Going to school is a lot of tough work, so throwing in some fun whenever you can is important. Events like Spirit Week, where kids have themed dress-up days every day until Homecoming is one of the most well-known school events. School may also have individual Spirit Days or their own version of Spirit Week, especially in early childhood education, for events like 100 Days of School, Read Across America, Women's History Month, and more. If you're looking for school Spirit Week ideas for dress-up, we'll share some of our favorites below, along with costume ideas for students and teachers. Let's make learning fun!
What are some good Spirit Week ideas?
- Twin Day - Grab a friend and dress exactly the same!
- Crazy Sock Day - Wear the weirdest pair of socks that you can find or mismatched socks. The taller, the better, so we can see your silly socks.
- Wacky Clothes Day - Find silly graphic tees or weird clothing items to wear for the day.
- Beach Day - Come to school dressed for the beach, but bring your cover-ups. Pool floats and sandals are welcome!
- Throwback Day/Decades Day - Get ready for a blast from the past! Find clothes or costumes from previous decades, from the 20s and 50s to the 90s and 2000s.
- Western Day - Oh, give me a home where the buffalo roam, filled with spurs and cowboy hats.
- Meme Day - How do you do, fellow kids? Find a silly meme and dress up!
- Color Day - Dress up in the most monochrome outfit that you can. Classes or teams may choose a color for everyone to wear, or you can leave it up to individual students.
- Character Day - Who is your favorite character? This is a great time to reuse one of your Halloween costumes!
- Inside Out Day - This spirit day is pretty self-explanatory. Wear your clothes inside out for the day.
- Neon Day - Wear your brightest outfit featuring neon colors.
- Book Character Day - Dress like your favorite book character. This idea is great for Spirit Week or Read Across America.
- Space Day - Dress like astronauts, aliens, the solar system, stars, and more! Anything related to outer space goes.
- Pajama Day - Roll out of bed and wear your pajamas and slippers to school.
- Dress Like a Tourist Day - Channel your best tourist vibes. Bring binoculars, sunglasses, a camera, a hat, and even a fanny pack! Hawaiian shirts and socks with sandals are great here, too.
- Sports Day - Wear a team jersey or something sports-related. This should be an easy one for kids on school sports teams.
- Celebrity Day - Dress like your favorite celebrity—movie stars, musicians, and more are welcome.
- Career Day - Dress like a farmer, nurse, firefighter, or other occupation.
- Food Day - It's time to look like your favorite food! Wear a food costume, a branded tee, or anything featuring food.
- Disney Day - Wear a costume of your favorite Disney character, or Disney apparel will do.
- Office Day - Raid your parents' closets and dress like young business professionals.
- Holiday Day - Dress like it's your favorite holiday. Feel free to let students pick themes for each grade.
- Silly Hat Day - The name is in the game here! Find your silliest hat to wear to class.
- Dress Like a Kindergartener Day - This one's for the older students. Put your hair up in pigtails or find Velcro or light-up shoes. It's time to feel like a kid again!
- Team Spirit Day - Wear your school jerseys or school colors. If you really want to go all-out, dress like the school mascot.
- Superhero Day - Dress like your favorite superhero.
- Rainbow Day - The opposite of color day; wear as many colors as you can in one outfit!
- Stuffed Animal Day - Bring a stuffed animal to school. (Little kids may not want to bring their favorite one just in case it gets lost at school.)
- Mix and Match Day - Wear clashing patterns and colors, or encourage kids to match outfits with students from different grades. This one can be done a few ways, depending on if you want to encourage class intermingling.
- Cultural Day - Encourage kids to dress like their ancestors or wear their traditional clothing to school. Paired with worldwide cuisines, this is a day for learning, fun, and cultural appreciation.
- Red, White, and Blue Day - Great for Spirit Week or American historical days, kids dress up in their best American flag colors.
- Formal Day - Dress in your best at school. (You may want to ask little kids to bring a change of clothes for recess.)
- Scrabble Day - Have students wear their letters on their shirts and see if you can get them to spell words with each other. You can let them pick or draw a letter from a hat in preparation.
- Crazy Hair Day - Do your hair, but make it weird! Wigs are encouraged if you lack the hair for this one.
- Animal Day - Dress like your favorite animal, or wear clothing with an animal on it.
- Grandparents Day - Find clothes that make you look like your grandparents. This one is incredibly popular for 100 Days of School.
- Ugly Tie Day - Grab your ugliest tie and wear it for the day.
- Tie-Dye Day - Have everyone dress in tie-dye. This would also be great to pair with a tie-dye event in art class so students can show off their shirts!
- Teacher Day - Dress like one of your teachers, or find an outfit that makes you look like a teacher. Teachers should have this one down pat!
- Under the Sea Day - Wear anything underwater-themed! Dress like a diver, mermaid, fish, or even coral.
- Board Game Day - Wear outfits like your favorite board game characters. We expect to see lots of Clue characters and Mr. Monopoly.
- Dr. Seuss Day - Dress like your favorite Dr. Seuss character or wear Seuss-worthy clothing.
- Zombie Day - It's the night of the living classroom! Dress up like zombies for the day.
- Rock and Roll Day - Look like a rockstar. You can dress like your favorite musician or as someone who looks like they're in a band.
- School Mascot Day - Smells like school spirit. It's time to dress like your mascot!
- Ugly Sweater Day - Who said ugly sweaters are only for Christmas? Just make sure it's cool enough for a sweater-wearing day at school.
- Future Day - What will clothing look like in the future? You decide!
- Pattern Day - Wear as many patterned pieces of clothing as possible. They can be the same or different patterns.
- Mythology Day - Students can dress like their favorite mythological creatures or various gods and goddesses from any culture.
- Pirate Day - Shiver me timbers! Wear pirate clothing and join the school pirate crew.
Spirit Week Costumes and Accessories
Do you need advice on what to wear for Spirit Days during Spirit Week? We'll share a few examples from the list above with costumes and accessories to match. Whether you buy new or combine what you already have in your closet, there are no rules about where you get your Spirit Week outfits.
Crazy Socks Day
| Adult Alien Abduction Socks | Adult Bigfoot Socks | Adult Peg-Leg Pirate Socks | Kids' Thing 1 & 2 Socks |
Ditch your regular pair of socks for the silliest socks you can find! Also, often, the taller they are, the better. (No one's going to see your no-show neon socks.) Here, we have some crazy cryptid socks, aliens, and even a mismatched pair of pirate socks. These funny socks for adults are great options for teachers, but don't forget about the kids!
Decades Day
| Adult Hippie Poncho | Child 80s Jock | Kids' 50s Sock Hop Dress | Child 20s Mob Boss |
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Decade-themed spirit days, often referred to as "Throwback Day," are pretty common. Sometimes, classes may pick a single decade theme for everyone, or it's a you-choose situation. Poodle skirts are popular picks for 50s costumes, and an unmistakable 80s costume is tons of fun to wear. Of course, should you choose something from the 20s prohibition era, leave your toy guns at home. A pinstriped suit and fedora hat are plenty iconic on their own!
Western Day
| Western Bolo Tie | Sheriff Badge | Black Cowboy Hat | Kids' Pink Cowboy Hat |
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Grab your jeans and button-up shirts for Western Day! You might have some pieces for this Spirit Day outfit idea in your closet already, so here are some of our favorite cowboy costume accessories. A cowboy hat is a must, whether you choose black, pink, white, or a traditional brown hat. Are you the sheriff in town? Don't leave home without a badge. You can also add a bolo tie with your button-up for a look that's instantly more Western.
Character Day
| Adult Carmen Sandiego | Child Sonic the Hedgehog | Kids' Vanellope | Child Jedi Costume |
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Do you have any Halloween costumes waiting to be reused? You'll be glad you hung onto one or two for Character Day! Kids love dress-up opportunities, so hanging onto one or two that still fit is never a bad idea. Otherwise, you can do a closet cosplay on a budget with the right accessories. Which character would you or your child love to dress as for Character Day?
Book Character Day
| Adult Sherlock Holmes | Kids' Alice Costume | The Lorax Costume | Child Little Bo Peep |
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Another potential Spirit Day closely related to Character Day is Book Character Day. While you might still find this an option for Homecoming Spirit Week, it's also to dress like a book character for events like Read Across America or Hats off to Reading. Young readers may gravitate towards Dr. Seuss costumes or fairytale costumes such as Little Red Riding Hood and Bo Peep, but teachers get their time to shine here by showing off favorite book characters that the class may not know yet. It makes for a great teaching moment!
Food Day
| Pizza Mask | Salad Costume | Child Potato | Donut Costume |
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Food Day is just what it sounds like—dress like the food of your choice! There are some pretty simple food costumes that you can find, or even a food-shaped hat would do. Other options include shirts with food prints or logos or fun food-shaped accessories. Teachers and kids alike will love using Food Day as a fun ice-breaker to talk about their favorite foods.
Disney Day
| Plus Size Winifred Sanderson | Kids' Flynn Rider | Child Rapunzel | Pizza Planet Hat |
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Kids always get excited when it's Disney Day! They can pull a costume from their dress-up trunk or wear a fun Disney accessory or a Disney shirt. Teachers also have a hand in making the day magical. Will you go all out with a fun Disney costume? Maybe you'll dress like an obscure character; anyone who guesses it gets extra credit. Find your way to make Disney Day fun for everyone!
Silly Hat Day
| Flamingo Hat | Toy Soldier Hat | Pith Helmet | Sonic Baseball Hat |
When it comes to Silly Hat Day, an ordinary baseball cap or knit hat just isn't weird enough. Of course, you can always modify a hat if you're feeling crafty. Or, there are plenty of crazy hats to buy, too. How silly do you want your hat to be? You can find everything from special occasion hats or hats for theater productions to the most bizarre animal hats you have ever seen. Don't forget to take plenty of pictures wearing your silly hats!
Superhero Day
| Kids' Superman Costume | Wonder Woman Cape | Yellow Utility Belt | Superhero Mask |
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After the popularity of Marvel movies skyrocketed, superheroes have been all the rage. Kids love to wear superhero costumes, making Superhero Day an incredible hit. While you might not have a complete costume ready to go, you can still gather superhero accessories like capes and eye masks or even a utility belt. Granted, there's always the option to wear a full costume if you want. Have fun attending superhero school for the day!
Grandparents Day
| Child Grandma Costume | Pearl Chain Reading Glasses | Vintage Tortoiseshell Glasses | Child Walking Cane |
Shop all Old Man and Woman Costumes and Accessories
You may be familiar with the theme of Grandparents Day in another fashion—100 Days of School. Kids dress up like grandparents or as if they're 100 years old. This one's pretty easy to do from your own closet, but it helps if you can add glasses, a walking cane, suspenders, or even a white or gray wig. Don't forget some chunky jewelry or pearls to match!
Under the Sea Day
| Adult Lobster Hat | Kids' Shark Onesie | Child Scuba Diver | Sparkle Fins Headband |
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It's better down where it's wetter—take it from me! You can wear whatever costumes you like for Under the Sea Day. Channel your inner fish, mermaid, diver, or whatever floats your boat. Wear a complete costume, or stick with costume accessories. Even shirts with sharks and octopuses count as participating in this school Spirit Day.
Dr. Seuss Day
| Plus Size Sam I Am Costume | Cat in the Hat Headband | Dr. Seuss Bow Tie Set | Adult Dr. Seuss Socks |
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Dr. Seuss Day is not to be overlooked for Spirit Days that may resonate with a younger crowd. You can wear Dr. Seuss costumes and accessories, and take the time to read Dr. Seuss books! It can be as simple as wearing a striped hat like the Cat in the Hat or a belly badge that says "Thing 1" or "Thing 2". This dress-up day is often connected with reading events such as Read Across America or Hats Off to Reading.
Rock and Roll Day
| Kids' 80s Rock Star | Inflatable Guitar | Singer Headset | Microphone Prop |
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Do you want a school Spirit Day that rocks? Have everyone dress like rock stars! Whether you dress as a particular singer or you deck yourself out with an inflatable guitar and a headset, you can easily look like a rocker in no time. Wear wild pants, layer a few shirts and tank tops, or tie a bandana around your head. Parents may have a few ideas to help make their kids look like they can rock and roll!
Pirate Day
| Child Pirate Costume | Black Pirate Hat | Lady Pirate Hat | Pirate Accessory Kit |
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Ahoy, me hearties, and welcome to Pirate Day! Wear a full pirate costume or a tricorn hat—whatever works for you! There's even an easy pirate accessory kit to pair with a ruffled white shirt and black pants for an instant pirate look. (Just make sure to leave any prop guns and swords at home.) Hoop earrings, bandanas, and eye patches will instantly make any outfit more pirate-like.
Are you ready to have a blast during your next school Spirit Week? Are you a teacher or a parent getting ready to dress up the littles? Do you have a favorite Spirit Day theme? We'd love to hear from you in the comments! Most of all, we hope that everyone has a good time.
