Engaging Students at the End of the Year

I saw it posted somewhere on social media that you can ask any teacher how many days they have left of school and they know the answer off the top of their head. It made me chuckle because I know it is the truth. Students are ready for a much-needed summer break just as much as teachers are! The end of the year can be chaotic and stressful, so it is important to keep students engaged and focused. Below are some ideas to help:

Keep a routine as much as possible.

I am all about trying new things in my classroom but there are certain classroom routines that don’t go away even at the end of the year. For example, I always expect my students to come into my classroom quietly, complete their bell ringer, and then work on an anchor activity. Maintaining consistent routines helps the school year to go smoothly.

Switch up your classroom layout.

If your desks have always been in a certain layout, the end of the year is the perfect time to mix it up. Put students into partners or groups. Give students new seats. Create a U shape. Sometimes making a simple switch in the classroom layout can be motivating and engaging for students. Besides, by now, you know who can’t handle sitting with each other.

Incorporate movement into your lessons and activities.

Get students up and moving with brain breaks or create movement opportunities in your lessons. Movement breaks are a time to re-energize and refocus, which reduces behavior issues and creates more meaningful and engaging lessons. Some movement ideas include scavenger hunts, games (Trashketball, Grudgeball, etc.), room transformations, Scoot with task cards, etc.

Let your students be the teachers.

Assign students a topic or let them choose a topic to be an expert on. Students are expected to teach the class or review said topic with the class by creating an engaging 10-minute lesson. Students can work independently, in pairs, or in groups.

Complete real-world projects.

Real-world projects are a great way to tie the curriculum together and provide applications and connections for students. They are hands-on, fun, and engaging, especially if you allow students to work in partners or groups. Click here to check out some projects.

Use whiteboards and technology.

• I wish I could describe the magic that occurs when you give students a whiteboard and a marker. For some reason, they are instantly more engaged and forget they are even doing work! I love having my students complete digital activities on whiteboards and they love it too:
  • Sixth-grade math review
  • Seventh-grade math review
  • Algebra I review

Take your students outside.

As soon as the weather gets nice, I am itching to go outside and I know my students are too. Take your class outside to work or create an activity to do outside, such as a scavenger hunt, relay race, sidewalk chalk review, etc.

Celebrate and reflect on the school year.

• @smartpugteaching has a fabulous and FREE digital scrapbook template. Students can answer fun questions, make notes of trends and things going on in the world and their lives at this time, and answer content-based questions. This is the perfect way to wrap up distance learning! Click here to access it.
• You can also celebrate by giving students personalized notes and/or awards. These are perfect ways to recognize student achievements, celebrate the end of the school year, and let students know you are thinking about them.

Concluding Thoughts

In conclusion, the end of the year can be stressful and chaotic so don’t forget to give yourself and your students grace. I hope you find these engagement ideas helpful. I would love to hear your end-of-year ideas. Feel free to comment below.