We are headed into Back to School season here in Arizona. The heat is kicking our butts and we are all anxious for the fall weather to bring us rain and some relief. But, unfortunately, we have a few more months of desert heat to get through.
So public schools go back early (usually end of July and early August) and a lot of homeschoolers do as well. I usually want to pick up the schoolwork to make some progress while we are stuck inside. Then we can take longer breaks while the weather is nicer in October and November.
I am writing these posts as I plan out my school year, gather materials, and prepare for school lessons. Looking over my notebooks, I realized that I usually do the same schedule for each 1st Day of School. So below I am sharing what I typically do. I had some fun making printables and activities that I will use with my kids. I hope they are helpful to you as well. Take or leave whatever works for you! 😁
My #1 Tip – Plan out your 1st Day Schedule
When do you want your first day of school to be?
- Did you create your Yearly Schedule and Weekly Plans? (here is a post & printable to help)
- Usually, our first day of school is on a Wednesday or a Thursday. I want it to be a short week so that we can ease into the longer school week schedule.
What do you want your 1st day of school to be about?
- For us, the 1st Day of School is all about milestones, celebration, and gently getting back into the routine. (After a few days we will get into more concrete work.)
- We enjoy fun traditions (1st-day pictures) and we do our Morning Time group work activities together. The emphasis is on family culture and excitement about the year ahead.
What is your typical daily rhythm as a family?
- Keep what is working and change what has gotten out of wack.
What activities feel like celebrating the change in the season?
- I love group work and singing hymns together.
- I enjoy silly first-day-of-school handouts and scavenger hunts, so that’s what I pick to do.
Here is my schedule that I have created for us this year:
**additional ideas –
Some things that I have included in our schedule in the past are:
- getting doughnuts
- going swimming in the afternoon
- wrapping up new notebooks & markers and giving them to the kids as gifts
- fun breakfast – pancakes, homemade muffins, or bacon & eggs
- going out for lunch
- obstacle course races in rolling desk chairs
This year I do not have the energy or the budget to do anything “extra”, so I am keeping it simple.
(and that’s okay!) 😄
Here is the link to a blank printable you can use to make your own 1st day schedule.
More resources from my schedule:
- Morning Chores & Morning Routines – I have a few articles on this topic.
- the Monday Meeting – Even if it’s not on a Monday (can also be called the Family Meeting)
- Morning Time – Pam Barnhill is the most amazing resource for this! (I have a post on this coming soon.)
- Free Printable for 1st Day Activities – 10 page free printable with fun no prep activities for kids. [see link below]
- Word searches
- Scavenger Hunt
- Unscramble
- Silly faces
- Drawing activity
- Writing Prompt pages
[Our 1st day photos from August 2018, August 2019 and last year August 2021😁]
When I was a public school teacher the first day was always full of nerves and many tasks. But as a homeschool mom I can relax into our normal family routines and slowly get back into “school mode” over several days. Especially with young kids, it is important to ease into schoolwork after a summer break.
I focus on celebration, keeping our routines, and also giving my kids plenty of free time.
I encourage you to listen to your mom intuition. You know what is best for your kids.
- What is too much for your 1st day of school?
- What sounds like fun to do together?
- Do you have a kid who loves to celebrate that can help make pancakes?
- Can you wrap up a few school books for the kids to open?
- What 1st Day printables (from the free download) look fun to do with your kids?
- How can you make some time for self-care in the afternoon to recover from the busy day?
If I am being honest, back-to-school season is hard on me too. Extending kindness to everyone (including myself) is essential in this hot summer month. I would rather do less with good attitudes and focused attention, than push past our limits.
A prayer for you & your home:
Lord God,
Help us as we head into back-to-school season. You know what we face in our homes. You know our fears, insecurities, and struggles. ..and you care for us in those. Thank you God for seeing each of us and for loving our kids even more than we can. Help us to keep You in mind as we plan. Prompt us to pray as we make decisions over our days. Show us what is best for our kids and our personalities. You know what this year will hold and so we give it to You Lord. Give us strength, perseverance, and hope.
Amen!
📝📒Happy Homeschooling! – April
P.S. – Curious about what I do for the rest of the week? I follow a pattern for those days as well. After a few days, we get into more concrete grade-level work and I introduce the curriculum we will use for the year.
See my Homeschooling posts for more in this series.
[Featured Photo by Deleece Cook on Unsplash]