Not to have a back to school ritual?

god there’s some miserable people in this world, for the record i don’t do this, we have new uniform, shoes, bag, pic by the door etc. but if we wanted to do a balloon arch, why not? who am i hurting, my daughter would absolutely love it she keeps birthday balloons for weeks! life is too short, and the days of having your children as children are even shorter so it you want to celebrate and make little traditions with them so what. it’s not for strangers on the internet to roll their eyes at. they’re not asking you to blow the balloons up 🙄 i probably do a lot of things that people would roll their eyes at but i don’t do it to be showy or make other mums feel bad i do it so that when my children are older they’ll know i was a mum that loved them and did lots of little things to make them feel special

I'm 67. You just got up, put your uniform on, had a normal breakfast and went off to school in my day. No taking of photos, nothing. I don't feel in any respect deprived and if anything, it meant children didn't see going to school as the massive, scary deal that many think it is now.

We just do the usual back to school photos in uniform which gets shared in the family WhatsApp. In this final week of the summer holidays we usually reflect on what have then the best parts and talk about what we are looking forward to in the coming school term. We don’t do balloon arches or special treats, but we do usually have a takeaway for tea on the first Friday back. Back to school for them means back to work for me and I’m too tired to cook anything!

I didn't have a back to school ritual with my daughter in the days when she went to school, but I did with other parents in her class that I was friendly with. We'd drop the kids at school and then all go out for breakfast together.

I don't even buy new uniform or new shoes? what for? (unless it's a new school, obviously)

I buy uniforms and shoes as they are needed. If the shoes are too small, they get a new pair, but if the needed new ones early July, they're still good in September.

In Primary, they wear their summer uniform at the end of the year and the beginning of the new one, we buy the winter one later on if needed.

Nope, never done any such rituals. The nearest we've ever done is a photo in his school uniform on first day of primary school and first day of secondary school. That's it. Never even thought of doing anything else. Probably another "Americanism" imported via social media influencers to make money!

Oh no, the bloody hot chocolate fans are out early this year! I hate the sickly sweet stuff, especially with cream or marshmallows. Ugh!

My only ritual is getting them up early the week before school starts to get used to it again. I do the back to school pictures but it’s just the kids stood at the door, most times the past few years looking like they want to kill me lol. I know parents who make a whole big deal out of it with the balloon arches and most times kids still look miserable because their going back to school.

I'm my DD's childcare. I'll get them their favourite doughnut/bun, for when they first come in. Then my DD will do a treat tea and they are usually tired, so unwind and into bed. My eldest GC was always up really early, so a special breakfast was planned. I go all out at Easter, Halloween and Christmas, so I don't judge.

Perhaps we should all have an “back from annual leave ritual”.

Wake up in the morning and say “oh for fuck sake, work again”, drink coffee, log in, delete, sorry I mean read the endless emails and have a shit day.

I think the only thing I wish I had done was take a photo on their first day for all their schooling so that I could compile a digital first day album for myself and Dh, not for social media as I don't post anything ever. Just to have the memory of how they changed over time on that one specific day.

the best!

We have never done anything like that. Its ridiculous. We take a picture.
What we do do is make sure we are supportive and around for chats/help just incase the day has not gone well.

I feel like this with elf on the shelf. My DD heard about it and has asked why we didn't have one. My MIL bought her one in the end. I see pictures and think they look great but I just don't have the time to do it.

Nice to take a photo if its first day of school or new uniform but otherwise seems silly…

Get up kidlets! It's time for scchhooollll.....

That's about it. I'm tired of all these rituals were supposed to do. Even more pissed off DD hears about them expects it 'because everyone else is doing it'.

In primary we did do a picture by the door, I think every year. Balloon arch and the rest just seems like a waste of money and time let alone random landfill additions for maybe a few likes on social media. I'd rather take Dd on a walk and discuss what she intends to do and if she is worried about anything than spend any time setting up a good photo op!

We used to take a photo but haven’t the last few years as my eldest didn’t fancy it. Sometimes we do a breakfast of pancakes but we also do that on a school day that happens to be one of the kids birthdays etc too so not particularly just for back to school. A balloon arch sounds OTT.

Well we always lose a few mugs to breakages over the course of the year so it's a good time to get a couple more mugs. My stepdaughter usually takes hers home to her Mums anyway. When I say sachets though, I bought some cellophane cones a couple of years ago which came in a pack of 100 and since then, it's a scoop of hot chocolate, a scoop of chocolate chips and a scoop of mini marshmallows with a pipe cleaner to hold it closed, a red pom pom and a couple of googly eyes (which we always have loads of in the craft cupboard). It just makes it a bit more of an occasion than a regular hot chocolate.

No, they don't need more cuddly toys but they are going to beg for them every year so they get their cuddly toy the night before rather than on the day.

A back to school ritual? It's getting out of bed earlier, putting on the uniforms and going out to school, as opposed to not.

It’s performative looking for online attention from influencer wannabes as well as actual influencers. No one cares.

YANBU. Why is there a need to fetishise every day events all the time now?

We take a photo on the front step and/or at the school gates, and like everyone else buy new school shoes and bigger uniform and get a haircut; that’s it.

My child started Reception last year. I took a photo, in which he posed as a frog. This year I'm hoping for at least an upright animal. I barely have enough time to find his school socks which have mysteriously disappeared over the last few weeks never mind invent a ritual or build a balloon arch. I don't use Instagram or Facebook so I had no idea this was a thing - it definitely isn't in my social circle.

Absolutely this! I don't even buy new bags unless they have holes in. Fortunately my kids aren't bothered (I had to wrangle my eldest's pencil case off him and check he had functional pens for his GCSEs). I can't say I never fall for consumerist crap, but I'd rather try and give my kids a decent future than bloody balloon arches for going back to school.

Kids are discombobulated enough as it is at the start of term- they don't need it turned into a song and dance just for the parent's SM.

The best prep I think parents can do is to start clawing back bedtimes and morning wake-ups this week rather than just shoving them into bed 2hrs earlier than normal the night before school starts (which just gives them 2 hrs lying awake and worrying about the next day).