School Newsletter August Kickoff: What to Send Before School Starts

The August newsletter is the first impression families get of how your school communicates. It arrives before school starts, before families have met the teachers, and before the rhythms of the year are established. A strong August kickoff sets the tone for everything that follows.

This guide covers what to include, how to introduce new staff, and how to give families the information they need to start the year prepared rather than anxious.

Send it before families think to ask

The best time for the August newsletter is two to three weeks before school starts. This is when families begin to think about school again: checking supply lists, coordinating carpool schedules, and trying to remember where to find information. An August newsletter that arrives early enough to answer those questions preempts a week of phone calls and email replies.

If you send it the week before school, you are catching families who have already had to figure things out on their own. If you send it the first day of school, the information is simultaneous with the experience it is supposed to prepare them for. Early August wins.

The first day: full logistics, nothing assumed

State the first day of school clearly. The exact date. The start time. Where students should enter the building. Whether there is a meet-the-teacher event beforehand. What the morning drop-off process looks like. Where to pick up at the end of the day.

Do not assume families remember from last year. Families who are new to the school definitely do not know. Families whose child is moving to a new grade may not know the procedures for that building. Write the first-day logistics as if every reader is experiencing them for the first time.

Introducing new staff

New teachers and staff members deserve a real introduction, not a line that says their name and title. Two to three sentences per new person: where they come from, what they will be doing, and one human detail that helps families see them as a person.

Key dates for the first month

Include any dates that families need to know before the start of school: open house or back-to-school night, picture day if it falls early in the year, early dismissal days in September, curriculum nights, and any deadlines for forms, enrollment, or program sign-ups.

A simple bullet list with date and one-line description is the most readable format. No paragraph explanations needed for dates. Just the date, the event, and any action required from families.

Supply list and what to bring

If your school sends a supply list, include it in the August newsletter or link to it. If specific classrooms have their own lists, note that teachers will share those when school starts. Families who want to prepare ahead of time need this information before August ends.

For schools where students have individual teacher supply lists, include a general list of things all students will need: backpack, water bottle, lunch bag, whatever the school provides. Even a short list is more useful than "your child's teacher will share more in September."

Where to find information all year

The August newsletter is the right place to tell families exactly how your school communicates throughout the year. Not in vague terms. In specific ones.

Name the tools: "We send a school-wide newsletter every Monday morning to the email on file from enrollment. Teachers send weekly classroom newsletters on the same day. For urgent information, we send a text alert through [system name]. The school website at [URL] has the calendar and all forms." Families who know where information lives stop asking individuals. The front office gets fewer calls. Teachers answer fewer repeat questions.

Tone for the August newsletter

The August newsletter should be warm but direct. Families are excited and slightly anxious about the start of school. They want practical information delivered without unnecessary fanfare.

Skip the long welcome message. A brief, genuine opening sentence is enough: "We are glad school is almost here, and we want to make sure you have everything you need before the first day." Then get to the content. Families will form their impression of how the school communicates based on this first newsletter. Direct, organized, and complete is the impression worth making.

If your school uses Daystage, the August newsletter is where you build the template and sending schedule that will run all year. Set the structure once, establish the send day, and the rhythm carries itself from September through June.