The end of the school year is a tricky time to navigate.
You’re exhausted, but the moment you show signs of weariness, you’ve totally lost those kids. Here, I’ll share my experiences making big mistakes (and how you can correct them!) as well as my favorite resources for secondary ELA at the end of the school year.
Listen to THE WORST ACTIVITIES TO USE IN ELA (and How to Make Them Better) [Ep 255] right here! 👇🏻
BEST END OF THE YEAR ACTIVITIES FOR ELA
TIME CAPSULE OF MY YEAR
Give students the chance to reflect on their year by creating a time capsule. This project-based learning assignment gives students ample room for creativity, reflection, and critical thinking about the Essential Questions they’ve studied and texts they’ve read over the course of the year.
LAST LINES COUNTDOWN
Who says the end of the year can’t have a literary twist? Not me! I love using this old-school paper chain countdown to celebrate the author’s craft work in famous last lines from literature and film. All stories come to an end. All films come to. an end. How do these stories end? How will this school year’s story end? Rip one paper chain per day and enjoy the end of the year in literary style.
Saying goodbye to seniors is hard — they’re checked out, but they’re still your kiddos until the very end. This beginnings and endings choice board gives students the opportunity to explore a variety of stories, poems, speeches and more as they get closer and closer to moving to the finish line.
person of the year
Study the art of argument by examining the ways in which TIME magazine has historically selected their Person of the Year. This lesson also gives students the chance to select and defend their OWN person of the year. I love using this in choosing a person of the SCHOOL year if I didn’t have time to do this at the New Year.
BUILD A STORY: SUMMER COUNTDOWN WRITING CHALLENGE
If you’re looking for something creative but still academic, this writing challenge is a wonderful final memory to create with your class while working on narrative writing techniques.
SUMMER READING BINGO!
The end of the year means it’s time to start getting students ready for summer reading, and if your school has struggled with this in the past, I might have an idea that actually works for you: a summer reading BINGO activity! We broaden “summer reading” to “summer literacy” and gameify the experience. Check out this free download and try it for yourself!
MY ONE WORD
This activity is awesome during the year, but at the end, it’s perfect for reflection and even as the centerpieces for a socratic seminar or gallery walk. Depending on how you prompt students, their one word could launch them into a college application, define their answer to a year long essential question, or set an intention for the school year to come.
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