gradmi3.gif Can you believe the end of the year is already here? It has gone by so quickly. Your hard work has paid off an your students will graduate on to the next grade! Here are some fun ways to finish out the year with your class! I hope you find an idea or two you can use in your classroom to make the end of the year fun & educational for your students. They worked hard and so did you. Congrats on a great year!!!

Updated April, 2006

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grbul1.gifEnd of the Year Packet -It's Here!!!grbul1.gif

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End of The Year Packet From Teaching Heart
Includes some beach and ice cream thematic activities to warm up your May-June Teaching!

End of the Year Files:

1.) Student Memory Book (1-3)
An eight page mini book for your students to write in, color, and illustrate.

2.) End of the Year Candy Bar Wrapper Gift in Word Format (K-3)
A wrapper you can wrap around a candy bar.  Give the candy bar to your class as an end of the year reward.  You can personalize the candy bar wrapper with your name and name of your school.
(NOT FOUND ON CDROMS)

3.) End of the Year Certificate (k-3)
A certificate that can be given to any student in your class at the end of the year.

4.) End of the Year Gift – Survival Kit For Summer (k-3)
Includes a label for your kit and a recipe card to place in the kit.
(NOT FOUND ON CDROMS)

5.) Play-Doh End of The Year Gift (k-2)
Give your students a container of Play-Doh, a cookie cutter, and a recipe for making more Play-Doh.   I wrote a little poem to go with this end of the year gift idea.  Also included is a recipe card for Play-Doh.  Print these two things and attach to the gift.
(NOT FOUND ON CDROMS)

Summer and Beach Thematic Files

6.) Beach Ball Math Adding and Subtracting Memory Game (k-1)
Materials supplied to create a computation review game.  Just print, laminate, cut, and play.
(NOT FOUND ON CDROMS)

7.) Beach Ball Antonym Memory Game (2-3)
Materials supplied to create an antonym review game.  Just print, laminate, cut, and play.
(NOT FOUND ON CDROMS)

8.) Beach Ball Color A Rhyme (K-3)
Similar to erase a rhyme, student must listen to or read a rhyme and then complete a task.
(FOUND ON CD # 4)

9.) A Day At The Beach Emergent Reader (k-2)
A cute emergent reader about a Bear’s day at the beach!  The last page is an activity page.

10.) Graphing for Summer (1-2)
Student cuts out pictures and glues them to the graph.  The student answers given questions about the graph.
(NOT FOUND ON CDROMS)

Ice Cream Thematic Files

11.)  Long & Short “i” take-it-to-your-seat ice cream center (k-1)
Materials needed to make center.  Student must match a picture on an ice cream scoop to a long or short “i” on an ice cream cone.  An independent center sheet is provided for your students to complete.
(NOT FOUND ON CDROMS)

12.) Ice cream flavor graphing activity (1-3)
Student graph classmates favorite flavors and then answers questions about the graph
(NOT FOUND ON CDROMS)

13.) Ice cream mini counting book (k-2)
Student fills in the number word and colors the book.  When they are finished they will have a mini book to share with an adult. 
(NOT FOUND ON CDROMS)

14.) An Ice Cream Glyph Lesson (1-3)
This includes a ready to print key for making the glyph.  Also includes a glyph data sheet for your students to fill out once the glyphs are displayed.
(NOT FOUND ON CDROMS)

These are word files that will be sent to you in Zip Format via email. They are sent in less than 24 hours after payment through Paypal! Please make sure your email is correct when you order.  Your packets are sent to the email given.  Please contact Teaching Heart if you do not receive your packet in 24 hours.  Thanks!

Total Price = $ 10.75

grbul1.gifEnd of the Year Ideas From Packetgrbul1.gif
Give your students Play-Doh as an end of the year gift!

I wrote a cute poem to match this gift idea. The poem is found in the packet above.

Print the note on cardstock. Print the recipe on cardstock.  Punch a hole in the corner of the note & recipe.  Sting the note & recipe through ribbon.  String a cookie cutter through ribbon.  Tie the note and cookie cutter around a jar of playdough.  Pass out to your students on the last day of school. 

What a fun way to end the year - your students won't forget you!

Sample above

Purchase for each student: sucker, bubble, band aid, book marker, pencil, eraser, and Hershey’s Chocolate Hugs and Kisses.  (All of these things can be purchased in bulk from Oriental Trading – they have great products at low prices.) 

You will also need a playdough recipe card.  Place all the items in some sort of container.    Some ideas for containers:  Sand Pail, Gift Bag, Cup, Paper Bag, or Box.

Place this little note on the outside of your container:

It was great having you in my class this year.
You will always have a special place in my heart. 
Please stop by to visit me next year. 
Here are a few goodies to use over your summer break.

A lollipop, to remind you how sweet you are!
A band aid for one of those summer ouches!
A playdough recipe card, so you can make playdough on a rainy summer day!
Bubbles to blow on a day that’s too hot to run and play.
A book marker, so you don't lose your page when you are reading.
A pencil & eraser, so you can write a letter to me.
Hugs and Kisses, for those times you need them!

Sample above

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grbul2.gifFree Printables From Teaching Heart!grbul2.gif

Want to give your students an End of the Year gift that is inexpensive and fun? Use our candy bar wrapper to wrap up a candy bar to give to your students at the end of the year. It is in Publisher and you will need Publisher to download it. You can modify it to meet your needs or just change my name and the school name to yours. Hope you can use it. So sorry to those that do not have Publisher :( - Colleen

Click here to download and print the wrapper
two wrappers per page!!!

A similar wrapper is found in the End of The Year Packet above. It is in Word format!

Summer Letter Writing
End of Year Letter To Students A Grade 2-3 List To Print and send home. Includes Tips and book ideas for summer reading!

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Bursting Good Ideas for the End of the Year!

grbul2.gifHave a BURSTING Summer!grbul2.gif

Write a different summertime activity on a paper strip for each student. Roll each strip and tuck it into a balloon; inflate each balloon and tie it. Have each student select a balloon, pop it, and pantomime the activity written on his paper strip. The other students try to guess his activity.

Some ideas to write on the strips may be - swimming in a pool, eating icecream, riding my bike, surfing, laying in the sun, playing volleyball, helping dad grill, eating a hotdog, playing ball...

I've done this as a back to school idea too! Instead of summer strips, write get to know you questions on the strips. Have each student pick a balloon and pop it. They read the question and answer it.

grbul1.gifTell It Like It Was grbul1.gif

Use your students' writing talents to help ease the first-day jitters of the youngsters who will be in your class next fall. Ask each child to compose a letter addressed to next year's incoming class. In their letters, ask the students to describe their year in your classroom, note their favorite activities and subjects, and make comments about your teaching style. Store the letters over the summer; then read them as an opening-day activity in the fall. These letters are sure to put your new students at ease and start the year off on a positive note!

grbul2.gifRead Goodbye House & Goodnight Moon . Do a compare and contrast of the two books. Then have the children draw pictures of the things they would like to say goodbye to in our classroom. It is good "therapy" because we know how hard it can be to say goodbye to our familiar room and friends. Now bound it into a class book entitled GOODBYE ROOM. (CLICK ON THE BOOKS TO PURCHASE)

grbul1.gifWe usually have a field day at the end of the year. The other third grade teacher and I get together and we decide which games we want to play. It usually is math oriented such as multiplication match up where you take notecards and put multiplication facts on them. Then take another set of cards and write the answers even some bogus answers to see if the kids can pick up the correct answer. The rest of the game works like a relay were the cards are picked up at the starting line and the answers are on a table 50 yards away. We also measure a whale etc. Another game we play is a prefix/suffix game where students are given a base word on a pocket chart and they have to put either a prefix or a suffix on a word to make a new word. If the first person puts a prefix on a word and the person behind them adds a suffix then they get double the points. This game really makes them think. At the end of the day we make homemade ice cream in ziplock bags where the kids measure the recipe and etc.

Janna Tipton

grbul2.gifHi group,
I teach second grade and at the end of each year, I compile all the pictures I have taken over the year and make a power point slide show to music for the parents to see.  I hold a graduation ceremony too and then show the slide show.  (My school only goes up to 2nd grade, so the kids move to a different school for 3rd).  If taking pictures is something you didn't do this year, plan it for next year.  I always have a digital camera on hand.  Hope this helps. Susan

grbul1.gifI have my end of the year party the day BEFORE the last day (No mess to clean on the last day), and then on the last day I have the kids bring in a card or board game and their slippers and they play games with no shoes on (and that is a BIG deal in 2nd grade -- go figure!) while I try to get my stuff organized and packed away.

Laura/1 - 2 Loop/FL
http://myschoolonline.com/FL/Miss_Black

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Great BBoard Ideas For The End of The Year

grbul2.gif_____ Grade Was a Ball! - Cover a bulletin board with a "beachy" background. Include a sun, water, and sand. Bounce around a beach ball one day in class and discuss what a "ball" the year has been. As you pass the ball to a each student have them discuss what they liked best about the year. Then cut out large circles for everyone in your class. Have the students color the white balls to resemble a beach ball. After they have colored their ball, have them place a piece of white lined paper in the center of the ball. Have the students write about their favorite experience in grade ____. Then place the balls onto the beach scene.

grbul1.gifHigh Fives For Summer! -
Have the students trace their hand onto a piece of construction paper (their choice of color). Then, have them cut out their hands. Give each student a white piece of lined paper and direct them to glue part of the piece onto the palm of the hand they just cut. Now the students can write their summer plans on their palm. Add a plain colored background, a border of your choice, and the title; "High Fives For Summer."

grbul2.gifYou Will Be My Summer Sunshine -
Take a picture of each of your students and get the picture developed. Then supply your kiddos with a six inch brown circle and several yellow triangular shaped pieces of construction paper. Have the students create sunflowers by gluing the shapes around the circle. Then, have the students create a long stem and a leaf to attach to their sunflowers. Finally, have them place their picture in the center of the flower. Glue their flowers to a bulletin board labeled, "You Will Be My Summer Sunshine."

grbul1.gifI'll Remember When ... "  Put up this caption in big letters on your bulletin board and then let your students "decorate" it by writing things that they enjoyed doing in your class.

grbul2.gifView these two Lazy Summer Days or Surfing Into "your classes next grade goes here"

grbul1.gifI haven't done this before but was inspired when I saw cow print fabric (white with black spots) at Walmart. I am going to cover a bulletin board with the fabric and put the caption "We're udderly delighted because we're moooving up to second grade!". Now, this works for me because I am not retaining anyone but would be a problem if you were. Haven't figured out how I am going to get the kids names on there - will head to the teacher store to look for cows I guess! - stpetersfirst

Cute idea! To incorporate the kids into the board, why couldn't you just put a picture of each child in each of the cow spots? Just an idea! =) - Sara Sheets

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Make Icecream in a Bag With Your Class! Mmmmmmmm!!!!

Click Here to Visit our Ice Cream Unit!!!

Custom End of The Year Candybar Wrapper

You can order the file above for $9.75. It comes customized in a PDF file.
All you have to do is print, cut, and wrap your bars.
It will fit 1.45 oz. Hershey Bar.
After you place your order through Paypal, send your
special message of your choice (example: Congrats on finishing grade 2! Thanks for being part of our class. I will never forget you!) school name, grade, and teacher's name to:
cgallagher_1999@yahoo.com
Orders will arrive in your inbox in 24 hours or less after you email your custom print.
Once you get your file, you may print as many wrappers as you need.

Use the links below to order for 9.75


gradmi2.gifCandy Bar Awards! Make up awards to match candy bars; such as,

Whoopers Award: for the best storytelling.
Milky Way Award: for the class daydreamer
Mr. Goodbar Award: for the student who exhibits the good
qualities of friendship
Jolly Rancher Award: for the person always telling jokes
Nestle Crunch Award: an alternative to pencil chewing
Skor Award: for athletes in the class
Dove Award: for the class peacmaker
Symphony Award: for anyone musical
Butterfinger Award: for the person who broke the most
things accidentaly
Bit-O-Honey Award: for someone very sweet
Baby Ruth Award: for baseball-minded person
Teddy Grahams Award: for the most huggable
Almond Joy Award: for the person who is always happy
Hershey's Kisses Award: for the class flirt
Payday Award: for someone who always forgets his lunch money
Lifesavers Award: for the person who is always helping
someone in need
Laffy Taffy Award: or someone weet disposition
Gummy Bears Award: for a very lovableho is always laughing
Sweet Tarts Award: for having a sw child
Spree Award: for someone who loves to shop
Kit Kat Award: for the student alawys at the teacher's side
Nutrageous Award: for an outstanding personality
Ouch Bubble Gum Award: for the one who got hurt the most
Three Musketeers Award: for the one always with the group
Snickers Award: for having an outstanding sense of humor
Zero Math Award: - for outstanding performance in Math
Gummy Worms Award: for being the class wiggler

Pick a few that would be good to give to your students.

Then attach the candy bar to the award and hand them to your student. We have created a 16 page Publisher File. Each page contains one candy bar award. You can modify the awards to meet your needs. To download the file and print your awards click here. You may wish to print more than one of each award.

Other sites with certificates you can print!

Write About It!

List 7 things you enjoyed about this school year.

List 2-5 books you plan to read this year.

If April showers bring May flowers, what do May flowers bring?

List 10 things you plan to do this summer.

Choose a vacation spot and write an itinerary of your planned trip.

Write an acrostic for the phrase, "SUMMER FUN!"

End of The Year Treats

grbul2.gifDear Parents,
I give you back your child, the same child you confidently entrusted to my care last fall.  I give him back pounds heavier, inches taller, months wiser, more responsible, and more mature then he was then.
Although he would have attained his growth in spite of me, it has been my pleasure and privilege to watch his personality unfold day by day and marvel at this splendid miracle of development.
I give him back reluctantly, for having spent nine months together in the narrow confines of a crowded classroom, we have grown close, have become a part of each other, and we shall always retain a little of each other.
Ten years from now if we met on the street, your child and I, a light will shine to our eyes, a smile to our lips, and we shall feel the bond of understanding once more, this bond we feel today.
We have lived, loved, laughed, played, studied, learned, and enriched our lives together this year.  I wish it could go on indefinitely, but give him back I must.  Take care of him, for he is precious.
Remember that I shall always be interested in your child and his destiny, wherever he goes, whatever he does, whoever he becomes.  His joys and sorrows I’ll be happy to share.
I shall always be his friend.
~Author Unknown
grbul2.gifEnd-of-the-Year Song:
(tune: "Zip-a-dee-doo-dah")

Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, Zip-a-dee-ay,
My, oh, my, summer's coming our way.
Plenty of sunshine, swimming and play,
Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, school's out today.

There's a sadness in the air.
It's over. It's done, but wasn't kindergarten fun?

Oh, zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay,
Summer's coming, coming our way!
~Author Unknown
grbul2.gifWelcome Letter to Next Year's Class:
In the June/July 1991 Primary Mailbox, there's a reproducible for the letter below.  It's a letter to be written by the current members of the class to the future members of the class. 


Dear ____ Grader,

Welcome to _________.  You are very lucky to be in this class!  I was in this class last year.  I liked being in it because ________.  The thing I liked the most about this class was ________.   Another one of my favorite things was _______.  I learned a lot, too.  My favorite subject was _______.  I liked it the best because _______.  I also liked the projects we worked on.  My favorite project of the year was _____.  You really have a lot to look forward to!

I think you'll have a great year.  Remember to do your part!  Always remember to ______.  Good luck!

Sincerely,
(student's name)
grbul2.gifGreat Expectations

It's time to say good-bye,
Our year has come to an end.
I've made more cherished memories
And many more new friends.

I've watched your children learn and grow
And change from day to day.
I hope that all the things we've done
Have helped in some small way.

So it's with happy memories
I send them out the door.
With great hope and expectations
For what next year holds in store.
~Author Unknown

grbul2.gifEnd of Year Reminder Kit

Here is something to remind you of "grade"
Seeds to remind you how much you have grown
A sucker to remind you how sweet you are
A book mark to remind you to always enjoy books
Money to remind you how much you are worth (Play money)
All in a cup full of love and sealed with a kiss (All items in a cup with a Hershey’s Kiss

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grbul2.gifEnd of The Year Gift For Teachers!grbul2.gif

Click Here for Awesome Teacher Bracelets

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