Finishing Off Your School Year Right!
I love spring and the beauty of the green grass and trees. I also love that spring brings the end of another school year and the respite and time to refresh that comes along with that. I’m guessing you are excited for that too!
I’d like to share some fun ideas for ending the school year in a memorable way, as well as some questions to think through regarding how this school year went that will help you plan for next year.
Fun Ideas to End Your School Year in Memorable Way
1. Go on a field trip for your last day of school! (We liked to start our school year this way as well.)
Field trips provide a more hands on way to learn and build family relationships as well. What a great way to end your school year! You can even find a place to go that ties in with what you’ve recently studied. Check out MN Field trip & Activity Library for ideas!
2. Set up a fun-filled activity day with other homeschool families.
Marcia Washburn offers a book called Activity Days for Homeschool Groups and Families that walks you through how to set up a track and field day, a Community Helpers Day, an Achievement day, Hands-on Day, Math day and many more options as well!
3. Throw an end of the year showcase day!
Your children have worked hard, and it would bless and encourage them to show others some of the projects they’ve completed. I’m guessing you have family and friends who would love to come and see your children’s work. Or you can do it over zoom if you have family that live too far away or are concerned about COVID exposure. Check out this blog on how to do an end of the year showcase day:
4. Have a family celebration to honor each child in your family and their achievements.
This can be only immediate family, or extended family too. Have a special dinner and then your children can show some of their best projects or school work, read a favorite writing assignment out loud, or perform a musical piece that they’ve prepared.
5. Set up an end of the school year playdate with other homeschool families.
This is a fun way to celebrate with other families a year well done!
6. Create a scrapbook filled with your children’s best projects or writing assignments.
You can have each of your children make their own, or you can make a family one. If you want to save space, you can make it a digital scrapbook with pictures of their projects, etc. using Powerpoint or the free digital scrapbook on Canva.
Reviewing your Year to Help Plan for the Next School Year
As you approach the end of a school year, I recommend assessing your school year to help you determine what you might want to do the same and what you might want to do differently in the next school year. Doing it now while it’s still fresh in your mind will be a huge help as you plan for next year!
Questions to Think About
Ask yourself (and your children, if appropriate) the following questions:
- What worked well in our daily schedule that we should remember to implement again?
- What didn’t work well in the daily schedule? Make a note of it so you don’t try it again.
- Are we happy with how the school year went? If not, why? What were some favorite things we did this year that we’d like to continue doing?
- Did we accomplish the goals we set? Were our goals achievable or do we need to reassess them? Never set goals before? Check out this excerpt from The Homeschool Life All-in-One Planner on goal setting for some guidance on how to do it!
- Is there anything I should read this summer to help me grow in my teaching skills?
- What could we do to improve our school days for next year?
- Was our home environment well set up for homeschooling, or do we need to make some changes for next year?
- Are there any resources that we need to get before we start school again next year? (such as a printer/copier, another bookshelf, a globe, a teacher’s resource, etc.)
- Have our children grown in character and in their walk with God?
- Are our children spending their free time wisely, or do we need to consider making changes there?
- Are our children spending their free time wisely, or do we need to consider making changes there?
- Are our children spending their free time wisely, or do we need to consider making changes there?
- Are our children spending their free time wisely, or do we need to consider making changes there?
- Are our children spending their free time wisely, or do we need to consider making changes there?
- Are our children spending their free time wisely, or do we need to consider making changes there?
- Use this FREE individual student evaluation and goal setting sheet to assess each of your children and give you ideas for areas to work on.
Every school year has some ups and downs, it’s normal! I encourage you to take time to thank the Lord for the blessings of your school year and ask for wisdom to improve any areas that need it.
I’d love to hear your ideas for ending the school year well ~ please comment below if you’d like to share!
