to make new friends this year.” or “I want to get better at math.” or they can be more complex if you have older students. They may want to get a specific grade point average, maybe they want to be a top scorer in soccer, or try out for the school play.
Setting goals will get them excited and encouraged to do their best when they go back to school.
Your children will look forward to these fun back-to-school traditions every year and they will make the dreaded back-to-school week a little more fun!
Do you have any fun back-to-school traditions?
I’d love to hear more about what you do to make back-to-school week fun for your children. Leave a comment below!
Hazel Avery
Back to school time is always a fun one for my kids. I didn’t want to feel left out of the fun though! We finally made the long-awaited decision to get my cabinets painted and now our home feels totally different. The kids’ friends love coming over. They enjoy doing homework in the kitchen area now. It’s a gathering place. Best decision ever.