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Call me crazy, but I LOVE back-to-school time! Yes, it does mean summer is over and that part makes me a little sad. However, I really just love the fresh start of a new school year, the excitement of starting new books, the comfort of going back to a routine, and of course, the start of one of my favorite seasons – fall!
Is this your first-year homeschooling? Or have you been homeschooling for awhile? Either way, if you could use some new BTS ideas, scroll down to see a little of what we do at the start of the school year and take a peek into our school room!
But First…Have You Heard About the “Me & My World September Bundle”?
Are you joining my family as we go through the 15-Day “Me and My World” themed bundle next month?!
Designed for preschool through fifth-grade students (although some activities will work for older students who want to jump in too), this 15-day study is packed with interactive activities, themed snacks, and guided reading to help your kids explore their world—starting with themselves and expanding to the larger community and beyond!
What’s Inside the Bundle:
Additional Resources: The PDF includes a suggested reading list, master supply list, grocery list, themed bookmark and punch card for tracking progress, and a detailed teacher guide.
15 Days of Themed Learning: Each day focuses on a different theme, including “My Five Senses,” “All About Me,” “All About My Family,” “All About My Home,” “Community Helpers,” and more.
45+ Activities: Access and print each activity individually, if desired.
98 Pg. Bonus File: Save time and print everything (in order) AND receive some extra printables to make this bundle even more effective (suggested reading list, master supply list, snacks overview, grocery list, and detailed teacher guide.
3 Daily Activity Options: A variety of arts and crafts, writing or drawing assignments, and hands-on projects to suit different learning styles.
2 Suggested Books Per Day: Keep reading fun and relevant with carefully selected book recommendations.
Themed Snacks: Enjoy daily themed snacks with easy-to-follow directions and pictures included.
Teacher Guide: A step-by-step guide that includes pictures, daily activities, snack instructions, and book recommendations for each day.
If you could use a fun social studies/American geography boost this year, I would love to have you join us! Each day will get its own blog post here with links to extra educational resources, etc. You could always spread out the days or activities to make it last throughout the year, as well.
If you have any questions, please reach out and feel free to ask!
10 Back-to-School Ideas for Homeschoolers
The start of a new school year is such a great opportunity to refresh routines, set new goals, and make the learning environment inspiring and exciting! Here is some of what we do to make the back-to-school time fun!
#1. Welcome Back-to-School Gift Bags
I love to kick off the school year with little gift bags for each of my kids! You can see below what I put in each of my kids bags this year, things like cute pencil sharpeners, stickers, a treat, “special thinking putty”, and a few other things. Each year it’s a little different! I’ll usually include a handwritten card (I still need to write those) with a prayer and any thoughts/wishes I have for them for the new school year. They will find these on their desk on the first day of school!
If you’d like to use these “Welcome to (Grade)” cards for your gift bags, you can download those over at my TPT shop (FREE for today only)! ❤️ I also have matching “Welcome to (Grade)” 8.5″x11″ printable sheets for taking Back-to-School pictures too (see below)! I would greatly appreciate a review, so if you don’t mind leaving one behind, I would love it!
#2. Revamp Your Homeschool Space
Before we start school, I’ll go through and empty out our school room. I’ll do a deep clean and then reorganize the space so it feels GOOD and fresh when we start. I love to switch out the decor for our school door area each year too. This year I found this set at Hobby Lobby for 50% off! A lot of times I’ll make my door decor from scratch, but this was a nice and easy idea this year!
#3. Celebrate with a Fun Breakfast
This is one of my kids favorite BTS traditions! We ALWAYS have waffles with whip cream, sprinkles, and a candle. They each get a candle, place it in their waffle, and then they’ll make a wish for the new school year before blowing it out. We actually made up a song too, but as they get older, I’m not sure how long that part of the tradition will last 😆
#4. Plan an Exciting Field Trip
This is a new thing we’ve been doing the last few years! Instead of starting school the day after Labor Day like we’ve done in the past, we have used that Labor Day week to go on some adventures before officially starting school. Going places, like a local indoor waterpark, right after public school starts means that there are NO lines and hardly anyone at popular spots. It might feel weird to start school a little later than everyone else, but it is SO worth it!
#5. Capture the Moment with Back-to-School Photos
I like to use these 8.5″x11″ signs that I made to document our BTS day! This is a fun way to capture their growth and create a BTS keepsake journal or scrapbook to look back on as they get older.
If you’d like my set of BTS signs, you can grab them here! There are two versions PLUS matching “Last Day Of” signs as well.
#6. Set Reading Goals with Bookmarks
Something fun to do that first week is choosing some books they want to read during the new school year! I made this 8.5″x11″ book tracker (they can write in and keep track of up to 12 books that they want to read). Once they read it, they can color in that book. My kids keep this on the wall above their desk.
This set also includes three different bookmarks as well! They can color in each book as they read them! Grab this printable set here!
#7. Create Personalized Self-Portraits
A fun thing to always do is to create a self-portrait at the beginning of each year. I love keeping these in their school memory boxes. It’s amazing to look back and see how their self-portrait projects change over the years!
You can grab this self-portrait template for FREE over on my TPT shop! And if you could leave behind a review and let me know your kids enjoyed it afterwards, I would LOVE and appreciate that so much! Thank you!
#8. New School Supplies/Activities
I like to grab some new games or learning materials each year. Sometimes it’s books too. Even if it’s just basic things, like new paintbrushes or playdough, it feels and looks more exciting when you turn it into a surprise. I set out these supplies on our group table in the school room!
#9. All About Me Activities
Doing All About Me activities are always fun to do during the first few weeks of school! I’ve made this mini-book, this half-page flipbook, and this playdough sheet (or this set) for my kids to do in the past! You could also do this 15-Day Me & My World Bundle (we’ll be doing this in September!).
#10. Finish with a Back-to-School Treat!
Go do something fun or grab a treat after you finish the first day (or the first week)! I’ve done donuts in the past or trips to a local coffee shop for the kid-friendly lattes!
Want to Join Us Next Month? Download and Print the September Calendar Below!
Enter your email below to print and download the “Me & My World” September Calendar! Make sure to join my FB group to participate with everyone doing this theme together! You can also grab the activity bundle here! A few of the activities will be offered for free, but most of them will need to be purchased. If you grab them individually, it’s $84+ but the bundle is only $15 and includes extra bonus printables!
Wishing you all the BEST start to this new school year!
