End-of-the-Year Learning Experiences by Santi Lank

End-of-the-Year Learning Experiences by Santi Lank https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear Share suggestions for great end-of-the-year lessons and activities, especially when resources and schedules are different than usual. Add your name and school. Thanks! en-us 2018-05-30 02:25:15 UTC 2023-03-04 11:00:33 UTC hello@padlet.com Book Tasting Party https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264519556 Have a book tasting party where kids can try out new books. The goal is to share the joy and love of reading!
https://www.sassysavvysimpleteaching.com/2017/01/host-a-book-tasting/

Kathy Harrington
James K. Polk]]> 2018-05-30 13:20:22 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264519556 Watercolors and Poetry slank https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264521194 Pull out the watercolor sets and give each student two different poems. Students choose one of the two poems to which they will respond through watercolor painting. Have students do a low-scale gallery walk at the end. For me silent-painting time + talk-friendly gallery walk time worked best. Suzanne Lank]]> 2018-05-30 13:26:25 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264521194 Book Talks angigreen https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264521924 Partner with your principal, school librarian, literacy coach and other teachers in your building to come to your room and give a "book talk". Perhaps you can ask them to leave the book as a gift for your classroom.

Angi Green (George Mason)]]> 2018-05-30 13:29:06 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264521924 Create Kahoots https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264524014 Have students create their own Kahoots (or with a partner) on a story or article they've read. Have everyone read the short text and then play the online quiz game!

Juliette Kopp
Maury Elementary]]> 2018-05-30 13:35:07 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264524014 Reading Plans angigreen https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264529059 Share your reading plans. Talk about what you plan to read and why. Help children develop their reading plans. Make it visible!

Angi Green (George Mason]]> 2018-05-30 13:48:17 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264529059 Try something new! https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264531683 I read an article once that suggested that the end of the year is the perfect time to try something new! You know your students best by now, and they can give you feedback on new strategies or help come up with new ways to organize the classroom library. If you've been wanting to try Daily 5 rotations or a new read aloud, go for it.

Christina Davin-Smith
Douglas MacArthur]]> 2018-05-30 13:54:27 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264531683 Create genre reading lists https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264532683 One of my favorite ways to find new books is to read lists. Have students create lists for next year's students based on your classroom library, including a blurb about each book or why it's a good fit.

Christina Davin-Smith
Douglas MacArthur]]> 2018-05-30 13:57:17 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264532683 Mo Willems Readers Theater https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264542040 Use Elephant and Piggie or Pigeon books for partner readers theater. No need to create a script. Just have students buddy read and take turns being the characters.

Brandy Loomis
Tucker Elementary]]> 2018-05-30 14:28:10 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264542040 Fluency- Poetry Readings https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264542767 Have students select poems to practice for a week and present to the class. No need to memorize, rather focus on the aspects of fluency (expression, rate, accuracy). To add some fun, have students generate a list of ways to read (pirate, alien, superhero...).

Brandy Loomis
Tucker Elementary]]> 2018-05-30 14:30:31 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264542767 End of Year Letter https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264547310 Have students write a letter to next year’s class, giving tips and advice about what next year’s students should expect. This is a fun activity that also has students work on their writing skills.

Karrie Kay
Lyles Crouch]]> 2018-05-30 14:43:50 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264547310 My Father's Dragon https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264588463 Read-aloud My Father's Dragon, in which students make predictions for the use of each item in his backpack before each chapter, then confirm/revise during/after reading the chapter. After reading the book, the students can write what they think would happen in the next chapter and draw an illustration.

]]> 2018-05-30 17:01:31 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264588463 Games https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264588585 Review games:
Word Study and sight word games
Jeopardy on the Smartboard
Hangman
Use Ipads to work on fluency - use Chatterpix and record students reading poems or songs from content units
My daughter's teacher did "Are you smarter than a Kindergartner?" and used up a bunch of leftover worksheets and activities and it made the students feel really accomplished!]]> 2018-05-30 17:01:53 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/264588585 Fun With Books https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/265039179 1. Retell well known stories through play by creating storytelling cards, story telling bag, or story stones.
2. Become your favorite book character and present why they are your favorite.
3. Bring some of your favorite books to life with arts and crafts.
4. Have students write their own books. You can purchase prepared blank spiral bound books pr have students make their own.

Drucillia Fletcher
Samuel Tucker]]> 2018-06-01 14:15:38 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/265039179 Timed Written Conversations before Verbal Discussions slank https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/265162694 From Cult of Pedagogy's review of Harvey and Elaine Daniels' new book]]> 2018-06-02 17:30:20 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/265162694 Friendship https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/265368193 Have students read or listen to Frog and Toad Together by Arnold Lobel. Initiate by asking students how friends help each other and do friends ever have problems in their relationship. After reading, discuss themes in story- bravery, will power, other interpretations.
Choose from list below:
*Pretend you are a real frog or toad. Write a cookie recipe that would be good for you. Be sure to include words like stir, add, mix,beat.
* Make a list, just like Toad did of things you do every day.
*Write a recipe for friendship.
* Read more Frog and Toad books!

Marci El-Baba
George Mason]]> 2018-06-04 12:28:01 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/265368193 Fun, Student-Driven Research Projects https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/265382749
1. Have students choose a topic that interests them. It's helpful to narrow the range to choices, like "animals" or "inventions".
2. Have a collection of books from library and a list of credible research websites (Kids encyclopedia, NatGeo, etc.)
3. Students organize info onto index cards for each subtopic (they take bulleted notes)
4. Present the final information in a paper, short book, poster, video, with creative art attached.
* scaffolds: can be done in pairs, pre-filled index cards w/ headings, or narrow the choices

Meredith Fortner
John Adams

]]> 2018-06-04 13:23:20 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/265382749 Travel Brochures https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/265385751
1. Have students choose a destination to travel (US or Int'l.)
2. Research key facts about the place: geography, climate, fun things to do, interesting facts
3. Create a tri-fold brochure with pictures and facts about the location
4. Present brochures using persuasive speech. Audience asks questions/ comments after.
* can use SmartBoard to locate all places on a big map using Google Maps or a large map of world with pins
* scaffolds: pairs, appropriate texts available, pre-filled papers, sentence frames

Meredith Fortner
John Adams

]]> 2018-06-04 13:32:51 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/265385751 Build an Escape Room https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/266651029 1. Talk with students about escape rooms and what makes them interesting (think engrossing stories, interesting clues, stories told bit by bit...could bring in some Lucy here...:) ) .
2. Mention clues. Brainstorm some ideas. Use following links to introduce ciphers, morse code, etc.
3. Use following guide to help students plan and create!
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1BXbPhOXcgJHILsFtco7t4Zw4d4M9ZvEp1qAmcOwHJz8
- Adam Carpenter, Sam Tucker]]> 2018-06-11 16:14:54 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/266651029 Put social media to use for something other than cat videos... jacqueline_mechanic1 https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/266661017 Do yourself the favor of following Pernille Ripp, creator of the Global Read Aloud, on the social media platform of your choice. She consistently posts great ideas for developing a love of reading in our students.
Twitter: @pernilleripp
@globalreadaloud
Instagram: pernillesripp
Facebook: Pernille Ripp
The Global Read Aloud
Main Group

-Jacki Mechanic, Samuel Tucker]]> 2018-06-11 17:12:38 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/266661017 Class Play: A class play is a great opportunity to build the social and academic strengths in the class. It reinforces many parts of the curriculum and provides students the chance to showcase their skills to peers, family members, and colleagues. Lisa Patriarca https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/266886168 John Adams

]]> 2018-06-12 18:58:45 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/266886168 Drawing with Ed Emberley https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/266888264 Students love following the easy step by step creation of animals and creatures in Ed Emberley's Drawing Book of Animals and other drawing books. Syd Hoff also has a simple drawing book entitled Drawing with Letters and Numbers. Students can create their characters, draw a setting and write their own stories. This is a lot of fun - especially for students who need practice sequencing and need some confidence with their art.
Andrea Drone
Reading Specialist
John Adams

]]> 2018-06-12 19:13:39 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/266888264 Student Created Board Games https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/267116056 Students create their own board games using file folders, construction paper, markers and other supplies you have handy. Games can be centered around a genre studied like fairy tales or a particular book they read; math related; or a mashup of grade level skills similar to 'Are you Smarter than a...'. http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/lesson-docs/NovelBoardGameRubric.pdf
~Jackie Booe, Samuel Tucker

]]> 2018-06-14 00:54:20 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/267116056 Take kids outside and complete a fun measurement task slank https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/267255770 Measure the playground and decide how to upgrade it to their dream playground

]]> 2018-06-14 17:57:26 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/267255770 Shaving Cream on Tables slank https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/267256130 Have students write math problems on the tables, then wipe off for clean tables!!

]]> 2018-06-14 17:59:30 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/267256130 Make the last days special! slank https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/267256446 3 days left: bring a board game to teach to others
2 days left: grab a blanket and take kids outside for a reading lunch
1 day left: relay races to review their learning this year (have students write the prompts)]]> 2018-06-14 18:01:51 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/267256446 Writing Celebration IntegratedMTSS https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/2198243263 Have students record themselves reading a book. Check out puppetedu! Share with the class. Have students give a compliment to the writer.]]> 2022-05-24 19:50:31 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/2198243263 Genius Hour / Problem Solvers / Culminating Project IntegratedMTSS https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/2198244314

Have student develop a question or a problem that they want to solve. Have them work on designing or creating the object or idea. Then have students post videos and photos of their project. You could also provide a question or problem. Example: Post a video on seed dispersal and have students create a see with items at home that will have the greatest rate of dispersal.

]]> 2022-05-24 19:51:15 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/2198244314 Philosophical Chairs Debate IntegratedMTSS https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/2198253102

This technique has a lot of different names, like Four Corners, Physical Barometer, and This or That, but the idea is the same: You read some sort of statement to the class, like “Students should be allowed to go barefoot in school.” Designate one side of the room as the “Agree” side and the other as the “Disagree” side. Students must physically walk to the side of the room that best represents their opinion. Then have students take turns explaining why they are standing in that spot. (If you want fantastic pre-made questions on a PowerPoint for this, take a look at my This or That icebreaker).

]]> 2022-05-24 20:00:40 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/2198253102 Group Story/Progressive Writing: IntegratedMTSS https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/2198253495

Have every student take out a sheet of paper and have them all write the first sentence (or two, or three) of a story. Then have them pass it to the right and pick up where the last student left off. Keep going until you have a class set of unique stories. One variation of this is to give everyone the exact same sentence to start with, and see how many directions the different stories take.

]]> 2022-05-24 20:01:06 UTC https://padlet.com/slank/endofyear/wish/2198253495