Fabulously fun things for homeschoolers to do on the first day of school

Many homeschool families do something special to celebrate the first day of school. Not only does it get kids excited about the new year, but it balances out the back to school excitement about schools outside the home and keeps them glad to be homeschooling.

Here's seven fabulous ways to start out the new school year.

1. Head to the zoo. Some homeschool families have a tradition of going to the zoo on the first day of their local school. It's a great day trip and it's the least busy day of the year!
2. Take part in a "Not Back to School" party with other homeschoolers. Most communities have these annual celebrations and they're a great way to connect with other homeschoolers and start the year off on a fun note. In Mankato, this year's NBTS party will be at Spring Lake Park in North Mankato on Wednesday morning, September 8 (full details will be posted in an upcoming article).
3. Bake a cake. When my children were little, we marked the first day of school with a fancy cake we decorated together. What could make kids feel more grateful for homeschooling than sleeping in and having cake for breakfast?!
4. Go camping. This is a wonderful time to go camping as a family. The weather is nice, the sky is full of shooting stars and the campgrounds are mostly empty.
5. Host a homeschool carnival in the back yard. For years, we held a back yard carnival for local homeschooling friends on the first day of school. The kids helped make the games and activities, which included bean bag tosses (use a large cardboard box to make a colorful design and cut out different sizes of holes to toss into with different points for each), obstacle courses, a fishing game in the kiddie pool and other carnival-type attractions.
6. Take a trip! This is the perfect time of year for families to take mini-vacations. The weather is still fabulous and tourists have gone home to start school.
7. Have a slumber party. Let the kids invite a couple of friends each and stock up on fun movies and munchies while they have fun staying up late on a school night!

Whatever you do, just make sure to make the day a fun one. It's easy for kids to get caught up in the back-to-school hype (especially at kindergarten and preschool ages) and a little well-strategized fun will successfully detour any wishes for kids to be a part of that. It's also is a great reminder of some of the great perks of being a homeschool family -- flexibility, time together and with friends, and a just plain joyful way of life.

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