If you teach third grade or above, you know that the End-of-Grade testing period usually takes place a week or two before the official end of the school year. What happens after the End-of-Grade tests conclude? It’s entirely up to you! While some students will be making up missed tests and others may be re-testing, most of your students will arrive at school, eager to learn what the class will do that day.
The period after official instruction ends and the summer begins can look very different in each school. If a school does not structure specific student activities, the days can feel long and drawn out, making the students restless and mischievous. With strategic activities, however, these days can be engaging, collaborative, and hands-on in a way that draws out the strengths of all students. Plan for a fun final few days with your students using a few activities below!
Miniature Boat Races
Supplies needed:
- Shoeboxes or small cardboard boxes
- Scissors
- Duct tape
- Rubber ducks
- Small tub of water
- Miniature hand-held fans
Goal: Work in teams to create an ergonomic boat out of a cardboard box that can hold a rubber duck and be successfully propelled across a small body of water.
Description: Divide your classroom into pairs or teams of no more than four students. Using a small cardboard box, scissors, and duct tape, students will design and create a boat that they believe can skim across the water in the quickest time possible, while still being able to hold a rubber duck.
On the day of the great race, the teacher will time each boat as students use a miniature, hand-held fan to help propel their boat (and duck!) across a tub of water. The boat must get from one end of the tub to the other, while keeping the duck afloat, to succeed! The boat that skims the water in the least amount of time wins!
Mega-Relay
Supplies needed
- Hula hoops (one for each team playing)
- Water balloons
- Whiffle bat
- Bean bag
Goal: Be the first team to accomplish all Mega-Relay activities!
Description: Combining multiple field day activities into one event, this mega relay is a great way for some inter-class competition between homerooms. Review each activity with your class beforehand, and determine which students will perform which activities. Set up the field with a small cone on either end of each competing team. The events will take place in between the cones.
- Event #1: Hula Hoop: Have students start in a single file line. When the whistle blows, one student places a hula hoop over their head and steps through it. The student behind them must step into the hula hoop and pull it over their head. The next student must pull the hula hoop down over their head and step through it. The following student must step into the hula hoop and pull it over their head. The “over-under” pattern continues until each student goes through the hula hoop. As soon as the final student steps through. The class begins with the next activity.
- Event #2: Dizzy Bat: All students will run to the cone on the opposite side of the field. One student designated for the Dizzy Bat activity will then run to the other cone, where the “coach” (teacher) will hand them a whiffle bat. The student must place their forehead on one end of the bat and the other side of the bat on the ground. The student must spin with the bat seven times before running to the first cone and tagging the second runner. The second designated student runs to the first cone and completes the dizzy bat activity. When the second player crosses the cone where the rest of the class is waiting, the class can begin the next event.
- Event #3: Bean Bag Hop: After the final Dizzy Bat student crosses the cone, the first of two students designated for the Bean Bag Hop will run to the first cone. The “coach” (teacher” hands the student a bean bag. The student places the bean bag between their knees and hops to the other cone, where another student takes the bean bag, places it between their knees, and hops back to the original cone. Once the second student runs back across the cone where the class stands, the class moves to the next event.
- Event #4: Balloon Pass: The class runs between the cones in a single file line. The “coach” (teacher) hands the first student a water balloon. The first student passes the water balloon over their head to the second student, who passes the water balloon under their legs to the third student. The students repeat the over-under pattern until the water balloon is at the end of the class. If the water balloon pops, the class must start over with a backup water balloon! The “coach” will have three water balloons for the class in case a water balloon or two pops during the process of the game.
- Event #5: Amoeba Run: When the Balloon Pass is complete, the students link hands and form a circle. Running in a circle, the students must cross the cone and sit on the ground. The first team down wins!
Pizza Box S’mores
Supplies:
- Marshmallows
- Chocolate bars
- Graham crackers
- Donated pizza boxes (unused)
- Aluminum foil
- Plastic wrap
- Piece of black paper
- Ruler
- Tape
Goal: Make gooey, delicious s’more treats using solar energy!
Description:
- Ask local pizza places to donate unused pizza boxes for the project
- Ask student families to donate s’mores supplies (marshmallows, graham crackers, flat chocolate bars)
- Assemble all supplies ahead of time
- Split students into groups of four
- Provide each group with:
- One pizza box
- One sheet of black paper
- One square foot of aluminum foil (or enough to cover the top of a pizza box)
- One square foot of plastic wrap (or enough to wrap across a pizza box)
- One ruler
- Ample tape
- Two graham crackers; two squares of chocolate, one marshmallow
- Groups should assemble the pizza boxes as follows:
- Place the black piece of paper on the bottom of the box
- Place the aluminum foil on the bottom side of the top of the pizza box
- Tape the ruler from the side of the bottom to the side of the top of the box so that it props the box open at a 45-degree angle
- Assemble the s’mores: graham cracker, chocolate, marshmallow, graham cracker
- Place the s’mores in the box on top of the black piece of paper
- Extend plastic wrap across the top of the bottom side of the pizza box
- Allow the sun to warm the s’mores until the chocolate and marshmallow are soft!
- Unwrap the plastic wrap and enjoy the sun-baked s’mores!
Thank You Notes
Supplies:
- Thank you cards or colorful sheets of paper
- Pens, colored pencils, or fine-tipped markers
- Optional: stickers
Goal: To show teachers appreciation for their hard work and dedication to students!
Description: Host a letter-writing party by playing lively music, providing a variety of fun and colorful materials, and giving students time to write a thank-you note to one or more teachers who made a difference in their school year. Encourage students to mention specific things they are grateful for about the teacher, and label each note with the teacher’s name on the front. You could drop a bundle of notes in a teacher’s box or allow the students to deliver the notes themselves!
Create a Summer Bucket List
Supplies:
- Summer Bucket List Template
- Pencil, colored pencils, or fine-tipped markers
Goal: Plan an adventurous and intentional summer with goals to achieve before the fall!
Description: Build anticipation for the summer by creating a ‘bucket list,’ or list of things each student wants to enjoy. You can guide students in creating the Summer Bucket List by offering a variety of pre-printed templates to choose from and encourage each student to choose at least one outdoor activity, one reading goal, and one healthy habit to add to their list. Invite your students to bring their bucket list back to you in the fall and tell you about their adventures!
Memory Book Signing
Supplies:
- Memory Book Template (may need to be printed and stapled together before the event)
- Fine-tipped markers or sharpies
Goal: Encapsulate who each student was at a specific time in their lives and create long-lasting memories with friends.
Description: Based on your selected Memory Book Template (many are available for free or low cost on Teachers Pay Teachers), you can kick off the event by having students fill out fun sheets about their favorite interests, hobbies, and memories of their specific grade level. Next, have a signing party where students can write messages to one another in the ‘signature’ pages of the memory book! Play some lively music and consider having a running slideshow of grade-level photos projected as students share their memories while making more before they break for the summer.
Blind Date with a Book + Reading BINGO
Supplies:
- Books in good condition that are available to be given away
- Sharpies
- Brown wrapping paper
- Tape
- Reading BINGO Templates
Goal: Start the summer with a good book students can use to accomplish reading goals and cross off squares on their Reading BINGO game.
Description:
- Find gently used and age-appropriate books that the Media Center or local library can donate, or through a local used bookstore. Wrap each book in brown paper, and write descriptions on the front of each book without indicating the title or author. “Strong female protagonist,” “For readers who love dragons,” or “Historical fiction – War” might be apt descriptors of your selected books.
- Print a variety of colorful Summer Reading BINGO Templates for students to choose from based on their interests. One BINGO game might focus on broadening reading horizons, while another might focus on the theme of ‘Fantasy & Adventure.’ The more students have from which to choose, the more likely they will find a template that fits their interests and inspires them to read this summer!
- Cover some tables or desks with tablecloths. Set up the wrapped books and BINGO templates across tables or desks, interspersed with individually wrapped snacks and drinks. Play music and allow students to browse the books and BINGO templates, sharing and comparing their finds!
Have a Super Summer!
Congratulations, teachers! You have filled the final days of your student’s school year with positive memories and set them up for reading success through the summer. Just like your students, you can get started on your summer reading goals and summer bucket list adventures!
F.A.Q.s
Q: How do I ensure no one is left out during the Memory Book Signing?
A: Create a rotating system for signing! Set students up in a “speed dating” style of greeting each other, having a set time for signing one another’s Memory Book, and rotating to the next classmate!
Q: The Blind Date with a Book activity sounds fun, but time-consuming! Can I reduce the prep time for this activity?
A: Yes! If you wish to save time wrapping books, use brown paper bags instead. You can write descriptors on the front of each brown paper bag, and staple the top together to ensure that no one can peek inside!
Q: Some of my students will be re-testing during this time of celebration. How can I make sure to include them?A: You can create a Summer Fun Kit To-Go! For example, you can include a Memory Book signed by their classmates, a Blind Date Book and BINGO Template you think they would like, and a plastic bag of S’more supplies they can enjoy on their own time.
