School cone in Germany (Schultüte). History and list

Last Updated on October 9, 2023

An obligatory attribute of the first day of school for a first-grader in German-speaking countries is Schultüte (literally “school bag”). In this post about school cone in Germany – its history and what is inside.

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History of school cone

The tradition of giving children such a cone began at the beginning of the 19th century in Saxony and Thuringia, where children were told that if Zuckertüte (Schultüte) grew up on the magic tree in the teacher’s garden, then it was time to go to school. Slowly, for about 100 years, this custom spread throughout the German-speaking lands, from east to west, from large cities to small ones.

Who is doing

Schultüte is made either by parents, or parents with children (in the Kindergarden or at home), or children with kindergarteners in the Kindergarden.

Kindergartens often invite parents to come in the evening on certain days to make Schultüte together, in such cases it is usually necessary to pay for the materials.

If you really can’t make it yourself, then most supermarkets and children’s stores offer different ready-made Schultüte, you just have to choose. Another option is Bastelset, ready-to-glue sets.

As a rule, the children themselves choose the motive and color of the cone – they draw or tell what they want.

Each school has its own rules for when to bring Schultüte. Somewhere you bring them to school in advance, somewhere you bring them to the chirch, oder to Einschulungsfeier (first day at school).

What’s inside

Some parents make a double bottom in a bag, stuffing it with paper. Someone throws Playmais or popcorn for weight loss.

So, a summary list of what you can put in a cone. Nowadays – days of take care of teeth and proper nutrition – sweet are in the last place.

For little Geschwisters (siblings) of a conscious age small cones are made so that it is not offensive.

1. Beautiful school stuff for home or school (according school’s requirements) – if the child likes it. My son said: You can’t dare put down the pencils!
Important: things from the school list (pencils, ruler, scissors) should not be in the Schultüte. Children will need them in the first lesson. And the Schultüte will be open only at home.

2. Small alarm clock

3. Wrist watch

4. Children’s wallet

5. Lanyard for keys, keychain

6. Lunch box, water bottle

7. Gutschein to visit a park / entertainment, cinema tickets

8. Name stickers for school supplies

9. “A book for friends” (Freundschaftsalbum / -buch (for example))

10. For girls – hair jewelry, earrings, bracelets

11. skipping rope

12. Soap bubbles

13. Box for milk teeth

14. Small photo album

15. A small toy (soft, playmobile, doll) or a hand-made “gutschein” for a large-sized toy that a child has long been desired

16. A book of interesting assignments for first graders.

17. Reflective tapes or other devices, a book / memo on the correct behavior on the road

18. Cup with a name.

19. Small board game or puzzle

20. CD, DVD (but various games are NOT recommended – computer, telephone, etc.)

By the way, about mobile phones. All schools require mobile phones to be turned off during class. For violation of this rule, the phone can only be taken away and returned to the parents. In some schools, it is forbidden to use the telephone during breaks.

How you can make a Schultüte read on in the next post.