Back to School: 7 Things to Do

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Back to school can feel daunting. These are some simple steps you can take to make sure you are prepared for the first week, and set up for success.

morning basket — Prepare for Back to School

Summer is winding down. You realize the date you set on the calendar as the “First Day of School,” is quickly approaching. Do not panic. There are some things to do, yes. However, it is more simple than you may think.

Entering our 9th year of home education, I jotted down the 7 things I do to ensure we are ready for the first week of school. Breaking them down, it is manageable and possible. I did not include selecting your curriculum because I am assuming you have that. If not, check out what we are planning to use for 2022-2023.

After reading through, you will feel more prepared and ready to tackle heading back into school!

This post is all about getting prepared and set up for a smooth first week of homeschool.

1. Morning Basket

If you’re like me, the morning basket looks thrashed from the year prior. Now is the time to empty out the contents and do a full clean out. Old papers and past read alouds can find a new home. Refer to the morning time curriculum you’ll be using, or whatever you decided on. We’ll continue using this plan for our morning basket in the fall. Make sure you have the books and materials you need ready to go.

2. Homeschool Supply Check

I like to use a 3-tiered cart for the books and supplies we use daily. I have a whole post dedicated to this portable organizable friend of mine. Go through your supplies to purge and make a list of what you need to replace. This is a great time to sharpen pencils, throw out dried out markers, and see what paintbrushes are in bad shape. We tend to need to replace very few items lately, but I do grab the kids planners and narration notebooks.

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3. Meal Plan

One of the most underrated item on the to do list is meal planning. How many times have I failed to plan what we’re doing for a meal, and it never fails to creep up on me exacly 3 times day. Never. Setting yourself up for a successful first week of school is almost dependent on this task. The weeks when I have my meal plan down, all ingredients considered and prepped are the smoothest homeschool weeks I can remember.

meal planner — Meal Planning: The Most Important Tip

4. First Week of Lesson Planning

Pull out all of your curriculum that you plan to start the first week of school. I don’t actually do this. What I found works best for me is starting 1-2 new things a week to not overwhelm myself or the children. It is something I started doing a few years ago, and I found it eases us gently back into the rigor of a school year.

However, whatever you want to start the first week of school, take a look at the lesson plans. Input everything you want to do (don’t do it all!) into your planner. Take some time to view the entire layout and see if any day or child looks overloaded. No matter the ages of your children, the first week can be lighter and intentionally slower.

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5. Inspect What you Need

However, if you start everything the first week of school, take a look at the first week of plans. Input in your planner, if you choose. Inspect and see if you have every book and item you intend to use for that week. You don’t want to plan for a read aloud or fun activity only to find you are missing an important component for it. I have been there many times, and want to learn from that. Make those library holds and supply orders in now!

6. First Day Treat

Treat yo self no matter if your first day is on a Tuesday or not. Making or picking up a special treat for the first day or school gets everyone (including mom!) in a positive headspace for the new school year. A special big stack of pancakes, a fancy tea time, or you are free to use are simple box of sprinkled donuts tradition. Everyone is in a better mood and thankful for what feels like an extra special day.

7. Set the Table

Probably my second most efficient tip is setting the table the night before.

Laying out your own filled out homeschool planner
Setting out each child’s morning menu, narration journals, and first independent reader for the year
Pull the homeschool cart out to the table
Supplies generously available on the table
Put out your Bible and journal or whatever you’d like to do first thing in the morning too.

This is seemingly simple, but it is so powerful for a strong start in the morning. Yes, on the night before the first day of homeschool, but every night before homeschool. It can be taught as a chore rotation for your children as well.

Do You Feel Prepared?

I just completed tips 1, 2, and 5 so far, and am already feeling way more prepared than a week ago. Go through this list and let me know how prepared you feel or what you would want to add here. Sometimes these tasks feel really overwhelming to me, but as I work through each one, the positive feelings of anticipation for the work the Lord has set before me grows.

These are the preparation tips I use to get ready for a new homeschool year that you can easily adapt for yourself. Let’s get these things taken care of so that we, as mothers and educatiors, can also enjoy our first week of school.

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