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10 Social Media Content Ideas for Back to School

By • 6 min read

Back to school is officially upon us! That means students and staff are being welcomed, sports and activities are ramping back up, classes and clubs are launching, and students and parents are especially engaged. It’s a great time to be using your social media channels to reach members of your school community through engaging content. As summer comes to a close, we’re coming at you with 10 content ideas to kick the school year off right. 

1. First Day of School Pictures 

Is it officially a new school year if your social media feeds aren’t flooded with first-day-of-school pictures ranging from Pre-K to senior year? The answer is no. People get into it, and schools should join the fun. Encourage students, teachers, and staff to share their first day of school photos. Create a dedicated hashtag for easy tracking and/or repost a few of the photos to showcase the excitement and energy of the new academic year. Interested in taking things up a notch? Consider a photo contest, where the most creative entry or entries have a chance to win a small, school-themed prize. 

2. Day-in-the-Life Content 

Content captured from the student perspective (especially video content) can bring an immersive and interesting take to your social media. Day-in-the-life content is relatable for both parents/caregivers and students, boosting engagement. It also gives members of your school community a look at the inner workings of your school and the experiences students have within it. Consider asking a handful students with diverse backgrounds and interests to put together a one-minute video tracking their day from start to finish. Direct them to include some of the especially unique classes or activities they’re involved in, giving your school a chance to show off its innovative groups and curriculum. Piece the videos together and release them over a few weeks as a mini-series.

— MobilePublicSchools (@MobilePublicSch) August 7, 2023

3. Fun with School Supplies 

There’s something special about opening a perfectly pristine set of sticky notes in all colors and a fresh set of brand new writing utensils. As school supply season ramps up, look for fun ways to capture it on social media. Consider running a series of posts featuring the favorite school supplies of teachers, staff, and even students. Tap into some 90s nostalgia with classics (read: vintage), then-and-now posts (Lisa Frank, anyone?), or shine some light on a backpack drive or school supply fundraiser with content from students involved with them.

 
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A post shared by North Kansas City Schools (@nkcschools)

4. Meet the Teachers & Staff

Create short introduction videos or posts about each teacher and staff member, welcoming students back for another year and welcoming new students for the first time. This helps build trust and familiarity across your school community and highlights the people behind the emails and school supply lists. Keep things light and interesting by asking teachers, administrators, and staff to share a quirky or interesting fact about themselves in a way that makes these intros engaging and fun. 

5. Throwbacks 

A good ol’ fashioned throwback post can conjure up some serious nostalgia (read: engagement), and back to school is a great time to do it. Ask coaches, admins, teachers, and other school staff to dig up some photos from back in the day (think: senior pictures, first day of school shots, first sports photos, and other shots from clubs and activities) and share them for all to see. Whether you post these as part of the longstanding #throwbackthursday tradition or on their own, these posts are fun and memorable, and a great way to increase engagement. 

6. Student Spotlights

As the school year kicks off, look for opportunities to spotlight students. Be sure to think outside the box when it comes to how and why you highlight their story. In fact, it’s a good idea to seek student stories that are maybe less commonly surfaced–experiences students are having that maybe fewer people know about or that are generally underrepresented. These can spark interesting conversations that resonate across your school community; they also highlight the diverse student experiences happening at your school. Interview the spotlighted students in a written Q&A or via a video interview–either way, be sure to include engaging visuals. 

7. New Student Welcomes

In increasingly competitive enrollment environments, parents and families are often concerned with how their students will be welcomed into a new school, whether transitioning from middle to high school, starting in a new district after a move, or transitioning between public and private schools. Put them at ease by creating a warm welcome for new students and their families. Feature a brief video or post where existing students and teachers introduce themselves and showcase the friendly atmosphere of the school.

8. Share Goals 

Students and families are eager to be part of growth and success. Sharing insights into your school or district’s vision for the future speaks to that desire in a meaningful way. Create content that lets the school community know about the exciting goals and projects planned for the upcoming year in a way that fosters transparency and involvement. Share insights about the growth of specific programs, fundraising achievements and their outcomes, and other key milestones. On a more granular level, the start of the school year is also a time for students and staff to set personal goals. Use social content to highlight those, too, resourcing students and staff to share some of the things they’re working on as individuals. As the school year progresses, catch up with some of the folks you surveyed to highlight not only the original goals, but the resulting achievements.

Remember to share your photos with us using #GarlandISD1stDay so we can feature your photos on our social media platforms throughout the day! #TheGISDEffect #ExperienceTheMagic pic.twitter.com/JGoAYQ0gTJ

— Garland ISD (@gisdnews) August 8, 2023

 
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9. Key Dates

Share important dates, such as school events, parent-teacher conferences, deadlines for clubs and athletics, and holidays. This helps parents and students plan ahead. You can also tie these notices and calls-to-action into related stories for ongoing reminders. For example, if you’re recapping a sold-out production of Beauty and the Beast, showing behind-the-scenes photos and linking to a piece in the school newspaper covering the show, consider noting upcoming audition dates for folks who become inspired by these stories to get involved. 

10. Sports Schedules, Highlights & Updates 

Athletics are a great way to keep students and families informed and engaged. As the fall season kicks off, be sure to post schedules so fans can plan accordingly. Highlight student athletes to conjure excitement for the season, post final score updates, and recognize team achievements like winning rivalry games and qualifiers. Also be sure to post and reshare local news coverage about games and schedules on your school/district pages.

Empower Students & Staff 

As the school year kicks off, remember that you’re not alone in gathering, curating, and sharing content across your school or district’s social media channels. The thought of trying to be everywhere at once to capture student experiences and tell great stories can be a bit overwhelming–but it doesn’t have to be. With the right technology, you can empower students and staff across your school community to source graphics, updates, and great stories without losing control. Class Intercom helps you do exactly that. Learn more about how we work with schools and districts large and small to secure, unify, and streamline social media content and help schools tell their stories. 

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