Five of the Best: Back to School 2018

Goodbye, summer holidays. Hello, exams and assignments.

Even though they feel as if they only started yesterday, the summer holidays have come to an end, making way for the start of school. Depending on what year you’re going into, that could mean a lot of things. For those in primary and secondary school, it could mean buying new uniforms and heading to the shopping center for new supplies. For those beginning university, it most likely means a much-needed (and highly anticipated) trip to IKEA for items to decorate your dorm room or house.

Back to school can also come with some uncertainty and nerves. Thankfully, many of our YouTube faves have gone through the trial and tribulations new school years have to offer and they’re here to share the tips and tricks they’ve learnt over the years. From knowing which school products are the best to tips on how to make the most out of Freshers’ Week, they’ve got their viewers’ backs. That’s why we’ve compiled a list of the top five videos sure to make this time of year goes by smoothly.

Here they are, our Five of the Best: Back to School 2018.

THE UNI SERIES – EP. 6: Mental Health | TeeyanaAromi

Kicking off this week’s Five of the Best is a very important video from the always insightful Teeyana Aromi. To help her subscribers prepare for this back to school season, Teeyana has created The Uni Series, with the latest instalment about mental health.

Throughout the video, Teeyana offers up tips on how her subscribers can help their mental health while at university. It’s no secret it’s a stressful time, so it’s best to arm yourselves with the tools needed to ensure to keep yourself in a positive headspace. Teeyana takes aim at the negativity in the world, pushing those watching to take social media breaks when needed and to accept that each day isn’t going to be positive, but to not let that get you down. She also reminders viewers that they need to put themselves first by eating healthy and taking breaks when needed.

Bad mental health days can come out of the blue, especially when away at university, and Teeyana’s tips will help those watching to better combat and deal with them.

Parents on First Day Back to School | Foil Arms and Hog

The first day back at school. It’s already a nerve-wracking enough day, so you’d think our parents would be a bit more understanding the morning of. WRONG. As the lads over at Foil Arms and Hog show in their latest comedy sketch, parents (more specifically, mothers) tend to be the nit pickiest during this time of year.

Did anyone else wish to leave the house as soon as possible on the first day of school? Our mums would constantly nag us about not preparing our school bag the night before, for moving too slowly (even though our bodies were still in summer holiday mode) and for not wearing our jacket, even though it was 20°C outside! And don’t get us started on those oversized uniforms…

However, worst of all would be the weird (and often very gross) sandwich combinations we’d receive. Oh, what we wouldn’t have gave to have had some extra pocket money to buy the smelly fish fingers served in the lunch room.

Back To School/College SUPPLIES HAUL 2018! | Lizzie Barnett

We couldn’t write up a Five of the Best about back to school without including a stationary haul. Our favourite part of this time of year is buying the supplies! One of the best hauls we watched? This one from Lizzie Barnett.

We love how bubbly Lizzie is in this video and we found her love for all things stationary really shined through. She takes us through the obvious must haves everyone needs to buy, such as binders (we love the lilac one), revision cards, a heart-eye inducing holo pencil case and notebooks, as well as through the non-so-obvious items, such as plastic coverings and subject dividers. We stan an organisation queen!

Can’t get enough? We highly suggest watching her school bag video for even more back to school goals!

How To Survive Freshers Week!? ad | Alice Thorpe

Oh, Freshers’ Week… For many, it’ll be their first taste of university life and it’ll leave them with a lot of memories. (Some good, some embarrassing.) There’s a lot on offer during this jam-packed week, which is why we’re glad Alice Thorpe is here to help you all navigate its waters.

Alice recently finished off her time at uni, so this video is probably your best resource if you have any questions regarding Freshers’ Week. She offer up an abundance of tips, from pushing yourself out of your comfort zone to making sure you’re constantly eating and checking in on your drinking. It’s some pretty solid advice for those of you who will be experiencing independence for the first time. In fact, think of Alice as your mother figure as you go through Freshers’ Week.

In our opinion, Alice’s best tip would definitely have to be clasping your house keys to your bra strap. We know we’ll definitely be using this one in the future!

So You’re Going to University…? WHAT I WISH I’D KNOWN BEFORE UNI! | Jack Edwards

Closing out this week’s Five of the Best is Jack Edwards with his new series, Jack to School. (We are LIVING for this pun.) In this instalment, he shares with us all the things he wish he’d known before heading off to university.

Jack is entering his second year of uni, so he’s got a lot of tricks and tips up his sleeve. We suggest you grab a pen and paper, as he covers everything from making friends and budgeting to accommodations and navigating Freshers Week in this video. As a group of people who have years of university experience under our belts, we’d say everything Jack brings up is pretty spot on, especially his point about bringing ear plugs… BRING EAR PLUGS.

Out of all the tips he shares, our top two would be to say “yes” to as many opportunities as possible (you don’t want to look back on your uni experience wishing you’d gotten more involved) and to take advantage of your lecturers. They’re there to help you out, so ask questions and get to know them!

So there you have it…

Our Five of the Best: Back to School 2018! It’s great our faves are willing to share their own experiences and offer up some much needed advice (and comedy) – there’s honestly no better way to get rid of the back to school jitters. Well… Not actually having to go back to school would work better, but since that’s out of the question, YouTube videos are the next best thing!

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