Effortless Ideas for End the Year with a Bang

Summer is on its way, and everyone in the classroom can feel it. Help those last days fly by with this fun countdown to end the school year! It’s time to end the year with a bang!

What is “End the Year with a Bang?”

End the Year with a Bang is a countdown to celebrate the end of the year! The countdown is often set up with balloons. Inside each balloon is a note with a reward or activity the class will enjoy that day. The class pops one balloon each day to learn what activity they will do.

The teacher decides when to begin the countdown. Some like to do this the last two weeks of school, or some the last month. In my class, we start the countdown once we have as many days left as students in the class. Thus, if I have 24 students, we start counting down on the 24th day before the last day of school. More on why I do it this way later on.

I count the very last day as “Day 0.” We either do not pop a balloon that day, or we add in something special for that day like classroom awards or a farewell gift.

End the Year with a Bang Balloon Ideas

The rewards inside each balloon are often small, low key, and free! I talk with my class before popping any balloons about being grateful even for the little things. We also discuss that some rewards may be simple and others will be more elaborate.

When planning out the ideas you will use, be sure to look at your school calendar and consider what other events will happen that day. I typically prefer to keep the easiest (no prep) ideas for Mondays (because I always seem to have too many things to recall on Mondays!) I save more complex ideas for the end of the week.

Further, some ideas may require communication with families or prior notice given to students. In these cases, we pop the balloon at the end of the day prior to the reward. For example, when we do “Glow Day” I like for students to wear neon or white. We pop the balloon for this day one day prior to the reward so students have this knowledge in advance.

Here are some effortless ideas to consider:

• Stinky Feet (No shoes in class)
• Work Time Outside
• Lunch Outside
• Play Kahoot or Blooket
• Read with Flashlights
• Art for Kids Hub videos
• 10-15 minutes of free choice
• Extra Recess
• Movie Day
• Hat Day
• Show and Tell Day

And below are ideas that require a bit more organization and time:

• Starbucks Day
• Class Yes Day
• Glow Day
• Carnival Day
• Class Auction: Students get fake money and can bid on prizes
• Disney Day
• Fear Factor Challenge
• Camp Out Day

The Student of the Day

Along with the countdown, each day one student is our “Student of the Day.” This is why I match the countdown to the number of students in the class! Each student gets their own day. They do not “earn” this in any way, the order is completely random.

On their day, they get a tote of fun items to use while in class. I also give them a few other choices such as selecting our brain break or selecting their partner during a partner activity.

In the past, I would reveal the student of the day inside each balloon. If a student was absent on their day, our procedure was to pop the next balloon and use the student from that balloon. We would save the reward slip for the following day. This got confusing when the “student of the day” was gone for a week. Thus, I decided to change things up and use a slide to reveal the student of the day this year. This allows me to ensure the student is present.

Want More Information?

Many of the ideas I am using are shared daily on my Instagram page. I will be saving all of them under the highlight reel titled “bang” so they can be easily found.

Additionally, if you want to see the product in action and how to set everything up, check out the YouTube video linked below!

Finally, for those that want End the Year with a Bang made easier than ever, you’ll want to check out my TPT product. It’s the most effortless way to plan and execute this fun tradition!

Happy last days of the school year! I know these can be exhausting, but often, they are the most memorable. Don’t just “get through” them. End the year with a bang!

Additional posts you might enjoy:

• The Great Pencil Challenge
• How to Start Slides in the Classroom
• Classroom Management that ACTUALLY works!