Spirit Week Theme Day Ideas

Having worked at a middle/high school for a few years now I’ve experienced a bunch of Spirit Weeks and they can be pretty fun! I thought I’d share a list of some of the favorite Theme Days I’ve seen or have heard about from others - some are quite creative and ridiculous. I will continue to add to this list as I come across more fun ideas. Disclaimer: always make sure you check with your school/administration for any parameters or rules for Spirit Week Themes as every school will have different expectations as to what’s acceptable or not.
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Class Color Day

This is a classic theme day - every grade or classroom gets assigned a color and kids from that group are encouraged to wear that color. Some people get really into it with head-to-toe color-coordinated outfits and even face paint or temporary hair color!

Wacky Hair Day

For Wacky Hair Day kids are encouraged to wear their hair wacky! Side ponytails, mowhawks, temporary hair paint/color, crazy wigs, etc - and some kids even go all out with a crazy hair cut (with parents' permission/help of course).

Halloween in (Whatever Month You’re In) / Costume Day

This is a chance to bust out those Halloween costumes, dress up, and have Halloween in March (or whatever month you’re doing Spirit Week). Giving out some candy/trick or treating in the school might be a fun addition too. Just make sure those costumes are school appropriate!

Superhero Day

Dress up as your favorite Superhero! Kids can wear store bought costumes or easily make their own with some paper emblems taped to their shirts or homemade masks/capes.

Circle of Life Day

For this day each class is assigned a period of life… for example Freshman dress as babies, Sophomores as college years, Juniors as midlife crisis, and Seniors as senior citizens - of course.

Beach Day

For this one wear your beach-inspired items - think floral print shirts/outfits, shorts, tank tops, sandals, sun hats. Throw a towel over your shoulder or grab a beach ball to complete the look. Adding a flower lei necklace is an easy way to achieve Beach Day status.

Tourist Day

Tourist Day attire is usually very similar to Beach Day attire, but usually with the addition of a map, cameras or binoculars, and tall socks with sandals.

Anything But a Backpack Day

This one is always a favorite in our school - the idea is instead of bringing a backpack to carry your stuff, you bring just about anything else (a laundry basket, a microwave, a shopping cart, etc). Check out our dedicated blog post on Anything But a Backpack Day for more ideas!

Career Day

Career Day is a chance for kids to dress up as what they might want to be in a future career. Doctors, teachers, lawyers, electrician, plumber, race car driver, business owner, etc. This can be an easy one to put together from home with either nice or work clothes and a few accessories (a clipboard, a small toolbox, etc.).

Historical Figures Day

This can be a chance make a spirit day a bit educational as well as fun if kids need to provide a fact about their historical figure in addition to dressing up. Kids could pick figures from world history long ago (Julius Caesar, for example), our national history (ex. George Washington or Betsy Ross), or more recent history (ex. Steve Jobs or Sally Ride).

Little White Lie Day

For this day you write a school-appropriate “little white lie” on a white t-shirt (or a white piece of paper taped to your shirt). They’re typically sarcastic ones like “I’ve never been late to class” or “I always do my homework.” And if you’re not into poking a little fun at yourself you could do something easy and neutral such as “This shirt is blue” (but it’s actually a green shirt), etc.

Ugly Sweater Day / Festive Sweater Day

This is always such a fun one, especially around the holidays! Everyone is encouraged to make or wear an ugly/tacky sweater or a festive sweater. If you make your own sweater it's a chance to get creative and repurpose an old sweatshirt or sweater and add your own fun twist to it - think rickrack, pom poms, old ornaments (just make sure they aren't breakable!), etc. - Don't forget to use a glue gun to make decorating your sweater easy!

There are also tons of options available online if you want to buy a tacky sweater - just make sure it's school appropriate and not offensive.

BBQ Dads & Soccer Moms

On this day it’s encouraged to dress up as the stereotypical “BBQ Dad” or “Soccer Mom” - kids had a lot of fun with this one and some girls dressed up as BBQ Dads and some boys dressed up as Soccer Moms (you can do whichever you prefer - or a combo of the two!).

For the BBQ Dad ensemble think: aprons, spatulas, white sneakers, khaki shorts, baseball caps.
For the Soccer Mom ensemble think: oversized sunglasses, leggings, an oversized waterbottle (Stanleys optional), oversized sweatshirt, and of course a cross body belt bag.

Adam Sandler Day

This one is pretty easy for most middle/high school kids to pull off - the goal here is to dress in “iconic Adam Sandler style” which pretty much consists of things like baggy basketball shorts, oversized t-shirts and flannels, and dark sunglasses. This is easily doable for most kids/staff and a lot of fun. (It’s also particularly a favorite here because Adam Sandler is a NH native!)

Meme Day

I feel like this is a hard one for me - I guess I’m just too old, haha. But for this day you’re supposed to dress up as or reference a meme. A few that I saw - that I understood - were the “‘I’ll allow it’ guy” (wear a sombrero and carry a piece of paper that says “I’ll allow it”) and the one where Kermit the frog is drinking tea (bring a mug of tea and add a green felt zig-zaggy collar like Kermit has). A few other people just printed out a meme and taped it to their shirt and we let it count - such as a picture of Grumpy Cat saying “this is my happy face.”

Sports Jersey Day

Very easy and simple one - just wear a sports jersey/t-shirt. Could be a major league team (like Boston Red Sox, etc), school sports team jersey, or local parks & rec sports jersey.

Dapper vs. Napper

Dapper vs. Napper is a fun one and very straightforward - the goal is to dress either “Dapper” (fancy clothes) or as a “Napper” (school-appropriate pajamas, etc). I feel like most kids and staff go for Napper because it’s easy and comfy and wear PJs, robes, slippers, bring a blanket or stuffed animal, etc. But some people will go all out for Dapper and wear a suit or formal dress, tiara, etc.

USA Day

For this day pretend it’s a Fourth of July and wear your red, white, and blue! A lot of kids will wear patriotic articles of clothing but it’s pretty easy to DIY the color scheme with blue jeans, a white t-shirt, and red accessories, for example.

Flannel Friday

Really you could do “Flannel Friday” any day of the week and just call it “Flannel Day” but Flannel Friday sure has a nice ring to it. Simply wear a flannel shirt or flannel items of clothing that day - a pretty easy one for us to do here in New England especially because I think most people own flannel articles of clothing here.

Disclaimer: always make sure you check with your school/administration for any parameters or rules for Spirit Week Themes as every school will have different expectations as to what’s acceptable or not.

A List of Educator (Teacher and Staff) Discounts - Happy New School Year!

I’ve been working in the school system for a few years now - while I did have a teaching degree at one time (I let it lapse), I’ve been working in a support staff role. Being a school staff member doesn’t pay much so getting discounts at different retailers is a small but appreciated perk of the job. I’ve complied a list of some of the stores and restaurants that give Educator/Teacher/School Staff Discounts. Also if you homeschool some places will honor that and give you a homeschool educator discount too so it’s always worth asking! | This post contains affiliate links |

Disclaimer: Different stores have different offers and rules - and they’re subject to change. Make sure to double check on discounts and read the fine print and before you use them. Some of these discounts are in person and others you can do online with verification. If I’m shopping in-store I always ask if they offer an educator discount - you’d be surprised how many random places do!

A Quick List of Some Educator Discounts:

• Many local museums - Always ask when going to a local museum if they offer an Educator Discount - many do for admission or at least for the gift shop

• Some local restaurants/coffee shops - You may find a local restaurant or coffee shop may offer an educator discount on a particular item (like coffee) or your whole meal - it’s always worth asking!

• L.L. Bean - 10% off (online or retail stores - does not work at L.L. Bean Outlets)

• Target - varying offers throughout the year with special coupons/discounts

• JoAnn Fabrics - 15% off

• Michael’s - 15% off

• J.Crew - 15% off

• Under Armour - 20% off

• Crocs - 15% off (full-priced items only)

• Loft - 15% off (full-priced items only)

• New Balance - 25% off

• Sunglass Hut - 15% off

• Canva - may be free if you sign up for an educator account with your school email (not all schools are eligible)

What other places give you a teacher/educator discount? Let me know!

Disclaimer: Different stores have different offers and rules - and they’re subject to change. Make sure to double check on the discounts and read the fine print and before you use them.

FREE National Parks Pass for All 4th Graders and their Families - "Every Kid Outdoors"

Did you know every 4th Grader can get a FREE National Parks Pass? I found out about the program when our not-so-little one went into the 4th Grade and we were able to take advantage of it. Signing up is incredibly easy through the “Every Kid Outdoors” Website - once you’re signed up make sure to bring your printed confirmation with you and your 4th grader to a National Park and the ranger there will finish the sign up process and give you National Parks Pass that’s good for the whole year (Sept 1st-Aug 31st of the school year your child is in 4th grade). If you’re a homeschool family this program also works if your child is homeschooled and in the equivalent of 4th grade.

We personally used it to go to Acadia National Park (our favorite place) in Maine and Saint-Gaudens National Park in New Hampshire. Maybe when our next child is in 4th grade we’ll get a little more adventurous and get to a National Park out west.

If you're planning on checking out several National Parks during the year, you might want to pick up a National Park Journal (affiliate link) so your kids can document the journey and adventures! Happy Exploring!

Note: This is not a sponsored post, I’m just sharing my experience with this program when we did it. Please see Every Kid Outdoors’ website for details as they may change.

Cloth Face Mask Organization and Storage

We’re definitely living in different times right now… and it’s becoming clearer that it looks as though we will have to co-exist with the COVID-19 virus for the foreseeable future. Because of that anything we can do that might mitigate the risk of virus transmission, like always wearing face masks or face coverings when outside our homes, have become a part of our “new normal.” Since mask-wearing should be part of your new routine whenever you leave your house, it’s a good idea to have a system in place to make sure you always have clean masks at the ready and you never leave home without one. | This post contains affiliate links |

Disclaimer: I am not giving medical advice. Make sure to always consult the CDC and local health officials for up-to-date recommendations on mask wearing, storage, and care. Cloth masks are not considered medical grade and should be washed in between each use… check with individual mask makers/companies on the best way to store/wash/care for your masks.

Mask Storage at Home

It’s a good idea to keep your clean masks in a designated area of your home, preferably in a place where you’ll be sure to grab one on your way out the door to do errands, go to work, etc. At first glance it might look like we have a lot of masks, but we really don't considering we're a household of four and it's essential to have enough masks to get through between laundry loads. We're still staying home and social-distancing very seriously, but whenever we have to do an essential errand/appointment or just go for a drive to get out of the house, we always make sure to have a clean mask for everyone that’s leaving the house.

In our home, we've designated a special basket that sits up high on our mudroom shelf, full of clean masks. We put the adult masks towards the back, and then kids masks in the front. I was unable to find a basket the same size on Amazon to link to, but I did find this sleek bamboo box that looks to be the perfect size. If you don't have shelf space for a basket, you could alternatively use wall-mounted baskets for storage.
Our masks are a mix of ones made with love for us by family members, as well as ones purchased from Old Navy and Miss Harlow VT (one of the local makers I featured in my "Masks by New England Makers" blog post).

If you don't like the idea of using a basket like we do and would rather hang your masks by the door, another option would be using a small set of hooks such as a set of compact coat hooks or key rack - or even just simple Command Hooks.

Mask Storage On-The-Go

We have found a slim wipes container is the perfect size for holding several face masks on-the-go! In fact, we always make sure to leave our case packed with an extra mask for each family member in the car. That way we're always covered if we forget one or need to change masks while we're out of the house.
I think this would be a great way to carry extra face masks in your bag for work, or your child's backpack whenever they return to school. It would probably be a good idea to also keep a ziplock bag or separate sealed container in your bag in case you have a dirty/used mask that needs to be brought home to wash.

And if you wanted to take it a step further and have an organzied mask system on-the-go to put in your work bag or child's backpack, you might want to consider having two cases - one for clean masks and one for dirty masks. I ordered these clear mask cases from Amazon and cut labels for them on my Cricut. We'll be packing one with extra clean masks, and the other will be empty for dirty masks to come home in. Since we recently invested in some better quality masks I wanted to make sure they stay in cases when not in use to keep them in good shape.

Alternatively, if you don't have any slim wipes containers hanging around you could also use Small Craft Storage Cases , which come in clear and a variety of colors. This might be more cost effective too if you needed multiple cases - especially if you needed one or more cases for each family member, or if you were a teacher and wanted to make a case for each student in your class.

You can also easily label any of these cases with a label maker.

We always make sure to keep the car stocked with our plastic case of extra face masks, hand sanitizer, and disinfectant wipes to help protect ourselves when we’re out doing errands.

Mask Care

Always refer to individual mask makers/companies on the best way to care for each of your masks (hand wash only vs machine wash, line-dry vs dryer, etc.) But in general, all masks should be washed and allowed to thoroughly dry in between each use.

Since all of our masks are machine washable, we've found using a mesh lingerie laundry bag is perfect for keeping the masks from getting lost in the wash or caught on other items.

Quick Adjustment Tips

If you feel like your face mask is a little large or isn’t fitting as closely to your face as you would like, you can typically adjust it very easily by making a small knot in the ear loop elastics (as shown above) to make it smaller.

There are also lots of options for "ear saver" or "mask adjustment" straps available out there, though we have not personally tried any ourselves yet.

One mask accessory that we've found super helpful lately are Mask Lanyards. We personally use them most often when we're out hiking or going for a long walk, that way the time we're out alone we can keep our masks down, however in the event we see someone coming up we can easily put them on if we need to pass others on the trail. We made a point to choose lanyards that have a breakaway safety feature, but use at your own discretion/risk.

Disclaimer: I am not giving medical advice. Make sure to always consult the CDC and local health officials for up-to-date recommendations on mask wearing, storage, and care. Cloth masks are not considered medical grade and should be washed in between each use… check with individual mask makers/companies on the best way to store/wash/care for your masks.

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Vaccination Card Protector

Vaccinated? You may want to consider getting a Vaccination Card Protector for your vaccine card to help keep them protected and clean at home or while you're traveling. These are nice because you can remove your vaccine card to record updates/boosters if needed.

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Remote Learning + Homeschooling: Tips and Supplies

With the Covid-19 Pandemic still persisting and school in our state cancelled for the rest of the school year (and maybe longer), average parents have been thrown into the role of becoming teachers too and most of us weren’t prepared at all. While I have a degree in Art Education, I went a different career route after graduation and my teaching/classroom management skills are now quite rusty. So I pulled from my own classroom and remote teaching experiences - as well as polling many teacher friends, homeschooling parents, and regular now-remote-teaching-parents for ideas on what’s working for them and what supplies have been lifesavers as they navigate this new remote learning world. | This post contains affiliate links |

Give Yourself Grace

This is probably the biggest takeaway from everyone I’ve talked to…. remote learning during a Pandemic is definitely uncharted territory and everyone is trying to figure things out - readjusting roles, schedules, expectations, everything. Most of us weren’t cut out to be teachers, and it can be incredibly hard to motivate and focus your own kids as well as their teachers are able to. Ultimately, it’s a matter of doing the best that you can in the circumstance you’re currently in… and don’t beat yourself up if everything isn’t perfect.

Communicate with Teachers and Administrators

If you have a lot going on at home (working from home yourself, several kids schedules to juggle, other personal hurdles to deal with, etc) or if the teacher’s expectations for remote learning are just unrealistic, definitely reach out to them to voice your concerns and come up with a plan. Maybe deadlines can be extended, or the workload can be reduced to the essential assignments. Maybe the big group Zoom meetings are too overwhelming and frustrating for your young child and they need a one-on-one meeting instead. Maybe the schedule the teacher came up with won’t work for your family with your own work and other school schedules.
The point is - if you or your kids are feeling overwhelmed and stressed about about the whole remote learning process, it’s worth discussing with their teachers and administrators so that you can come up with something that works for everyone and still meets all the learning requirements.

Come up With a Schedule that Works for Your Family

This will take some trial-and-error. And if you have older students with a heavier workload, their home school day might just look very similar to a regular school day schedule-wise and time-wise - especially if they can work pretty independently. But for us with younger kids, mom or dad needs to be there to walk them through each assignment, activity, and online meeting.

If you’re also working from home or juggling other kids schedules too this can be particularly challenging and exhausting... if you need something to buy periods of occupation from your kids (maybe so you can do an uninterupted confrence call, or you can concentrate helping one child with an assignment while keeping the other kids busy), consider giving them something they will enjoy doing and keep them safely occupied (but always under some parent supervision of course). Maybe it's educational games on the Kindle, or perhaps low-mess craft projects, or an hour of TV time, or reading a book series on their own that they enjoy, etc. Or maybe you find school work or office work done in fragments at unusual times is what works best for your family.

For us personally with younger kids, we’ve fallen into a good rhythm and schedule over the last two months of remote learning. For our family we’ve found it best to buckle down in the mornings and get the work done first thing when attention spans are at their best and everyone is well rested. So our daughter works through her assignments one-by-one every morning with breaks for snack and classroom meetings. Our goal is to have all her work completed for the day by lunchtime, and while some days that doesn’t happen and things need to be finished after lunch, most of the time she’s done by noon which leaves the afternoons for “free choice fun.” Typically, spending the whole afternoon outside if the weather is nice or inside playing legos or watching a movie if it’s raining (and while the kids are playing I can chip away at whatever work I need to get done too). Our days have consistent expectations and a nice rhythm to them now which helps a lot.

Set Snack and Meal Times

As anyone with kids home 24/7 can tell you, they can and WILL eat you out of house and home if you let them. By having set snack and mealtimes it will help your pantry and wallet by not blowing through all your quarantine snacks in 2 days flat. I’ve seen some parents even pack their kids lunch box every morning, just like they would for school, so the kids have a finite amount of snacks and lunch food for the day.

Designate a School Space and Stay Organized

Having a designated “school space” that has all the supplies your kids will need to complete their assignments at their fingertips can be crucial to success. Ideally having a desk or separate workspace would be ideal, but any designated space can work. For us, we set up one end of our kitchen island - it has a laptop where our daughter completes most of her assignments online and a small basket where we store paper, workbooks, flashcards, and a few ziplock bags containing different supplies that she uses often (markers, counting chips, etc). By having everything ready to go each day, there's no excuse when it's time to get to work.

I polled many friends, both teachers and regular parents who are now remote teaching, and compiled a list of things they have needed or found to be extremely helpful during this time. Younger kids definitely tend to need more learning aides so the list has many items geared to younger students but there are also some items that can be useful for older grade levels listed too. Click the button below to browse our picks, which I will be periodically adding to as I get more suggestions:

Is there anything you’ve found to be helpful during this time? Please comment below or send me a message.

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Related Posts

• Cloth Face Mask Organization and Storage

• Preparing to Homeschool

"Thanks for Helping me GROW" DIY Teacher Gift + Free Printable Tag

Teacher gift ideas are always tough… I always want to do something thoughtful, useful, but still affordable. This year we decided to make ruler painted flower pots to go with the “Thanks for helping me GROW” theme. In them we planted small aloe vera plants which will come in handy for soothing sunburns over summer vacation. | This post contains affiliate links |

Materials:

• terracotta pot

• yellow acrylic paint

• paint brush

• sharpie marker or black paint

• dirt

• plant (I used aloe vera plants)

How-To:

First paint the lip of the pot with the yellow acrylic paint, you might need to do several coats to get good coverage.

Then mark inch lines evenly around the rim (I made a template with a piece of scrap paper). It may not come out evenly when they meet up so feel free to take artistic license with the spacing.

Then using a sharpie or black paint and a fine paintbrush, paint the lines of the ruler (whole, half, and quarter lines) as well as the numbers.

Once everything is dry, fill with soil and a plant of your choice. We decided on aloe vera since it’s a useful plant as well - the teachers will be able to use it to soothe any sunburns that may happen over summer vacation.

All that’s left is to add a card or a gift tag and a message of thanks!

FREE PRINTABLE TAG