Back to Homeschool Day
With the smell of September in the air, the first hint of cooling and the autumn leaves just beginning to think about changing color, with BYU football games looming on the horizon, with the front aisles of every store crammed with thousands of binders and pencils—and even more shoppers—even year-round homeschoolers know that the traditional "first day of school" is fast approaching.
Almost every year, I am actually attending BYU's Education Week when the local public schools resume, so my children are having the time of their lives with the usually forbidden sugar cereals and mounds of frozen convenience foods. But what about the rest of you?
Some homeschoolers let this day pass as no more than a blip on the radar screen and a promise that there will be less neighborhood children at their door before 3:00 pm. Others like to celebrate the new year in style. If you are the latter, here are some great ideas I've gathered from around the globe (from homeschoolers more ambitious and creative than I) to create your own special day to look forward to.
Not Going Back to School Party
Instead of having a "school day" on the first day of local public schools, we intentionally do the opposite. We go to a playground, a water park, a movie, the zoo, a pool—any local amusement that the public school kids cannot attend, because they are sitting in a classroom. Not only do we avoid the crowds, but the kids feel privileged!
Breakfast Bunch
Each year, we host a big pancake and bacon breakfast for all the other homeschoolers that live close by. After we stuff ourselves, the kids play outdoors for a bit, while the moms talk and plan for the coming year.
Back to School Bunny
Each year we get a visit from the Back to School Bunny. The bunny brings fun pencils, notebooks, etc.—depending on what my children need at the time.
Box of Fun
On the first day of school we decorate new storage boxes to keep their school stuff in with markers, stickers, etc.
Binder Time
We use notebooks for most of our schoolwork as outlined in The Well-Trained Mind. On the first day of school every year, we gather up new binders, organize them, and prepare them for the next year of assignments. We always use Office Depot's economical View Binders for our assignments. They are durable, the perfect size, and they have the see-through pockets in front, back, and on the spine. Once our books are organized, we draw, color, or print out covers to slip in the pockets to decorate our binders and to make each subject easy to identify.
Christmas in September
On the first day of school, we present the children with new school supplies—all wrapped up as gifts. We always include a selection of Crayola art supplies (I like this brand best, especially the washable items!), index cards that we use for everything under the sun, and the jumbo pack of dry-erase markers—you can get any child to do anything, if they can do it in brilliant color on a white board!
We have school Christmas where they get new supplies and some of them are wrapped. They really like this.
Wardrobe Wrap-Up
Most kids in the neighborhood get new "school clothes" at the beginning of the school year and, admittedly, it was one of my personal favorite parts of late summer as a child. So we celebrate the "new year" by going on a modest shopping spree with each child being given a budget and clothing guidelines. This has not only been fun, but has encouraged the kids to be less sloppy than they might be without the constant peer influence that schools provide.
The Wheels on the Bus
When we began to homeschool, my kindergarten daughter was utterly disappointed that she didn't get to ride the very cool, yellow bus. Set aside the fact that, due to our close proximity to the school, she wouldn't get to ride the bus even if she went to school; still this was a attraction she wouldn't let go. So, we took a trip around town on the local bus line to satisfy her curiosity.
Now, every year on the first day of school, we hop on the bus, and take a round trip around town—stopping at an ice cream parlor for good measure!
Food, Glorious Food
Two trappings of school have garnered much attention from homeschoolers "deprived" of their benefits: packed lunch boxes and cafeteria food. In order to address this unrequited longing, we established two traditions that we incorporate on the first day of school, depending upon which interests our children at the time.
- We pack lunches in lunch boxes or bags and eat them together when noon rolls around.
- We eat in a cafeteria. Sometimes a cafeteria-style restaurant will do but, if possible, I prefer to schedule a date at the local public school lunchroom. The latter only has to be done once to convince the child they really aren't missing much!
Reading Nook
On the first day of every school year, we head to our great public library. We spend as much time as is humanly possible and allow each child to check out the maximum number of books allowed. In some cities, this has left us with a laundry basket full of books for each child! This has been fun and helped turn our excited attention to more academic pursuits.
Picture This!
When my kids were in school, we always took pictures of them, just as they headed to the bus stop. When we began to homeschool, the tradition continued. It has been a fun way to mark another year of growth and learning.
Bountiful Breakfast
On our first day of school, we have a celebratory breakfast. The menu varies each year, but it's always something out of the ordinary. Our past choices have included: cinnamon rolls; omelettes; Egg McMuffins at the park; ice cream sundaes (!); a meal at IHOP or Denny's; granola and juice while watching the sun rise.
We are open to anything that will be worth remembering!
Razzle Dazzle
Each year, we spend the first day decorating our homeschool room. We have two bulletin boards and some wall space, that we spruce up to reflect some of the things we will focus on. One year we painted the room a bright, fun color.
Party Picnic
Our support groups sponsors a fun-filled day at the park. We each bring a picnic, the kids play frisbee, ball, and end with a big water fight complete with water balloons and shirt guns.
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