We all feel it. Summer is approaching, state testing is looming, and everyone in the class has a case of spring fever. Rather than trying to fight against the excitement that ensues with the end of the year, we have fully embraced it. We have found a way to take the end of year craziness and focus it on some fun, enriching activities that continue the rigorous work we have been completing throughout the year. The best part is that it is all disguised as fluffy year-end fun so the kids have total buy-in.
We realize we aren’t the only people to use a summer countdown in our classrooms. However, rather than simply counting down the last week or ten days, we extend our countdown to the final 26 days of the school year. We know, we know. It sounds a bit crazy to start counting down to the end of the year with five weeks left, but our countdown is thematic so the kids remain focused and excited for each new day throughout the entire countdown. We celebrate the end of the year by celebrating the ABCs of College Degrees. This truly becomes a fun unit in and of itself, simultaneously providing engaging daily activities and giving students a glimpse at the educational opportunities available in college.
The countdown kicks off with the students each receiving their acceptance letter to Endoyear University. We hold a big acceptance party where we celebrate everyone’s acceptance into this “prestigious” program. From the letter they learn that they will be earning a different college degree each day through the last day of school. Already the students begin to look forward to seeing what their first degree will be. Each day we unveil the subject of the day, beginning with A for Advertising and working our way through the alphabet. By Day 3 we have students betting against one another over what degree will be earned for the letter F or L or Z. The best part is that the class isn’t able to earn the degree until the activity is successfully completed. This keeps end-of-year silliness in check and keeps the students focused on completing work. Click on the link below to check out some of the ideas we came up with!
This activity can easily be done in any classroom at any grade level. Simply think of a college subject and come up with an activity that corresponds to it. To make life easier on you, we have put together a bundle of certificates that cover a variety of subjects. Many letters have multiple certificates to fit whichever activity works for you in your classroom. Even better, we have provided a link to a Google Drive resource that is completely editable in case there is a specific subject area you would like your kids to study that is not included in our bundle! We have also gone ahead and created an activity for each day, so implementing this in your own classroom is as simple as hitting print!
If you are interested in checking out this resource, you can click HERE to find it our TpT store! Let us know below what activities you do to countdown to summer!
