An Interactive Option for Back-to-School Night

Every year, schools host a back-to-school night where parents are corralled throughout the school and given a tremendous amount of information that tends to be more overwhelming than useful. Most times, preparation for the evening is stressful for teachers and rushed due to the amount of beginning-of-the-year procedures and protocols that are typically due at the same time. So instead of adding another stressful thing to your plate, why not mix up your back-to-school night with family engagement? 

A scavenger hunt—a fun, interactive option for back-to-school night—is an alternative to the traditional lecture or demonstration. The scavenger hunt can be classroom specific, for a particular grade level, or even for the whole school. A classroom-specific scavenger hunt involves the students, the parents, and the teacher’s presence, but without a formal presentation given by the teacher. 

How to Prepare the Activity

To set up the scavenger hunt, it’s important for teachers to prepare students to ensure that they know the daily routine and the procedures of the scavenger hunt. This is typically practiced and instilled through beginning-of-the-year procedures and expectations; therefore, no additional time is needed to prepare the students. All the routines that are put into practice will be implemented at the back-to-school night.

At the back-to-school night, you can display a slide show of pictures of the students that highlight them working and collaborating since the beginning of the year. This is a great visual that keeps the parents and students actively engaged because they’ll be eager to see the pictures—especially if the students haven’t seen them yet. Just make sure that you have pictures of all the students.

Samples of work can be displayed around the room and on the desks for students to explain and show off. This gives parents something to look at as they learn about their child and the new school year without feeling the need to fill potential silence with questions to the teacher. Along with samples of student work on their desks, include a copy of the scavenger hunt or simply a list of things to show the parents, such as the daily schedule, textbooks, charts, and where to turn in homework. Students can take their parents around the classroom to go on the scavenger hunt.

To show that students have completed all the tasks for the scavenger hunt, have them sign it and turn it in. A prize or reward, such as a no-homework pass, a pencil, or another small token, can be given to the students who participated. The prize may be the motivation that students need to ensure their parents’ attendance.

Be Flexible With Attendance and Information

Even though every teacher would love to have all parents and students attend together, this may not be possible for everyone. If the parents attend without their child, they can still go on the scavenger hunt and look for the items and places in the classroom. A solo visit will still give the parents an opportunity to travel around the classroom and learn about what to expect during their child’s school year. If parents are reluctant to move around by themselves but do want to participate in the back-to-school-night, they could pair up with their child’s friend, ask the teacher for a tour, or simply look around the classroom.

There are times when parents just don’t or won’t have the time to participate in the  scavenger hunt due to scheduling conflicts, arriving to the event late, or having multiple children’s classrooms to visit. If this happens, you can quickly explain everything to them or provide a handout with information about the items and places on the scavenger hunt, much like what the students would have said.

Give Students an Active Role in the Event

Your students could even create the handout prior to the event, so that they still have a voice in the evening even if they aren’t present. If parents opt for the handout, they can review it when they have more time and email you any questions that their child couldn’t answer for them once they got home. By giving the students the opportunity to participate by answering their parents’ questions, they’ll have a sense of active participation in the event, and it will give them a chance to discuss details of their new classroom with their parents.

The back-to-school night is a fun and engaging way to allow your students to take ownership of their learning from the very beginning of the year and turn it into an inviting event for everyone. 

I have implemented this for several years, and the parents and students have always responded positively to this twist on the traditional back-to-school night. Due to the interactive nature of the event, fewer questions tend to be asked because everything is answered throughout the classroom visit via the scavenger hunt. This has also been a great community-building event because everyone who attends feels included in the classroom community and enjoys looking around the classroom to learn about the new school year.