We are 2 weeks from starting our 9th year homeschooling!! Our summer went by way too fast, but we are excited to get back to our regular routine and lots of new books! I have been prepping for the 1st day and start of our homeschool year early so I can *try* to rest and enjoy these last few weeks.
Today I want to share with you how we celebrate the first day back to school and get through the first week!
Breakfast
We always celebrate the first day with a fun back to school breakfast to start. It really isn’t anything fancy because I use the same decorations every year and we have something simple like cinnamon rolls or donuts to eat, but the kids love it!
I bought some fabric I liked years ago for $6 and use it every year as our table runner, I reuse the same back to school banner, and shop my house for other school decor (globe, pencils, easel, etc.) I love to decorate with their new school supplies too!
Decorations and our favorite homeschool picture books HERE.
Photos
After breakfast we get ready for the day and take our first day of school photos. I printed these free signs years ago and have used them for each grade over the years.
Arrows & Applesauce also has these flags that are available for the first and last day and are so cute!
We don’t do a lot of back to school shopping for clothes, but I do let my kids each pick a new outfit for the first day. It makes them feel good and excited even if we are just staying home.
All About Me
I love starting the first day with an all about me project. These are my favorite to save over the years and look back on!
This year I got these large signs for each grade level that will be at their place setting for breakfast. They will be able to color and fill these in all about their favorite things. (*The set includes one for grades 1-8. I printed one for grade 1 and will add two pieces to make a K for my Kindergartener. ☺️) This also includes other coloring and activity pages.
I grabbed this fun crocs project too that I know my kids will love! They color their own croc and follow the prompt to draw/create their own charms to put on their crocs.
These trucker hats with patches are also a fun project I have saved for possibly next year!
Past years we have made these silhouette portraits that were a big hit and my favorite to hang and display! Find the tutorial HERE!
Schoolwork
We take it SUPER easy on the first day back. After having our special breakfast, taking photos, and doing a fun about me project, most of the day is gone. It has become a fun tradition that I let my kids explore all their curriculum and they pick ONE thing to complete that day. Sometimes they choose a lesson of math, a spelling worksheet, or a language arts lesson, but just choose one subject and that’s all we do. Takes the stress and pressure off the first day to get it all done!
In the afternoon we love to pop some popcorn and all start our new chapter books too!
Our homeschool checklists are the biggest help in getting everything we need to done during the rest of the week!
First Week Back
For the rest of the week we will continue starting all our new core curriculum, but we don’t start any other subjects (history or science) until the following week or two. This gives us time to get back into our routine and get used to any new curriculum before jumping back into every subject.
This year we will start our Ancient Egypt history curriculum the second week of school.
That’s it! Keep it light and fun, making it easier on you and your kids! You don’t have to jump in to it all at once and give yourself lots of grace!
I hope you have a great homeschool year full of new memories and lots of learning!
-Lindsay
For all the homeschool curriculum we are using this school year, check out these blog posts:
Homeschool Curriculum Over the Years: Master Blog Post
Completing Curriculum: Our Daily/Weekly Schedule
so cute! thank you for the fun ideas! I cant wait to see what else you have to share for this coming school year.
Thank you for all the great ideas, as always! I tried the link for the free “first day of school” printables and it didn’t seem to be working for me.
Yes sorry, I think those are so old the link isn’t working anymore. I linked an additional option just in case. 🙂