First day at school – giant cones and the German tradition

The first day of first grade is a big event in any child, and parent’s life. Back in my day in my native England, the first day of school normally involved a nervous child and an equally nervous mother, saying goodbye to each other at the school gates. In Berlin, a generation later, I have been part of a much more exciting tradition. The child to be schooled is presented with a wonderful cone, which by 2014 is almost as big as the kid themselves. It is filled with school supplies and and goodies to the brim. There is a lovely ceremony, at our school in Berlin the second graders were on hand to sing about the school rules and guide their little first grade buddy through the throng of bleary eyed proud parents into the classroom for their first lesson. This all takes place on the Saturday before school actually starts, so the kids don’t even have to stay at school for the day, but go on  home or off out to celebrate with family and friends. Second graders, now well experienced in school formalities, reliably informed the headmistress that all this helps to make the start of school fun and not at all scary. And I had a great time searching for that special “Monster High” school cone and stuffing it with marshmallows, pens, pencils and toys! Of course, the day would not have been complete without a 3D scan and print of the little miss at her “Einschulung”     .