Last-Day and Summer Activities
from NCTE INBOX 5-13-08

School is winding down across the United States. As students and teachers prepare for some well-deserved time out of the classroom, these activities provide useful options to last-day discussions and projects.

The Voices from the Middle article "Application & Transfer: Powerful Ideas for Ending the School Year" (G) offers a few ideas to explore students' interests, support summer retention of learning, and enhance 21st century literacy skills. The ideas can be easily adapted to any teaching level.

The Language Arts article "Summer Reading: A Reflection" (E) recounts the author's family's summer reading and how she used it as an opportunity to talk with her children about books and, ultimately, about life. On the last day of school, why not invite students to discuss what they plan to read during the summer months?

"Sharing Ideas for the Tools of Our Trade" (M) from Voices from the Middle includes ideas from several teachers who offer "their best ideas for teaching vocabulary . . . ideas that work even on the last day of school."

Looking for a cool way to send students off with pride in their work? Check out the fortune cookie idea explained in the College English article "Editor's Choice: The Cookies of Fortune" (G). This activity can be used at any grade level.

How can you apply your summer interactions with readers and writers when you return to the classroom? The English Journal article "What Is Right with This Picture?" (S) describes how one teacher plans to apply lessons learned from a one-week voluntary summer course to his classroom in the fall.

Teachers need to think about their own summer activities as well. In the English Journal article "What Do You Do during Summer Vacation to Help You Reenter the Classroom Refreshed in the Fall?" (G), five teachers share their own stories of rest, reading, exploring, and reinvigorating.

For out-of-school activities for families and community literacy groups, check out the Summer Activities section of ReadWriteThink!