Lesson closures are a vital aspect of the teaching process, providing a summary and a smooth transition away from a specific topic or subject. They reinforce key information, enable students to reflect on what they’ve learned, offer opportunities for assessment, and help teachers to identify any areas that may need more attention. Here are eight fun and effective lesson closure activities that can enhance the learning experience:
1. Exit Tickets – An exit ticket is a quick prompt given to students at the end of a lesson. They can answer a question, summarize what they’ve learned, or pose a question of their own. This strategy not only gives teachers an understanding of student comprehension but also lets students reflect on their learning.
2. Three-Word Summaries – Ask students to boil down the day’s lesson into just three words. This encourages them to distil the essence of the lesson and focus on the core elements. It’s both challenging and engaging for them to pick just three words that encapsulate everything they learned.
3. Classroom Jeopardy – A game of jeopardy using questions based on the day’s lesson can be an exciting way to review material. Students can compete in teams, fostering a friendly competitive atmosphere while reinforcing their knowledge.
4. Concept Maps – Have students create concept maps linking together ideas from the lesson in visual form. This can be particularly effective for visual learners and helps in identifying connections between concepts.
5. Snowball Discussions – Students write down something they’ve learned on a piece of paper, crumple it up, and then throw it across the room like a snowball fight. Afterward, each student picks up a “snowball” and reads aloud what is written.
6. Learning Logs – Encourage students to keep learning logs where they regularly write reflections on what they have learned. At the end of a lesson, give them time to write about what stood out to them and why.
7. Two Stars and a Wish – Students share two things they understood or liked about the lesson (“stars”) and one thing they wish they could learn more about or found confusing (“wish”). This method promotes positive feedback while subtly identifying gaps in understanding.
8. The Hot Seat – In this activity, one student sits in the “hot seat” and answers rapid-fire questions from their classmates about the lesson topic for 30 seconds or so before another student takes over.
Incorporating these fun and varied lesson closures will ensure students leave each class with a clear sense of accomplishment and retention of the material learnt while providing invaluable insights for teachers into their students’ learning processes.
