Countdown to Summer Vacation

Keeping students engaged in classroom activities during the last few weeks of school takes someone who can be part entertainer, part juggler, part creative, and part calm...to keep the sanity in the classroom during those final moments together. Well this year, I discovered something that worked like a charm to build some engagement while counting down the final week to our glorious summer vacation....scratch-off countdown cards. 

Countdown to Summer Ideas

Now I love doing countdowns and have done them for years. I have tried the balloon countdown, where you have a balloon for every day and then get to pop it to see an activity on a slip of paper inside...super fun! I've tried a bulletin board countdown where we start with a scene on the bulletin board and each day remove one piece as we count down the days....a great visual. I have tried the simple countdown chain where each day we remove one link...another great visual. During Zoom school, I created this countdown poster that showed an activity for each day of the final week. It was lots of fun too. 

Countdown to Summer Scratch-Off Cards

But this year, I decided to do something a little different. I had a couple of sheets of scratch-off stickers that I had used earlier in the year, and it sparked an idea. So I created a scratch-off card to help my students count down the last moments of the year. I designed multiple different cards and printed some off, slapped some stickers over the activities and voila...instant engagement. I took some to school and allowed the each student to choose the design they liked best. 

Countdown to Summer Activity Ideas

Everyday, we had a special activity to look forward to. Students were able to scratch off one sticker each day (in order) and reveal their special activity. The first day, we made ice cream in a bag. It is super simple, but lots of fun, not to mention a tasty cool treat for those hot summer days ahead. If you would like to try out this activity with your own class, you can find the recipe I used over here. 

The next day, was slime day. If you know kids, you can imagine what a hit that was. I found some cheap glue at dollar tree...who knew that had colorful glue and color-changing glue too. Students got to choose whichever glue they wanted to use for their slime, and created their own batch. (On a side note, A year or so ago, I picked up some measuring cup & spoon sets from Dollar Tree and I keep them in a bin. Those have been incredibly handy and we use them so often for different projects, including making slime. I have four sets, because that is usually how many different groups I have for activities and projects.) If you are looking for some great recipes for slime try this one.

  
On Wednesday, our surprise was actually a talent show. Now because of the nature of talent shows, I knew the students would need a little time to plan ahead. So we scratched off this circle the day before, that way we had time to get our act together...literally. Most students love sharing a talent with this class and this year was no exception. We had a magic show. One student, who is passionate about space and rocketry made a Powerpoint and literally taught us rocket science. Another student wanted us to know how talented they were at collecting things and brought in a large collection of mini real items for us to see. We also had a student show us her musical talent by sharing a couple of numbers on the piano. Another student created a super cute craft to show the class and then she gifted it to me. It was fun, it was silly, it was a learning time, and most importantly, it was a time where each student was able to find their own way to shine and build community.

Thursday, I hosted a game time. We scratched this one off the day before also, so students could bring games from home. We spent about a half an hour or so enjoying games. It was not only fun, but we continued to build classroom community.

On Friday, we had a half-day. Our final activity on the scratch-off card was a classroom award ceremony, but not just any award ceremony, a candy one. everyone was excited to see what candy they would get and which award it would be linked to. It was a smashing success. I found the candy award resource over here on TPT. 

Counting down to the end of the school year does not have to be something that is a ton of work. It is something to keep your students pushing toward the end of the school year with a little something fun to look forward to each day. If you are interested in checking out the editable countdown to summer cards, you can find them here.  You can also click on any of the pictures below.

These cards are editable, so you are able to type in your own special activities to fit your class. 

Happy end of the school year!