Having a strong closing activity at the end of your lesson allows for not only extra opportunity for learning and checking that key points have been retained, but can be a chance to reflect, wind down and have important discussions. There are many benefits to implementing a solid end-of-lesson routine with your class. Children thrive on routine and, when they know what to expect, tend to perform better in class. Try this collection of quality closure activities to encourage excellence within your class!
1. Variety is the Spice of Life
In this closing activity, ask your students to focus on the new vocabulary that they have learned. This simple worksheet asks for two words and an explanation; perfect for checking understanding at the end of a lesson.
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2. Show What You Know
Provide each student with an exit slip, and ask them to pop their name on it and write down one thing they learned in the lesson. Stick it on the “Show What You Know” board on the way out the door.
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3. Thankful Thursdays
Encourage thankfulness among your students by having a ‘Thankful Thursday’. Each student writes down on a piece of paper, something, or someone, they are thankful for; sharing with the class if they wish. A great end-of-day activity.
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4. Clear or Cloudy?
This is a great way to check what has stuck in the lesson and what may need a new teaching strategy. Ask students to write down one thing that has been clearly understood and one thing that they are unsure about. Assess these at the end of the lesson so you know what to recap.
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5. Develop Reading Strategies
Developing good reading strategies is incredibly important for overall learning and can assist children with picking out key information- vital for understanding new concepts. By keeping this finely tuned, you are giving your students the highest chance of success.
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6. Growth Mindset
Children learn best when they feel good about themselves. Keep morale boosted by ensuring they have a good growth mindset. This way they will be able to more confidently retrieve and retain key concepts.
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7. Say it in 140 Characters
Kids love anything social media-related! These fun Twitter-style handouts ask them to summarize their lesson in 140 characters or less; just like in a tweet. This is a great way to practice information retrieval and get all-important feedback from your students.
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8. Reflection Time
These questions can be adapted to suit your class topics and can be either handed out or displayed on the classroom walls. Daily reflection is an important skill to practice and makes for a great lesson closure activity- encouraging mindfulness and a calming atmosphere.
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9. Snowball Fight
A super creative lesson-closing activity! This is a great way to get students to compare and contrast, and think about cause and effect; an important part of breaking down key concepts.
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10. Create Quiz Questions
Ask students to come up with their own quiz questions based on your topic. Put them into teams and have them use a set of questions to quiz each other. The team with the highest score after 5 minutes wins!
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11. “I Wonder”
Focusing on your current lesson, ask students to write down one thing they know, and something they wonder about. Collect these at the end of the lesson to see what stuck and what you might need to recap next time.
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12. Hidden Exit Tickets
Stick exit notes under each student’s desk. Toward the end of the lesson ask them to write down one question related to the lesson today. Collect and redistribute. Each student will then take a turn reading the question and choosing someone to answer.
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13. 3-2-1 Feedback
A simple idea to build into your lesson plan. This 3-2-1 Feedback activity asks for 3 thing things you learned from the lesson, 2 questions you still have, and 1 idea that stuck. This is a great way to check how students are learning and what they may need support with.
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14. Snowstorm
Ask each student to write down something they learned on a piece of paper. Scrunch this up. Give the signal and tell them to throw it into the air. Then, each student picks up a ball near to them and reads aloud to the class.
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15. Write Headlines
Encourage students to write a newspaper-style headline summarizing the lesson. This creative lesson closure task will allow students to practice retrieving key information and presenting it in an engaging, fun way.
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16. Successfully Summarize
Another great lesson idea is learning to successfully summarize. It allows students to quickly pick out key information in a short and focused way; improving their chances of success.
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17. What Stuck With You Today?
This fun individual board can go right by your classroom door so students can add to it using a post-it on their way out of the door. The question can be changed for a true or false answer and adapted as your topics change.
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18. Parent Hotline
Give students an interesting fact from the lesson. Contact parents or guardians with the answer and suggest they discuss it over dinner. This is a great way to include parents in learning; encouraging students to communicate with the school and their parents about their learning.
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19. A Success From Today
Ask your kids to focus on one thing that has been a success for them today. Pick out a few students to share their successes with the class. This is a wonderful winding down activity at the end of the day and a great confidence booster for shy kids!
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20. Key Ideas
Focusing on key ideas is important to understanding the whole concept. Have your students create a ‘Main Idea’ poster based on your class book or topic. Put these up around the classroom so ideas can be shared. Kids love to see their work displayed as it gives them a sense of pride and accomplishment.
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21. Challenge Conceptual Understanding
Conceptual understanding is incredibly important for children’s learning. It allows them to understand new concepts and apply what they have learned in a wide variety of ways. Exploratory learning is incredibly important and, without this, it is likely students will struggle to develop the appropriate skills required to handle everyday problems.
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22. DIY Escape Room
So much fun! Make students a part of the planning of the activity. This is an awesome way to come together at the end of the day and share ideas. Summarize the ideas covered so far and encourage clear and respectful communication; making sure that everyone is included and heard.
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23. Connectives Worksheet
This free printable resource would be a great addition to your lesson planning. Quick and simple, it can be completed at home or as a closure activity and isn’t too challenging or long.
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24. Closing Circle
A closing circle often brings a peaceful end to a busy school day and is enjoyed by staff and children alike; bringing a sense of community and closure. It’s also a great way for students to unwind.
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25. Thumbs Up Thumbs Down
Check understanding in this basic way by simply asking for thumbs up or thumbs down after a new concept has been delivered. This gives you an idea of students who need extra support.
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26. Create a Shared Poster
Create posters that students can add to, asking questions if they wish. Share these with the class and go over the answers.
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27. Traffic Light Check-In
Print small flashcards or stick colors to desks and ask students to place an object in red, orange, or green. Red (don’t understand) orange (kind of understand) green (confident). A great way to check in!
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28. DIY Jeopardy Game
Perfect to use, and re-use with any subject and sure to be a big hit with students of any age; making recapping learning fun by turning it into a game!
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