Hey, parents! Summer may be coming to an end, but the celebrations don’t have to stop.
Back-to-school doesn’t have to be stressful. Instead, you can make it a time of excitement, creativity and super-sweet memories. Here’s how you can turn back-to-school season into a celebration the whole family (and teachers!) will enjoy, complete with plenty of back-to-school activities.
Plan a Countdown-to-School Weekend
Naturally, the back-to-school vibes (and nerves!) start building the week or two before school starts. So why not put all that energy to good use? You and the kids can plan a mini celebration at home the weekend before school. Let’s call it the Countdown-to-School Weekend. You can even let the kids decorate the house and backyard with party balloons, streamers and anything they can think of. Here are some ideas for the weekend:
Cook a Themed Breakfast
Get your kids involved in making a breakfast of their dreams. Maybe it will feature all their favorite summer breakfast foods. Or maybe you’ll be serving “You’re Going to Have a Sweet Year” muffins or “Donut Stress, You’ve Got This” donuts. No matter what theme you decide on, here are some breakfast recipes for inspiration:
Spark Creativity with Crafts
Make good use of that last little bit of school-free time by working on some crafts together. When you break out the markers, colored paper and glue, you never know what fun things you can cook up.
An affirmations jar craft is both something creative to work on now and something to look forward to later. Start by filling a jar with HERSHEY’S Miniatures, dressed up with words or phrases of affirmation. So the next time you go to grab a sweet treat, you’ll also find some sweet thoughts.
Host a Back-to-School Send-Off
Here’s an excuse to host one last backyard bash of the year. It could be a picnic, a barbecue or even a glorified playdate. The important thing is to make it a celebration of the school year to come.
Let the kids decorate with lots of primary colors and school-themed cutouts or items, including apples, globes, pencils, crayons and toy school buses. Add bowls of your favorite snack-size treats like SKINNYPOP Popcorn and REESE’S Peanut Butter Cups. Then invite friends and family, dress the yard with twinkle lights, grill up some food and round it all out with ooey-gooey S’mores over a campfire.
Organize Some First-Day Fun
Once the kids are off to school, they’re out of your hands — for the school day. But teachers could use some help with the craziness that comes with back to school, because we all know that kids start their new school routine at full speed!
Calm Down with Coloring Pages
For the first week in the classroom, printable back-to-school coloring pages are a perfect activity to help ease into classroom routines. Maybe it’s even a good post-recess activity to keep them engaged and get everyone settled in for the rest of the day.
Bonus: At home, parents can pair PIRATE’S BOOTY coloring pages with a bowl of snacks to help kids wind down after a day at school.
Show Appreciation with Back-to-School Teacher Gifts
Teachers have the huge challenge of educating our kids, so why not show your appreciation on day one? It’s simple to put together a sweet “Welcome Back” teacher care package, filled with yummy treats and some essentials to get them through the chaos. You can even include back-to-school coloring pages, writing prompts or scavenger hunts. Here are some of our favorite goodies for inspiration:
- SKINNYPOP Original Popcorn
- Hand sanitizer
- ONE REESE’S Peanut Butter Lovers Flavored Protein Bar
- Pain reliever
- Hand lotion
- HERSHEY’S DiPPeD PreTzels
- ICE BREAKERS ICE CUBES Peppermint Gum
- Lip balm
- Stain pen
No matter what kind of back-to-school festivities you plan, it’ll get your kids excited for the start of school, which is a good thing! Adding in lots of fun activities and delicious treats will also make it fun for both family members and teachers.
