How
to Have a Culminating Event
Allison Demas
Since
you have worked so hard all year building a relationship with your
students and their parents, it would a shame to let the year end
with a whimper. So why not go out with a bang? Plan a culminating
event which celebrates the year’s successes.
Plan it just as you would a party, with colorful plastic tablecloths
(great for easy clean-up), snacks on each table, and beverages.
The room should be decorated with examples of the students’
hard work from throughout the year. You and your students can create
displays of student work and photographs on oak tag or display boards.
Have your students write catchy slogans and captions for the photographs
and work. If you don’t have room for displays then put the
work into a few binders placed on each table. Photographs glued
to colorful copy paper can look very attractive and eye-catching.
Have
students create “mini-museums” of work on the topic
of their choice. They can work individually or with partners. This
is one way to show off what they have learned and to applaud their
independence.
As the parents arrive the students should greet them at the door
and escort them into their world. They can serve their parents a
beverage and show them around while everyone awaits “the main
event.”
The main event is entirely up to you. You might want to have a “writing
celebration” in which each student would read one piece they
published during the year. You could have a “reading celebration”
in which each student would read a passage from a favorite book.
Students might want to write and perform a short play or skit. Students
could present their “mini-museums” and teach the parents
about the topic. The choice is yours and your students. If you step
back and look at what you and your students have done all year,
the main event will most likely jump out at you.
Make
sure you compliment the students on their hard work. Also make sure
to thank the parents for their support (even if they didn’t
provide very much). Keep in mind that this will probably not be
a one-time event. It will be for this year but chances are that
word will spread about how nice it was and you will end up doing
this each year. Your celebration should echo the work you’ve
done during this year, but that echo will be heard throughout the
next and future years.
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