Are you thinking of some fun and exciting activities you could try with your class as you approach the end of the school year? Do you want to celebrate your children’s achievements so they can feel proud of their incredible work throughout the year? If so, we’ve got some lovely End of School Year Celebration Ideas to help you end the school year with a bang!
Whether you want to keep it educational or have some extra fun as a reward for your children, we’ve got you covered with these great activities for every end-of-year occasion. They’re simple to do with your class, and they’ll get your children involved in the fun.
Write summer bucket lists
What plans do your children have over the summer holidays? Is there an activity they hope they get to do before returning to school? Help them plan their ideal summer activities by writing a summer bucket list. This could be a list of their plans or a wishlist of all the activities they’d love to do someday.
Why not make this activity extra creative by decorating these bucket lists too? Your children might like to draw a little picture for each exercise so they can imagine them even better. If you need a helping hand to start this activity, you might like to try using this Summer Bucket List Template.
Make a memory bag or a time capsule
After an amazing school year with your class, they’ll want to remember they’re wonderful times. A memory bag can be an effective way to store some of these memories to look back on. Each of your children can choose one item that reminds them of the good times they’ve had over the year, then place it in the bag. Once the bag is full, you can choose what you do with it; you could go through all the items as a class and reminisce or store them away like a diary entry.
Take this activity one step further by making a time capsule. Please put all the gathered artifacts into a box, seal them, and bury them outside. Mark the spot so that in the years to come, future generations will dig it up and see what your class was like in the past.
Hold an end-of-year awards ceremony
Recognize each of your children for their fantastic achievements by holding an exciting awards ceremony. You can make this activity as funny or serious as you like by awarding your class members certificates for their excellent work or fun ‘most likely certificates. This activity is ideal for getting the whole class involved and encouraging them to communicate with each other as much as possible. It’s also great for them to start considering the future and what goals they’d like to achieve, having finished this school year.
Design a scrapbook
Scrapbooks are familiar favorites when it comes to storing lots of lovely memories. It’s a brilliant opportunity for a creative session with your class, too, so you’ll easily be able to keep them engaged. There are several ways you could design your scrapbook, but you might like to try dedicating a page to each of your children. They can create their page however they want, including photos, drawings, messages, etc. When they’re done, compile the pages together, then make a group page at the front of the scrapbook.
You could also use this scrapbook to reflect on everything your children have learned over the last year, including material from each topic you’ve covered. Finally, your class can read through the book and refresh their memory of all the new knowledge they’ve gained.
Write a top 10 list of memories
For this activity, you might ask your children to work in small groups to rank their favorite memories of the year into the top 10. Then, merge the smaller groups into bigger groups, so they can compare memories and see how many they have in common. Finally, reconvene as a whole class to discuss some of the memories your children have come up with. That way, you can determine which memories your style cherishes the most from the school year.
Try using this School Memories Worksheet to get the ball rolling with your children’s reminiscing of the school year. It’s a handy template that will get your children thinking about what they’ve learned and enjoyed.
Have a quiz on the year’s topics
Looking for a fun way to recap all the topics you’ve been looking at with your class over the past year? A quiz could be the perfect way to jog your children’s memories and test how well they’ve retained what they learned. Split your class into teams of 3 or 4, then display your quiz on a PowerPoint to make the activity more visually engaging. Once the quiz is done, your children can mark each other’s answers to find the winner. To make this activity even more exciting, you could give out some fabulous prizes to the quiz winners to reward them for remembering everything you’ve taught them.
Make end-of-year cards
Cards are always a winner when it comes to celebrating. Whether your children want to make cards for each other, summer cards for their family, or thank you cards for you, this activity is incredibly versatile and is bound to appeal to your class. Plus, it’s a chance for your children to express their creativity by designing their cards in whatever way they want.
While your children are getting on with their card designs, why not make your lovely cards for each of them to wish them well for the future? These fabulous End of Year Digital Template Cards are perfect for giving out to your class to wish them luck and congratulate them on their achievements.
Do a scavenger hunt
A scavenger hunt is an exciting activity that’s a little different from regular classroom activities. It gets your children moving around and working together while having fun. Put your children in small teams, then give them a list of items to find in the classroom. These items could be anything you like, but you could make them specific things that relate to the topics you’ve been looking at throughout the year.
Need a little inspiration for your scavenger hunt? Check out this Scavenger Hunt Worksheet for a handy checklist of items that you can find in the classroom.
Organize some outdoor party games
What better way to celebrate the coming summer than with some exciting outdoor party games? If the weather goes in your favor, it could be the perfect opportunity to get your class outside the classroom for a change of scenery. You could try classic outdoor games, such as musical statues, rounders, duck, duck, and goose. It can often be tricky to keep your children focused towards the end of term before the summer break, so exciting physical activities can often be the solution for keeping the whole class engaged.
Hold a mini-graduation ceremony
Help your little learners feel proud of everything they’ve achieved in the last school year by holding a graduation ceremony that recognizes their hard work. You can make the ceremony as grand or as informal as you like. Why not make some little scroll certificates that your children can take home too? The graduation ceremony could also be a handy photo opportunity, so your children can take home a souvenir that captures their wonderful time this school year.
