Back to school traditions.

I am so with you on the school supply shopping! I don't have school age children yet and I still found myself giddy over the multiple aisles of stuff at Target the other day. My favorite tradition as a kid was picking out one new outfit to wear for the first day and saving it...and packing my new backpack for the first time. Awesome!

I am starting a new tradition this year inspired by my daughter's wonderful kindergarten teacher last year. I am measuring her the day or 2 before school starts and then again at the end of the school year. I was so surprised when my dd's teacher told me that she grew the most of all the students in her class 2 1/4 inches!

Last year for preschool, I took my son's photo on our front porch. Then, on the last day of school I took the same photo of him wearing the same clothes. I thought to continue doing this every year, because it will be especially fun on the years in which the clothes no longer fit by the end of the year!

I love all these ideas and we do a lot of them, but the most important one for us happens after the first day of school. I call it 'back-to-school blues'. My boys need down-time to recover from new experiences. When they were little I made a 'nest' in the living room with blankets, pillows and stuffed animals. We lay inside the nest and talk about all the stuff that happened, things they liked and didn't, and what they weren't expecting. They can spend as much time in the nest as they need, reading or being read too, have snacks, playing etc. I remind them that they can always talk to me and have 'nest time' any day of the year, whenever they need it. That visual helps them and they often bring a blanket or pillow to me during the year and request nest time. Now they are much bigger and don't want a nest just down time with me and lots of good listening. I love it that we started that young now it is lways part of our school year.

Wow Ali...just the comments alone are such a way to be a life artist...what a way to document people's "every day" stuff.
Love all of the comments, and I wonder what people in 200 years from now will learn and understand about us now, based on all of this documentation.
You inspire me.

Meet the teacher day, usually the day before school starts, is great fun because the kids get to find out who their teacher is and who is in their class, in a fun and social atmosphere. (On the actual first day of school parents are prohibited from entering the classroom so the teacher can get the routine established and prevent meltdowns and separation anxiety).
We always visit the school playground and practice timing our walk to school.
We talk about lunches, what the kids want to have packed in their lunch boxes that might be new or special for this year.
We also go up and down the street talking with our neighbors and inviting them to walk with us to school instead of driving those 4 blocks -- we tell them what time we'll leave in the morning and to join us for some fresh air and exercise, and in a hushed voice I tell the moms that the parents keep walking after the kids go into the school, and we usually end up at Starbucks.
I pull the bins of cool weather clothes out of the attic and the kids have a fashion show and we determine what gets handed down and what has been outgrown by our youngest and needs to be passed to our neighbor's kids. They love sorting through the sweaters and corduroys and turtlenecks I packed away in the spring time. There are usually some tears, though, when a favorite that fit last spring is suddenly inches too short!

I remeber growing up and loving all the newness of a new school year. Now that I have my own kiddo's I have started a tradition of my own. When Marlee first went to preschool 3 years ago she was nervous and so was I. So I bought her a touch stone (for lack of better words). It's just a little rock with a word etch or engraved in it. Brave I believe was her first rock. I put them in those little sheer bags that you pull tight and I put it in her backpack. That way if she ever feels lonley or is missing us she can grab the rock, put it in her hand and know that we are close at heart. Our school is only about 800 feet away from our house so we are really close but these rocks have become tradition and Marlee and Ian both love receiving them. I can't wait to pick out their new rocks for this year.

I love the idea of "back to school traditions". Because for myself it was always hard to know, that the holidays already are over and the night before school starts I hardly could fall asleep.
So I am looking forward to the suggestions, people have over here, although my little boy is far away from going to school.

I used to love going shopping in WH Smith in England for my new pencil case and note books. Everything started off so nice with that fresh new smell - but I could never wait to decorate my things!!
Emma

Our Traitions:
We go school shopping for supplies and clothes and go out for a fun 'before-school-starts-lunch' and let the kids talk about what they are excited about. I take Photos on the first day of school as well.
I pack the lunches the night before and leave some Hershey Kisses with a love note in a baggie for them. This year we'll be doing Laptop Lunches, which are healthier and they will help me pick their foods out...(still going to leave them the Kisses and note).
I love the 'Book Worm Hat'idea...although, with my 6 yr old daughter...a Princess Hat will work better.

oh yes...I forgot to mention we start PRACTICING for school 2 weeks before. You know...going to bed at 8pm and getting up at 6am, getting dressed, making beds, having a good breskfast, brushing teeth, hair, etc...this way they are already back in the habit of school-mode and things run smoothly when school actually starts.

the peechee folders...loved them!
now with my own kids, we get our bedtime routines back into sync. we talk a lot about the new year, what to expect, and things to remember.

I love the Staples (?) ad with Alice Copper and his daughter. She is telling him "You said that school is out forever!" and he responds with "It's only a song!"
We get up school time early the day before and go out for breakfast. It makes sure that the kids are tired and go to bed early and get lots of rest for the first day of school. I take lots of first day of school pics too.
Then we go out for Sonic treats after school.

My twins are starting kindergarten this year and other than taking first day photos and supply shopping
I couldn't think of any other
activities. Thank you all for your wonderful ideas! It's going to be hard to choose which ones to steal
:-D And thank you, Ali, for giving us a forum to document these important parts of our lives. Congratulations to Simon for starting kindergarten as well, I'll be looking forward to hearing how his day went. XX's BethBG

I SOOO apologize if I am repeating anyone else. but 153 comments....I stopped reading after awhile! lol!
a friend of mine started this tradition and I now do it: the day or couple days before school starts the boys get a book that has their new grade level in the title...ie: "I was a 3rd grade science project," "Tales of a 4th grade nothing," etc.

I make my son french toast the morning of. His favorite!

My son started kindergarten a few weeks ago. One of his little friends gave him the book The Night Before Kindergarten by Natasha Wing and Julie Durrell. This is a great little book to ready the nights leading up to the big day.
As for traditions I took a picture of Chase by the front door all dressed up for the first day of school. I also took his picture as he walked into class (had to get the backpack in the shot) and another one as he came out of the classroom at the end of the day.

As I am a teacher myself, tradition here starts earlier than the 1st of September. My five-year old daughter loves to go with me in the secondlast week of the holiday, to my classroom, where I clean and set everything straight for a new year. she loves playing and running through the long corridors or writing on the schoolboard :).
That sets off an entire routine of things, like buying new clothes (this year I am afraid I will have to listen to my little monster. She refuses wearing clothes she doesn't like, which means I will have to take her with me) and talks with my husband of how to arrange the next year practically.
The last day before school starts (my husband's a teacher too) we don't discuss our schedules on a little family-barbecue (even when it rains!!!) in our garden under the tree, but we plan our next trip or dreams about our house. The last day is sacred: no talking about OR working for school!!! mostly we clean out the garden or make a little trip and enjoy each other.
the last week of holiday is one of lots a work (my daughter already knows this routine and she loves it!! she steals papers and writes down stuff (since Easter she knows how to write words) and plays teacher too (although she says she wants to be a paleontologist..) and plays with her toys. this year, the last week will also contain visits to the swimming pool to arrange her swimming lessons and a visit to the balletschool to subscribe her (she enjoyed it so much, she wants to continue).
Oh yes, and on the last day we take a photograph of us three.
We kinda celebrate our own New Year's Eve..
Evelyne

Two traditions in my family growing up:
1. Get my picture taken the first day of school with my first lunchbox. Started in kindergarten... went on through my first trip to college! By then the lunchbox had seen better days! ;-D
2. Opening my new box of Crayolas. I said in high school that I always got the box of 24 and the next year my dad got me the box of 64 with the sharpener built in to take with me to college. Those crayons were great stress-relievers between studying, plus they were tons of fun for making birthday signs to post on our dorm floor. :-D
As a teacher, I start back up in a week. Maybe I should venture out and buy myself a box of 64 and some coloring books. :-)

I shop with my kids and have a special date with each of them. We take a picture with their backpack in the same spot each year. Cookies are waiting. Last year my 97 year old grandmother, an educator for years died during the Summer. We honored her by putting her little slate chalkboard on the door with the words, "Back to School" written in chalk. I invited about 25 moms to our house after dropping off their kids. Little siblings were welcome, and we enjoyed swapping summer stories, a few tears, and a shared cup of coffee and treats. We're doing it again this year. It's a special way for new moms to our school and neighborhood to meet.