The first day back at school for Australia’s four million primary and secondary students is more than just the start of another year of learning – it’s an opportunity to celebrate growth, progress and new beginnings. Whether you’re sending your little one off to big school or they’re an old hand at the first-day-of-school routine, marking the occasion in a fun and thoughtful way can help families create memories and set a positive tone for the year ahead. We asked two parents for their favourite projects, activities and traditions that they implement to help the first day of school feel special for their kids.

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Create a Photo Collage

Nia Noble and her mum Nilu sit together at a table, looking at photos for creating a collage as a way to get excited for the first day of school.

Spending an afternoon with the kids putting together a photo collage from the year that was is a creative way to reflect on key memories and moments, while looking forward to the year ahead. At the end of the summer holidays each year, Colin Stevens and his two kids, nine-year-old Owen and seven-year-old Josie, go through photos from the previous school year and pick out some favourites. Whether they’re from sports days, assemblies or hanging out at the playground, the common thread is friendship. “We talk about the great times they’ve had with their friends and the fun things that they’ve done together,” says Colin. “Then we print out the photos and the kids make a collage or poster with them, which helps to build excitement around the friends they’ll see on the first day of school,” he says.

To help them get started on their collage, simply print their collection of favourite school memories using Officeworks’ Print + Create photo printing service, grab some cardboard, glue and any embellishments they like, and start sticking. Another option for creating lasting mementos is to put together a canvas print collage or hard cover photo book that captures their school memories each year.

What to Try:

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Take Photos With a First Day of School Board

Nia Noble standing in front of her home holding a first-day-of-school board. 

Nilu Noble, writer and mum of seven-year-old daughter Nia, marks the end of the first day back at school with gelato at the beach and a chat about her day. “Ice cream is Nia’s love language. Every first day of term, once she gets home from school, Nia and I jump in the car, head to her favourite gelato shop, and then we sit on the beach and debrief while enjoying our gelati. It’s our thing,” says Nilu. “At the end of term, we do the same, but with her friends and [their] mums. It’s such a wonderful way to celebrate!”

Of all of the back-to-school traditions, taking photos with a first-day-of-school board is one of the most popular – and most shared on social media, with over one thousand tags on Instagram. Before they walk to the bus stop for Term 1, snap a pic or take a short video of them in their uniform with the details on the board filled out (their age, the date, their aspirations for the future). This is a great tradition to complete on the last day of the school year, too, to compare how much they’ve changed and grown. And if you can take it in the same spot each time, you’ll have an easy way to compare their height from January to December. Keep up the tradition for the years to come and you’ll have a beautiful keepsake at the end of their schooling.

Sara Keli’s daughters, 10-year-old Olivia and seven-year-old Josie, pose for their first-day-of-school photos in the same spot in front of their house each year. Colin’s kids fill in their responses on their first-day-of-school board including how old they are, what grade they’re starting, their favourite things and what they’re looking forward to. “These photos are a staple of the first day of school each year,” he says.

What to Try:

Choose Cool New Stationery

The promise of a new pencil case stocked with a fresh set of coloured pencils, eraser, sharpener, glue stick and pack of coloured markers is the highlight of back to school for many kids. For parents, it’s a simple way to spark enthusiasm and help them feel prepared for the year ahead. Colin says his kids eagerly look forward to choosing their own stationery on the family’s back-to-school shopping trip. “We get them to pick out a pencil case, some stickers that they can put on their books when we’re doing the contacting, and we always let them pick out a crazy pen or something else fun,” he says. “Personalising it in some way helps them get into the frame of mind of going back to school.” 

What to Try:

Make An Event Out of Filling Their Pencil Cases

An assortment of stationery supplies for getting ready for the first day of school.  Products include a pencil case, a glue stick, an eraser and coloured pencils and markers 

It’s not only the ritual of buying new stationery that kids love. For many, unpacking each new item – while parents and caregivers make sure it’s labelled with their name – and carefully putting it into their pencil case is just as much fun. Sara says her kids receive most of their new stationery and school supplies as Christmas presents and assembling everything for the first day of school is “one of the most exciting things they do in the holidays”. “I sit down with them individually and they love packing their pencil cases,” she says. “I was the same as a kid – it’s nice to have a clean pencil case going into the new school year.”

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Mark the Last Day of Holidays with Fun

The Noble family – Neil, Nia, Nilu and Noa – pose together while enjoying a day at the beach before the first day of school.‍

For Sara, doing a fun family activity on the last day of the holidays helps her kids close out the summer break and mentally prepare for the first day of school. Her daughters like bowling or going to events in the city, but Sara says what matters most is that the family spends time together. “It doesn’t have to be something extravagant – we just always make sure that the day before school we’re doing something together,” she says. “My mum always did this for me, so I have continued the tradition with my kids. It really helps them settle back into school.” Whether it’s spending the afternoon at home playing a board game, having a picnic at your favourite beach, or going for a walk together, simply spending time together before the busyness of the school year kicks off can help set a calm and positive tone for easing into the new school year.

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