Getting Ready for the Summer Break with 4 Year-End Activities

Another school year is coming to a close. Get help winding down to the summer break with our year-end activities.

Classroom Scavenger Hunt

Host a classroom scavenger hunt to be played on the last day of classes. Make a list of items typically found in the classroom for students to find. Throw in some unique items for a bit of a challenge. Provide this list to the students. Once an item is found, have each student cross it off their list. The first student to find all items on the list gets a prize. If it’s a virtual classroom, make a list of items typically found in the home. Have each student take a picture of the item once it’s found. The first person to find all the items gets a prize.

Summer Bucket List

A bucket list is a list of things you want to do during a certain period of time. Help students brainstorm their own list of things they want to do over the summer break. Things could be: going to the beach, stargazing, camping, making smores, gardening, playing with friends, joining a sports team, etc. Their lists should include things they’re interested in. It should also include realistic things they could do. Have students keep their bucket list for their return to school in the Fall. See how many things were completed off of their lists.

Summer Activity Journal

Help students keep track of all their activities this summer. Provide each student with a notebook to take home over the summer break. Mark each page to represent each day of their summer break. For each day, students will record what they’ve done that day. The idea is to have a record of their activities over the break. When they return to classes in the Fall, they’ll be able to easily complete an essay asking what they’ve done over their summer break.

Dream Summer Vacation Plan

Students can explore their creative side with this activity. Have students imagine their dream summer vacation. It can be anything. It can be something they do every year that they look forward to. It could be something they’ve always wanted to do. It can even be something completely unrealistic, like visiting a planet or the bottom of the ocean. Students will create a plan for their dream vacation. How will they get there? What will they do there? Is there a specific activity they want to do? Is there something they want to see? Finally, have students explain why they thought up this dream summer vacation.