60 School Spirit Day Ideas That Kids Of All Ages Will Love!

School Spirit Days or School Dress Up Days are always fun for kids! The theme for the day is set, the word gets out, and kids start getting themselves ready for the special day, when they arrive at school in costume, and spend the rest of the day giggling at each other’s get-ups.

Sometimes schools get into a bit of a rut, doing the same dress up day themes year after year. It gets a bit tiring for the kids, the parents, and the teachers. Perhaps that’s why you’ve dropped by… you’re searching for something new for your school to try, to kick up the excitement!

What follows are 60 School Spirit Day ideas – most good for kids from preschool all the way up to high school!

Hopefully you can find dress up ideas for spirit week that are just right for you and your school! Have fun browsing! Do me a favor after you’re done and let me know in the comments below which ones you’re interested in… I’d love to hear which ones get picked!!

60 Ideas For Dress Up Days / School Spirit Days

1. 100 Day:  Students dress up like they are 100 years old. Hilarious!
2. Superhero Day (or Superhero vs Villain): Dress up as your favorite superhero or villain
3. Twin Day / Multiplicity Day: Kids try to dress up as identically as possible with 1 or more friends
4. Funky Hair Day: Go nuts here with color, gel, wires, ribbons, etc.
5. Crazy Hat & Socks Day: The bolder, the crazier, the better!
6. Ugly Shirt & Tie / Ugly Sweater Day: The uglier, the more old fashioned, the better!
7. Western Day: Cowboys or Cowgirls are always fun characters to dress up as, for kids!
8. Book Character Dress Up Day / World Book Day / Storybook Character: There are so many GREAT book character costumes – and this theme days is a great way to promote the love of books!
9. Medieval Day: Encourage kids to come dressed as Lords and Ladies, Knights, Serfs, Medieval Princesses, etc.
10. Ancient Culture Day: Choose an ancient civilization like Rome, Greece, or Egypt as the theme for costume dress up!
11. Roald Dahl Day / Dahlicious Day: There are so many awesome Roald Dahl stories to inspire fantastic character costumes! Charlie & The Chocolate Factory, The BFG, The Twits, James & The Giant Peach, and more!
12. Dr. Seuss Day: Weird and wacky costumes, characters like “The Cat In The Hat”, and more… “oh the places you’ll go” with this theme day will be fun! See: 12 Easy DIY Dr. Seuss Costumes For Kids

13. 

    Career Dress Up: What will you be when you grow up? Have children come dressed in a career “costume” that interests them! Here are some ideas:  Inspiring Career Day Costumes For Girls  /  When I Grow Up Themed Boys Costumes
14. Backwards Day: Kids will have a hoot wearing their clothing backwards today!
15. Halloween: Students can wear their Halloween costume to school! Make sure there’s a fun parade to show off their finery! (You may want to consider making some rules about what’s acceptable or not… these days there are a LOT of “death culture” and/or very gory costumes for sale that may be extremely frightening for little ones, and IMHO, just not appropriate for school.)
16. Black & White Day: This one is visually interesting for everyone if it’s actually done right! Especially at a school assembly!
17. Patriotic Day: Kids can wear the colors of their flag (ie., wear only Red, White, and Blue for kids in the USA.) They can use face paint, drape themselves in flags, etc.
18. Formal Day: Especially kids in high school may enjoy this one… but many kids love a chance to display their finery!
19. Valentine’s Day: Wear red, pink, or white… and the more hearts the better!

    

20. Pyjama Day: Kids come dressed in their pjs, slippers, and hugging their favorite stuffed animal!
21. Jersey Day / Sports Day: Kids can wear their favorite team’s colors or jerseys, hats, and face paint.
22. Inside Out Day: Why not have fun with clothing by wearing it intentionally inside out? Especially little kids will find this HILARIOUS.
23. Bring-A-Toy-To-School Day: Celebrate the joys of playing by asking children to bring their favorite toy or game to school. Set aside time for kids to invite each other to play with them and their toys!
24. Duo-Day: Each pair recreates a famous duo with their costumes (Mary & Joseph, Romeo & Juliet, Batman & Robin, Milk & Cookies, Mario & Luigi, Salt & Pepper … etc.)
25. Mad Scientist Day: Kids can dress up like a crazy scientist who just blew something up! White lab shirts, green goo, spiked/crazy hair, big safety goggles… this one can be fun!
26. Letter Theme Day: If there’s a letter that’s special to the school or class, the kids have to dress up somehow in relation to that letter. For example: “R” Day. Kids can wear Red, be covered in roses, wear lots of rings… etc. It can be simple or complex!
27. Dress Like A Pirate Day: Arrggh… and talk like one too! See these great Pirate Costumes For Kids
28. Star Wars Appreciation Day: Star Wars is FULL of crazy characters. A room full of Darth Vaders, Storm Troopers, and Jedi warriors could be hilarious! See:  The Ultimate Star Wars Dress Up Collection For Kids
29. Masquerade / Hidden Identity Day: Using masks, face paint, etc., kids have to somehow mask their own identities for this dress up day!
30. St. Patrick’s Day: The school could be full of green, leprechauns, and shamrocks! Here are some St. Patrick Day Costume Ideas for Kids That You Can DIY
31. Animal Day: Kids can come dressed up as their favorite animal (or just whatever animal costume they happen to have already at home). It’s pretty easy for parents to DIY some sort of hat/head band, so this one is a pretty good one.
32. Bible Character Dress Up:  The school will be full of robes, sandals, beards, etc.!
33. Mythical Creatures / Mythical Characters Theme Day: There are many fabulous mythical beings that kids can choose for their dress up costume… Santa, the Tooth Fairy, Bigfoot, Unicorns, etc.

    

34. Patterns Day: A simple one for organizing, a simple one for parents, as you can DIY something pretty simply if there isn’t something already in their kids’ closet in that pattern. Think Plaid Day, Stripes Day, Polka Dot Day, etc…)
35. Tourist Day: Kids can wear cargo pants, sun hats, flowered shirts, a camera or binoculars around their necks, etc.
36. Throwback Day / Decade Dress Up Day: Choose a decade known for it’s particular style (50’s, 70’s, 90’s…) for the theme dress up.
37. Emergency Workers Day: Little kids in particular will LOVE this one. And will likely have a costume already at home to use. Fire fighter, police man, paramedic!
38. Culture Day: Kids can dress up either in clothing of a selected culture, or from their own native culture.
39. Dress Up Like A Famous Person Day: Kids have to dressed up as a famous person (real… from history or the present). They should know a bit about that person to share with the class.
40. Sunglasses Day: Little kids love wearing sunglasses – make a day where they can bring theirs to school and show them off!

    

41. Mismatched Shoes Day: Little kids will get a kick out of wearing two different pieces of footwear to school!
42. Hawaiian Day: Dress up can include flower leis, grass skirts (easy to DIY out of garbage bags!), flowered or brightly colored shirts, and sandals!
43. Comfy Clothes / Street Clothes Day: Many older kids will love this one if their school wears uniforms. You can collect a donation to a special cause in order to be allowed to participate… just an idea!
44. Pioneer Day: Kids will have fun dressing up “like in the olden days” wearing suspenders, plaid or cotton shirts, straw hats, aprons, bonnets, shawls!
45. Royalty Day: This one is SO fun for many little girls, especially, as they get to wear their princess gowns to school! Girls dress up as princesses, queens,  and the like… boys dress up like princes, kings, knights, lords, etc.
46. School Colors Day
47. Monochromatic Day: Each person must come dressed in only 1 color.
48. Dress Like Your Teacher Day. This has the potential to be HILARIOUS.
49. Team Day: Wear jerseys or team outfits (dance costume, soccer jersey, etc.)
50. Ugly Shirt & Tie / Ugly Sweater Day: The uglier, the more old fashioned, the better!
51. Formal Day: Give kids a chance to display their finery!
52. Lord Of The Rings/ The Hobbit Appreciation Day: A school full of hobbits, dwarves, elves, and wizards, and more would be so fun!
53. Feathered Friends Day: Wings and beaks are where it’s at.
54. Mythical Creatures / Mythical Characters Theme Day: Kids can dress up as mythical beings like unicorns, Bigfoot, or Santa.
55. Hawaiian Day: Dress up with flower leis, grass skirts, and bright-colored shirts.
56. Royalty Dress Up Day: Let kids dress up as princesses, queens, princes, kings, knights, or lords.
57. Sunglasses Day: Kids can show off their favorite sunglasses at school.
58. Dress Like A Robot Day
59. Country Of Origin Day: Dig back into heritage and have fun exploring different cultures.
60. Future Day: Have students dress as they think people will dress 100 years from now.

And there you have it! 60 School Spirit Day Ideas for you and your school to use to have some fun this year with dress up days! Which ones are YOUR favorites? How has your school expressed it’s school spirit? Has your school ever done any of these? How did they go? Please share in the comments below!

Cheers,

Marlaine