End-of-year checklist: everything to think about before June 23

At school

• Check the exact last day of classes for each child, which sometimes varies from school to school or grade to grade
• Confirm whether there are special end-of-year events you need to attend: shows, graduation ceremonies, theme days
• Collect all the school supplies still at school: notebooks, storage boxes, library books
• Return books borrowed from the school library and check whether there are any fees to pay
• Sign and return all end-of-year documents: permission slips, back-to-school forms for next year
  
• Thank the teachers, if that's your habit, with a small gift or a card made by the kids

Extracurricular activities

• Confirm the end date of each activity and note whether there are any special end-of-year events
• Return borrowed or rented equipment: uniforms, instruments, sports gear
• Check whether any registrations for the fall season need to be made right now
• Pick up any personal belongings left at the training or class facilities

Summer logistics

• Confirm summer camp registrations and note the dates, addresses and contact information for each camp
• Prepare the supply lists required for each camp and start gathering the items
• Identify the weeks not covered by a camp and confirm who is looking after the kids those weeks
• Plan and book family vacations if you haven't already
• Check that passports are valid if you're travelling abroad
• Make a list of what the kids will need for summer: swimsuits, sandals, sunscreen, bike helmets

At home

• Sort through school clothes and separate what will be kept, donated or tossed
• Sort and put away school supplies (use this printable to help you!)
• Sort through the year's schoolwork and crafts: keep the most meaningful ones, recycle the rest
• Make a list of repairs or purchases to plan for back-to-school: new school bag, clothes, supplies
• Clean and put away lunch boxes and water bottles for the summer

Health

• Check whether any routine medical or dental appointments need to be scheduled over the summer, before the next school year starts
• Renew prescriptions if needed before the end of the school year
  
• If a child has special needs at camp, pass the relevant medical information on to those in charge

Finances

• Gather the year's childcare and activity receipts for your tax return
• Check whether employer reimbursements or tax credits are available for the summer camps you've signed up for
• Review the budget spent on the year's activities and adjust next year's planning if needed

Year-end review

• Take the time to talk with each child about their year: what they liked, what was hard, what they'd like to experience differently next year
• Note the activities that worked well this year to make next year's registrations easier
• Ask the kids what they want to do this summer: a wish list to check off together can become a great family project!

One last tip

All this information can easily be centralized in Octave: the important dates, the supply lists, the camp contacts, the tasks assigned to each family member... Rather than managing all of it in your head or across ten different email threads, a single place accessible to the whole family will let you reach June 23 feeling like you have everything under control.

Happy end of the school year! 🎒☀️