It’s back to school season. My daughter is so excited to go back to preschool, but not as excited as her mama. (Can I get a witness!) 24/7 togetherness drives me right up to the edge of my sanity, so our house is very ready for school to start. So ready, in fact, that I’ve decided to put together a back-to-school celebration.
I like to keep things simple, but I’m also always looking for a reason to celebrate.
If you’d like to throw your own back-to-school celebration, then here are the key ingredients.
5 Essentials for a Simple Back-to-School Celebration
1. Decor
Decorating the mantle for holidays and other occasions is my jam. But if you don’t want to spend a lot of money on a “non-holiday,” the best place to visit is Dollar Tree. Raid the school supplies section and get creative with ways to use classroom items in your home.
I used an alphabet border and gold picture frame from Dollar Tree, a printable I found online, and glass vases and coloring supplies I already had to dress up my mantle.
Plus, to add to the fun for my daughter and me, we created a construction paper chain to count down the days left until school starts.
2. Clothes
I’m pretty sure from kindergarden through high school, I always had a new outfit for the first day of school.
I’m not one to break with a good tradition, so I bought Francesca something new to wear on her first day.
The bonus is that summer clothes are being marked down as fall clothes are coming out, so it’s a great time to get an outfit for this hot summer weather at a great price.
And, hey, if you decide to take advantage of the great sales too, I won’t tell. 😉
3. First Day Photo
This has become a requirement for the first day of school, right?
I have seen a lot of variations on this. Some people use chalkboards to write their child’s name and age, and others do boards with facts about their kids.
You could use a letterboard you already have to put their name and grade, or just find a cute printable online to use like these from Paper Trail Design.
And, how cute is this first day chalkboard at Michaels for only $5?
4. Food
A party ain’t a party without good food, am I right?
Since I only have one school-aged child, she gets to pick her favorite food, whether home-cooked or from a restaurant, to eat the night before school starts. But if you have multiple school-aged kids, you could assign them each a course to choose their favorite- appetizer, main, side, dessert, etc. Or save yourself some work and take the family to a buffet restaurant, so everyone can get what they want.
I would wager the Conways will be headed to McDonalds so a certain little girl can get a hamburger happy meal with apple juice and apple slices.
If you have extra time, bake a cute back-to-school themed snack like these brownies from the Cupcake Diaries. They are almost too cute to eat. Almost.
5. Activity
Say goodbye to summer and hello to the school routine with a fun family activity.
Water activities like going to the pool or out on the lake is always fun. But go with what your family likes to do together. Play board games, go to the movies, go bowling, or play putt-putt.
No matter what you choose, your kids will remember this yearly fun tradition even when they are grown.
What about you? Does your family celebrate back to school or is buying all the supplies enough for you? What is your back-to-school ritual? Email me or message me on Instagram and let me know.
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