5 Ways to Enhance Your Back-to-School Programming
Kick off the new academic year with a back-to-school event! Give students an opportunity to reconnect – or meet – their classmates, parents the chance to say hello to teachers, and school staff and administration the ability to set the tone for the rest of the school year. Here are some of our top ways to put your best foot forward at your school’s very own Back-to-School Bash!
Backpack Weigh-Ins:
More attention is, rightfully, being paid to the weight and proper usage of students’ backpacks in recent years. With side effects including bad posture, nerve damage, and shoulder, neck and back pain, it’s important to make sure students are not only wearing their backpacks correctly, but also limiting their weight.
Invite a chiropractor or occupational therapist to provide tips on backpack safety. Maybe even ask students to bring their backpacks loaded for a typical day of school, then weigh them to see if they’re too heavy – no more than 10 percent of a child’s weight. Having teachers and parents present for this demonstration will also help ensure they know what to look for throughout the year, like students who only use one strap or bags that hang too low or not close enough to the body.
Healthy Lunch Demos:
Partner with a local health food store or nutritionist to demonstrate healthy school lunches parents can pack in a pinch. You could even help better educate students themselves about healthy food options so they make the right choice when it's lunchtime. For a fun spin, host a no-cook cooking competition after the educational portion. Provide students and parents with healthy ingredients then challenge them to create the tastiest lunch item in a set amount of time. Have teachers serve as judges then give out awards like “Most Innovative Recipe” and “Tastiest Dish.”
Summer Showcase:
Highlight what camps and/or summer school classes individual students participated in over the summer by including a Summer Showcase at your back-to-school events. Maybe a student earned a new karate belt, or a band camp perfected a song. There are sure to be a number of new talents and skills within your student population as a result of the three months away from school.
Bucket List:
To ensure your school achieves all its goals in the upcoming school year, create a school-wide bucket list! Simply have students submit their desired goals at the event, then designate a couple people to read through them and create a concise list. At your end-of-the-year celebration you can revisit the list to showcase what was accomplished!
Host a Back-to-School Family Movie Night:
A movie is a great way to add a dose of entertainment and bring the entire family together for some back-to-school fun. Because it’s a passive activity, parents can either watch alongside their kids or hang back – possibly even in another room – to get to know teachers, school administration and even other parents while their kids enjoy the film.
Here are some of our top picks that send a great message as everyone gets back into the swing of things:"Wonder," "Paddington 2," "Inside Out," "E.T. The Extra Terrestrial," "Hoosiers," "Charlotte's Web," and "The Emoji Movie."
Want more programming ideas for Back-to-School? Check out this fun "drive-in" movie event or some of our most popular book-to-movie ideas for a fun way to use movies. Have you had a movie event you'd like to tell us about? Give us a call at 1-877-321-1300 or fill out this quick form.