Using a first day of school sign makes that sweet photo of your child even more memorable. You can grab this free printable right now and choose from six different designs to match your child’s interests. This is the perfect solution when you’re panicked on the first school day morning because you forgot all about it, but still want to take a memorable photo.

Do you commemorate the first day of school with your child? Many parents do with a photo (or two or three or more). Using a first day of school sign makes the photo even more special by commemorating the moment with key information about your child at that point in their life.
First Day of School Sign
If you’ve spent any amount of time on Pinterest, you’ve seen the elaborate and adorable photos of children holding chalkboard signs for their first day of school. They are ad-dorable! But let’s be honest, most of us are very busy parents.
That’s why I created these free printable first day of school signs. They’re perfect for busy parents that want to take a cute photo of their child’s first day of school but don’t have the time to create their own sign or the budget to purchase one or just plain forgot until the morning of the first day of school.
How to Use a First Day of School Sign
- Choose a design.
- Chose your favorite design.
- Let your child pick out a design for the year.
- Choose to use a different design for each year.
- Choose one design for each different child in your family.
- Fill in the sign with your child’s information.
- Fill in the sign in your handwriting. Don’t stress that you don’t have perfect handwriting. It will be special to your child because it’s yours.
- Have your child fill in the blanks in her own handwriting.
- Find a spot to take the photo every year for consistency, if you’d like.
- It can be by the front door or in your front yard.
- Look for a place with good lighting.
- Consider what you’ll do as a backup location if the weather is bad one year.
- I like to include my child’s backpack and lunchbox. Those are special memories and milestone markers that are fun to look back at when they’re older.
- Don’t stress out over the photo. This should be fun and express your child’s personality.
- Keep the photo taking to just a minute or two and keep it fun. You want your child to head off to his first day of school with a smile and a happy attitude.
- Keep the first day of school sign in your child’s keepsake box or scrapbook with the photo you take, if you’d like.
- Or don’t worry about holding onto another piece of paper. Simply recycle the sign and keep the digital photo.
How to Print the First Day of School Sign
- Choose which layout you prefer, the vertical or horizontal.
- Download the appropriate first day of school sign free printable below.
- The horizontal layout
- The vertical layout
- Select which design or designs you’d like to use this school year.
- Print your selected signs on printer paper or card stock paper.
- I prefer card stock because it is sturdier and easier for little hands to hold.
- Card stock also holds up better to breezes without folding over.
You can download the six different designs of First Day of School signs in the vertical format.

Or you can download the school sign in all six designs in the horizontal format.

More First Day of School Resources
- Morning Routine for School
- Back-to-School Morning Routine Printables
- Backpack Checklist – Free Printable
- Simple Back-to-School Ideas
Pin this resource now so that you can easily find these printable First Day of School Signs for the first day of school every year. Have fun creating memories.

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