Back to school is fast approaching!! Time to start gearing up for the first day of homeschool.
The first day of homeschool doesn’t have to be stressful or uneventful. Today I’m sharing with you some first day traditions that we’ve taken up since we started homeschooling five years ago. These traditions are simple, fun, and easy to plan for.
Cook up a special breakfast
I always like to start the first day of school with a special breakfast. In our home, pancakes with sprinkles topped with whipped cream has become a first day favorite. Plan on cooking up your families favorite breakfast recipe or try something new. If you’re not a family that eats out very often, I would even go as far as finding a great breakfast spot in town to try out for the day.
First day photo shoot
We’re not big on dressing up for the school day every day of the year. But I do make it a priority to get everyone dressed on the first day of homeschool for a family photo shoot. I typically take an individual picture of each of the kids and then a family picture that includes my husband and myself. This is a great tradition to adopt because it gives a look at how much each kiddo has grown throughout the years. They are definitely special memories you’ll want to keep.
Library Trip
I always like to plan a trip to the library on the first day of homeschool. Each kid picks out their own selection of books while I pick out some picture books for family read aloud time for the month. After we’ve all picked out the books we’re taking home, the kids are free to have some fun. I love that our library has computers with age appropriate activities, but they also have different stations set up with other activities for the kids. I think going to the library on the first day of school is a great trip to take because you normally want that first day to be a slower day, versus jumping all in…. Which leads me to the next point.
Ease into schoolwork
I don’t know if easing into schoolwork can count as a tradition, but for our household, it is. We don’t start every single curriculum on this day, or this week. The first day of homeschool is more of an introductory day to all of our new curriculum. We might get one or two things done, but for the most part, I like to keep the day on the lighter side. The kids get to look through all of the curriculum, ask any questions they might have about them, and if they decide to they want to do one thing versus the other, then I’ll let them. I try to focus this day more on getting a school rhythm established over everything else.
Keep it fun
Overall, the first day of homeschool should be fun. Consider playing board games, having an art lesson, or taking a field trip. Whatever you can think of that will make this day fun, not only for the kiddos, but for you as well. I feel like us parents can sometimes put in so much effort in making sure that the kids enjoy the day, but at the end of it, we’re miserable. Our enjoyment is just as important as our kids. Keeping this day simple and fun is such a great way to start off the brand new homeschool year.
What traditions have you adopted for your first day of homeschool?
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