It’s the most wonderful time of the year – back-to-school season! 

Energy is at an all-time high for staff, students, and even parents. So, let’s make sure to capture it with these fun, creative social media ideas from across the country!

And don’t stress – you don’t have time to do all of these! Just pick one or two ideas and make them your own. If you decide to use them, please let me know! Email me at andrea@socialschool4edu.com, because I want to hear all about how you made it happen and how your content made an impact in your school and community. 

Idea 1: Create a Reel to Welcome Staff Back

As you countdown the days to school starting, your district likely has some in-service or convocation meetings and activities. Capture video footage and create a fun Reel like this one from West Valley School District #363 in Washington!

Credit for this neat video goes to Tammy Kimberley, Communications and Community Relations Coordinator for WVSD.

Idea 2: Compile Photos into a Reel with a Fun Sign

Dawn Brauner, Communication Specialist for Portage Community School District in Wisconsin, snapped photos of random staff members holding a sign that says “Happy First Day of School” and compiled them into a fun Reel with upbeat music! You can see how it all came together right here. 

You can make the text on the sign your own or even customize it per person. Dawn was inspired by a friend whose staff held signs saying, “My first day of (number) of years teaching.” 

Idea 3: Take Photos When Staff See Each Other

When staff return for the new school year, so many are excited to see one another again! Have your camera phone ready and snap some candid photos like these from Rockville Centre School District in New York. Credit goes to Lauren Reid, Communications Coordinator for RCSD!

Idea 4: Have Staff Gather for a Welcome Photo/Video

This is a really simple idea that only takes a few minutes during your summer meetings. Gather your staff and take a quick photo or video (see example!) and then caption it with something simple, like “Our (school name) staff is ready to welcome students back on (date)!” 

Pro tip: Gather staff outside like Hibbing Schools did, instead of fighting with poor fluorescent lighting indoors. 

I like how the #SocialSchool4EDU account manager (the one-and-only Melissa Marti!) for Hibbing Schools in Minnesota included a friendly reminder about the district calendar in the post, too!

Idea 5: Post Fun Staff Selfies

A selfie takes seconds to snap but spreads big smiles across social media!

Thanks to Amy Murphy, Communications Specialist for Royal Oak Schools in Michigan, this fun photo earned nearly 200 likes/loves and several positive comments.

Idea 6: Welcome New Staff Members

If you’re looking for great content that will carry you for weeks or even months into the school year, start a New Staff Feature on social media! I like starting this before any back to school events take place because the new staff members will begin feeling the love.

It’s simple: feature new members of your team. You can simply post their school photo with a caption that includes their name and title/role. If you want to go above and beyond, ask new staff to submit a personal photo and fill out a brief survey so that the community can really get to know them. 

Of course, if you have a very large district, this might need to be a more generic “welcome new staff” with a group photo. That picture can be captured at the new staff training or orientation event! 

Take a look at this blog for more inspiration about staff features. 

Idea 7: Welcome New School Leaders

New staff members who are taking on leadership positions may deserve their own special shout-out on social media. I love this one from Amy Murphy, Communications Specialist for Royal Oak Schools in Michigan, because of the simple caption and heartfelt comments!

Idea 8: Hop on an Instagram Reels Trend

If you’re eager to improve your Instagram efforts this school year, why not jump on a trend or two? Here’s one that’s been around for a while, but you could totally recreate it! I have two examples from school communicators who executed it well: 

Jason Lewis, Communications Specialist at Walled Lake Consolidated School District in Michigan, earned a ton of likes with his iteration:

And Jamie Brace, Director of Communications for Claremore Public Schools in Oklahoma, also tried her hand at this fun Reel!

Idea 9: Ask Families to Share “First Day” Photos

Here’s an idea that could generate hundreds of submissions!

Adam Marcum, Public Relations & Communications Coordinator for Monroe Local Schools in Ohio, ran a contest for school district swag that resulted in 194 submitted photos. Wow! Check out the simple caption and fun animation that earned all of these photos:

Here’s another example from Hibbing Schools in Minnesota. No contest was even needed to have nearly 50 proud families share their first day of school photos:

Curious how you can change your Facebook settings to allow photos in the comments? 

My #k12prtip video shows you exactly how to do this:

Idea 10: Create a Branded Template or Frame for Families

Have you seen those little chalkboards or signs that families use for their first day of school photos that they post on social media? They often say things like “I want to be ___ when I grow up” and the grade that they’re going into. 

Why not create a branded template for families to print or even a simple cardboard cutout photo frame for families to use in front of the school building? You can use your school branding and school hashtag in the design!

 

Idea 11: Film Students Getting Greeted

Awwwww! I love this cute Reel that shows the Executive Director of Facilities greeting kindergartners as they get off the bus. 

You could recreate this with any school leader, teacher, or staff member who wants to greet the kids as they get off the bus, walk into the school building, or enter their classroom doors. 

Great work, Melissa Reese! She is the Communications Manager for Allentown School District in Pennsylvania, where this video was captured:

Idea 12: Gather Staff Groups on the First Day

The beginning of a new school year is a great excuse to reintroduce different groups of staff members to your social media community. This could mean highlighting lunchroom staff, bus drivers, or your school resource officer (SRO) team. 

The communications team at Fountain-Fort Carson School District 8 in Colorado found some friendly SRO faces to share on social media! The post earned hundreds of likes, comments, and shares. Great work, Miranda Lopez, Strategic Communications Specialist, and Christy McGee, APR, Director of Communications! 

Click to read the warm caption that pairs perfectly with the photo:

Idea 13: Capture Heartwarming Moments

You can plan for most of the ideas on this list, but some of them will just happen organically. When you’re looking for heartwarming moments, I know you’ll find some!

Tyler Keefe, Digital Communications Specialist at Nampa School District in Idaho, was in the right place at the right time. The caption starts with a quote about leadership and then tells the simple story behind the photo: 

This is our own Superintendent Dr. Gregg Russell taking a Back to School photo for a father and son in front of Endeavor Elementary this morning long before the first bell of the school year.

Idea 14: Bring Students Together for Fun Traditions

At Hempfield School District in Pennsylvania, high school seniors kick off their school year with a sunrise breakfast. What a cool tradition!! It’s a unique opportunity to rally your senior class and start off the school year on a positive note. 

Read more about the tradition here: 

A similar event, “Falcon Senior Sunrise,” took place at Royal ISD in Texas. Check out how the communications team leveraged community partners in their online celebration: 

Idea 15: Create a Photo Slideshow

Do you have a lot of buildings in your district? Or just a lot of photos to publish? Either way, a video slideshow of photos could be the perfect way to summarize the first day of school fun for your social media followers!

Santa Clara Unified School District in California tasked several school communicators with capturing and compiling this video. Shout-out to Phillipa May (Communications Specialist), Jennifer Dericco (Director of Communications and Community Engagement), and Caitlyn Young (Multimedia Specialist) for making it happen!

Idea 16: Capture the First Day of School Excitement 

You can’t help but smile when you click or swipe through the photos in this example post! 

Callie Hietala, Communications & Community Outreach Coordinator for Martinsville City Public Schools in Virginia, took tons of photos on the first day of school so that she could share this heartfelt post. 

The caption is simple, and the photos speak for themselves! 

It was amazing to see so many smiling faces this morning on the first day of a new school year! Students, your MCPS family missed you! We can’t wait to see what you will achieve this year!

Tap here to see all the photos: 

Idea 17: Compile Photos for One-Stop Browsing

So many of these ideas include gathering or taking tons of photos! But how can you make sure they live beyond the day they’re posted? 

You have tons of options! You could create a Facebook album for “First Day of School (Year),” share all the photos to your Instagram/Facebook Stories, and/or create an Instagram Highlight for “First Day of School” and save those Stories on your Instagram profile. 

Jen Bode, Development Assistant for Arizona Lutheran Academy in Arizona, opted to put photos in a Facebook album. She shared that this album garnered twice the normal reach and made it easy to continue to add photos as she received them!

Idea 18: Snag “Before and After” Content

Tracy DeTuerk, Office Administrator at St. Francis of Assisi School in Washington, gives credit for this Reel idea to her daughter, who is a college student! She filmed staff members at the beginning and end of the first day of school, compiling the results into a fun short-form video:

Idea 19: Share Important Info with Cute Photos

Do you need to remind families about important information at the beginning of the school year? Why not include that in your post? 

Haley Watt, District Communications Specialist for Putnam County R-1 Schools in Missouri, included important information about the school’s switch to ParentSquare in a sincere “we’re so glad you’re here!” caption. The post included over 60 first-day-of-school photos, which earned it over 100 likes/loves and 17 shares.

Idea 20: Celebrate the Entire First Week of School

Even if you’ve been posting content all week, consider wrapping it up with a celebratory Reel at the very end!

Lauren Snell, Public Information Officer & Social Media Manager for Cherry Creek Schools in Colorado, did just that with this energetic Reel. She paired clips of video footage captured the first week of school, with upbeat music and a celebratory caption. I bet you can pull off something similar this school year!

Let’s Make it an Awesome Year!

Which of these 20 ideas got you excited? I hope you are inspired by more than one! 

The first day (and week) of school is a goldmine for social media content. Students, families, and staff members are excited and hopeful about the year ahead, and you get to help harness that energy by posting it online. Remember, email me at andrea@socialschool4edu.com to tell me all about your content!!