Now it’s here: the day that has been talked about so much. “I’m coming to school!” Starting school is a very special event in the life of a child – and the family.

The first day of school marks the beginning of a new chapter in life. Excitement, curiosity, anticipation: many emotions characterize this day. Not only for the future child, but also for the parents. Because a lot of organization is needed around the day.

Have we bought enough teaching materials? Have all the invitations to the enrollment party been sent out? Do we have a sugar cone yet? And what do we actually fill them with? So let’s talk about enrollment for once.

Livin’ la vida escolar loca

School enrollment has a different significance in different countries and is celebrated accordingly. In India, for example, a yogurt is traditionally eaten at the beginning of the day to ensure good luck.

In Greenland, special focus is placed on a special costume. In Japan, too, children often wear traditional kimonos and participate in formal enrollment ceremonies. In Russia, first graders receive ribbons and small gifts to start school, give flowers to their teachers, and then celebrate but in private.

If anything, France celebrates in private. Otherwise, there are no celebrations for enrollment – or for graduation.

You see, not everywhere the little ABC shooters are covered by child-sized, individualized sugar cones. Because this colorfully decorated cardboard filled with all kinds of goodies is only available in Germany and Austria.

Once upon a time there was a bag …

The tradition of the sugar cone dates back to the 19th century and originated in eastern Germany. More precisely, in Saxony and Thuringia. At that time, it was customary for children to receive a bag filled with candy on the first day of school.

This should sweeten the start. Today, the sugar cone is an integral part of the enrollment celebrations and a symbol of the beginning of the new phase of life. Often it does not remain with a cone. Usually there are many more small to medium size sugar cones given by the guests of the celebration.

Gifts for school enrollment

For children, the first day of school is a special highlight. Of course, because of learning and so – but especially because there are a lot of gifts. And that means that someone also has to give them.

Friends, relatives, acquaintances, neighbors and, above all, parents are faced with the challenge of giving the little ABC students the most meaningful gifts possible. But do not panic! We have a few gift ideas that are both useful and fun.

What always goes are stationery items, like pens, erasers, rulers. They are light, fit relaxed in the sugar bag and are definitely needed at school. They come in the brightest colors and the most unusual shapes.

A particularly great gift for starting school are books. Now you may be thinking, “Wait a minute! The child can’t even read yet!” Right – not yet. But it learns to read. And exciting children’s books or funny joke books are even a bit cooler than the school book for first-time readers.

But not only letters are read, but also numbers – and the time. So a very practical gift is your own children’s watch with colorful numbers and hands.

Once you’ve filled the sugar cone with these things, there’s sure to be plenty of room left over. Small and large gaps that need to be filled. You do that with candy, of course. The name “Zuckertüte” is not a coincidence.

Delicious treats are a must and make children’s eyes sparkle. Here you can decide entirely according to the preferences of the child. However, sweets that don’t melt immediately when the school cone is left in the sun for a few minutes are a good idea.

Delicious gummy animals, energy-giving muesli bars and crunchy cookies – for example in the shape of numbers and letters. Our tip: Make sure that the sugar cone is not too heavy, so that the new schoolchild smiles relaxedly in the photos and does not stare into the camera with a red head like a weightlifter in a competition.

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