It’s Back to School season now in August, and all our fellow livestreamers are covering the same old, same old things. They’re featuring backpacks, lunch boxes, back to school fashions, dorm rooms, and of course school supplies. You’ll likely see some “Apples for the teacher” classroom gifts and decor quite often too on people’s livestreams.
You can totally set yourself apart from the crowd with a different approach to Back to School shopping. Let me show you an idea I have!
(Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, we will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you)
What if you did a livestream where you taught parents of preschoolers and kindergartners how to ease their anxiety and worries about going to school (or preschool) for the first time?
Your hour-long livestream would feature school-themed toys and playsets, a couple reassuring plush toys, and lots and lots of positive books on the subject of going to school.
If you plan to feature your child on the livestream (You might not prefer to, however) be sure you are on camera with the child at all times as per platform rules.
(Playmobil Furnished School Building, via Amazon)
(LEGO Friends Heartlake City School, via Amazon)
Build either the LEGO or Playmobil school playsets before your livestream and display them on a tabletop, perhaps with their own dedicated camera. (There’s also a LEGO Heartlake City International School playset as well). Or you might like to put together and then demonstrate the MagnaTiles schoolhouse building set.
(Playmobil Take-Along Schoolhouse playset, via Amazon)
Explain how to encourage your children to play with the school playsets in the weeks leading up to going to actual school. This can be helpful for children who have been in online school previously and are transitioning to in person school, too.
Put together the Playmobil School Bus with your child and chat about riding the bus to school and how/where you’ll pick them up at the bus stop.
Elementary school kids might enjoy preparing for school by playing with Chelsea and Barbie school and teacher themed toys and dolls.
For kids who enjoy animal figures, there is a Lil Woodzeez toy school playset. Similarly, Calico Critters has a Country Tree School playset. There’s also a Peppa Pig schoolhouse toy.
For preschoolers, here’s the Imagination Generation wooden school bus to play with to assuage their fears about riding the bus. There’s also a Melissa & Doug wooden school bus toy that sells frequently every week. Or perhaps you might want to feature the lights and sounds Fisher Price Big Yellow School Bus instead. For very tiny babies, here’s a Little People school bus as well. Explain that if parents can introduce the concept of school being a fun, happy place early on, it will help children look forward to their time there.
You’ll only get a small commission on these <$30 items, but the hope is your viewers will stick around and purchase other things from your livestream as well. Plus, while you have the items at hand, you can film shoppable videos for them or carve up your livestream into B-roll and Shorts.
If you are comfortable investing in a more expensive item (less likely to have videos on it from other influencers), demonstrate role play with the Large School Room Solid Wood Pretend Play Set. Show how it folds away for storage.
The School Bus Climber is another more expensive item that other influencers aren’t likely to feature. I’d only invest in this if I had a grandchild who would enjoy it after my livestreams and shoppable videos were filmed.
(Melissa and Doug School Bus Puzzle, via Amazon).
Suggest spending quality time with your children putting school and schoolbus themed puzzles together.
Mudpuppy’s My School is Cool puzzle is for ages 5-8. (Approximately kindergarten to second grade).
Suggest that your livestream viewers spend Family Night putting together school-themed crafts such as this Sesame Street School Bus Kit.
If you have room for it in your studio, show viewers this schoolhouse-shaped play tent. Children can play in the tent indoors or out, and role play “going to school.” Set a couple of the child’s favorite plush toys inside, and let them take coloring books and crayons inside.
If you’re the type of livestreamer who cooks or bakes in your kitchen on camera, why not bake back-to-school cookies using school bus and school house themed cookie cutters. You can then put frostings, sprinkles, stand mixers, spatulas and other items in your carousel.
You could even suggest packaging up allergen-free cookies inside school bus favor boxes.
(Time for School, Little Blue Truck, via Amazon)
Last but not least, chat about the many books published to help kids with back-to-school jitters or anxiety. (Pro tip: Check these books out from the library ahead of time so you don’t have to invest $ in buying them. However, they tend to get all checked out in the weeks leading up to the start of school). There are all sorts of cheerful “First Day of School” books for preschoolers and kindergarteners, and “Back to School” books for returning young students.
Happy livestreaming!
-Creator Inspiration