6 Back-To-School Movies To Stream On Netflix Before Summer Ends

Sorry kids, but Summer has to end sometime, and the days of endless fun, sun, beach outings, bike rides and vacations is coming to a close. Before you know it, the days of textbooks, pencils, notebooks, tests, lockers and big yellow buses will be here once again.

Of course, while kids everywhere are likely groaning over the news that Summer is over and school is back in session, there is still time to kick back with one luxurious summertime activity—excessive binge-watching on Netflix. Since kids need to get back into the mindset of getting back to school, why not make use of this activity to slowly ease them back into it by streaming Back-To-School movies?

Here are 6 movies to watch to get ready for heading back to school:

“Grease” (1978):

While it’s unlikely that any homecoming dances or proms will feature perfectly choreographed numbers for the entire school to dance along to, “Grease” is still a classic movie that is prefect for streaming before heading back to school. The film, which is an adaptation of a Broadway musical, sees Sandy (Olivia Newton-John) trying to adjust to school a Rydell High, after a dreamy summer romance at the beach with Danny Zuko (John Travolta), a fellow student who is very different from the guy she met over the summer. With a story that deals with struggles some high school students face—peer pressure, love triangles, teen pregnancy and the idea of figuring out what you want to do with your life after high school ends are all covered—it’s still timeless almost 40 years after it was released.

“Can't Buy Me Love” (1987):

Most kids in high school (or even younger than that) dream of being one of the popular kids because of how glamorous the life the cool kids lead seems. This 1987 film shows what it’s like when a nerdy outcast (portrayed by Patrick Dempsey) climbs the ranks of popularity when he blackmails cheerleader Cindy Mancini (Amanda Peterson) into pretending to be his girlfriend for a month. But, he quickly learns that being with the coolest girl in school can come at a price, if it means his true friends are left behind. Though the premise has been copied several times over in similar movies since, the idea of remembering who your real friends are is still a great one to remember going into a new school year.

“Heathers” (1988):

Another movie that deals with the “popular clique,” but with a murderous twist. Veronica (Winona Ryder) no longer cares for the cruel behavior her popular group inflicts on other students, but when she and boyfriend J.D. (Christian Slater) confront leader Heather Chandler (Kim Walker), they accidentally poison her. Soon after, Veronica realizes that it was no accident, and J.D. is intentionally killing students he doesn’t like. Veronica is then forced to try and stop him, but must also deal with her new clique leader, Heather Duke (Shannen Doherty) as well. While (hopefully) the concept of a killer running through the halls of a high school isn’t a top concern, it’s still a campy way to get back into the spirit of being forced to see the kids that we all don’t actually care for on a daily basis again.

“Mean Girls” (2004):

Hands down, “Mean Girls” is probably one of the best movies to tackle the concept of high school popularity and staying true to who you are in more recent years, simply because of the iconic jokes and other moments from the film. It’s a must on any back to school movie list. The film follows Cady (Lindsay Lohan) after she enters a high school for the first time in her life after years of being home-schooled while living in Africa. She is quickly taken in by the school’s Mean Girl clique, The Plastics, headed by Regina George (Rachel McAdams). However, when Regina steals Aaron Samuels (Jonathan Bennett) away from Cady, she decides to channel her inner plastic to take Regina down for good.

“High School Musical “(2006):

While it may a less popular choice since it was a Disney Channel original movie, this film still captures the essence of high school well, with cliques that want to keep things status quo as the star of the basketball team, Troy Bolton (Zac Efron) considers trying out for the school musical alongside his love interest, new Brainiac girl Gabriella Montez (Vanessa Hudgens). The movie deals with both struggling to find a balance between their desire to star in the show and their other school commitments, their friends who try to alternately stop them and help them, and of course, the push and pull of teenage romance. Nothing says “welcome back to school” more than remembering just how difficult it can be to balance what you want to do with what your friends tell you to do.

“GBF” (2013):

This film focuses on the phenomenon of having a G.B.F., or Gay Best Friend. A newer high school dream, this movie actually focuses on how Tanner (Michael J Willett) adjusts to being the new ‘it’ guy in school after he’s forced out of the closet. However, while the three most popular girls in school compete to win him over as their GBF, his actual best friend, Brent (Paul Iacono), who wanted in with the popular girls, finds himself not only left behind, but also still in the closet.