The Importance of Back to School Traditions

Back to school season is upon us and it can feel like the list of impossible tasks is mounting. For most of us, the last thing we have energy for is establishing back to school traditions, but I am here to testify to the fact that even small traditions pay big dividends when it comes to building a sense of security, significance and strength into our kids. My mom used to take each of us kids out, one-on-one, to get a few back to school clothing necessities and our school supplies. Then she’d let us pick a place to go out to lunch. As a family with four kids, I always remember that special one-on-one time as a great way to mark the end of summer and the start of a new school year. Traditions don’t have to be expensive or elaborate to be effective in building a closer relationship with our kids. It could be as simple as writing each child a special note to put in their lunch box or making them their favorite breakfast on the first day. Like my mom did, you can combine tasks that you have to do anyway, (buying school supplies), with something a little special like going out to lunch or ice cream. A friend of mine has the tradition that each of her children help pack a backpack full of school supplies to donate to a student in need. Serving others builds character and empathy into our children that will serve them their whole lives. As for our family, we’ve had different traditions during their different stages of life, but now my mom takes her granddaughters back to school shopping and out to lunch like she did with us kids, and I make them their favorite breakfast on the first day of school, (which is good because after that they are pretty much on their own for breakfast most mornings)! I don’t think I realized how important these small things were to my girls until one year, the special breakfast slipped my mind and my girls were so disappointed when I served them cereal on the first day of school. I didn’t know they even noticed my little tradition! Of course, I promised to make up for it with a special after school snack. Yet, it solidified in my mind that these traditions make a lasting impact on my relationship with my kids. I hope that in the busyness of the back to school season, you can make little traditions that will build positive memories for your kids. It’s so worth it! What is your back-to-school tradition? Let us know in the comments.