Plan a scavenger hunt…for information your class learned throughout the year! Create a list of questions whose answers can be found in books the class read during the year. (Make sure copies of the books are available in your classroom library or reading center.) Make a copy of the list for each child in class, and then let them “hunt” for the answers. Have kids write down each answer and where they found it. Give children a time limit in which to find the information. When time is up, collect students' answers. Count up the correct answers and give a prize to the student(s) who found the most!

NOTE: Tell children that they don’t need to answer the questions in order—that way, if the book needed to answer the first question is being used, they can simply answer another question on the list.

Have your students write letters with advice for the kids who’ll follow in their footsteps next year! It’s a great way for children to review what they did during the course of the year.

Encourage students to emphasize positive, fun things about their school year—they’re trying to help next year’s class get excited about the year, not be anxious about it! Things they might write about include advice on how to get good grades, things to do and not to do, favorite themes or field trips, etc. Store the letters over the summer, and then take them out on the first day of school next year. You can then post them in your room, read parts of the letters aloud or hand them out for students to read on their own.

• Instead of writing letters, you could have students create a poster for next year’s class. Children can work together to brainstorm what tips they would like to include, and then they can write, draw and color the poster.
• Students could also create a “Classroom Handbook” full of helpful tips, suggestions and favorite memories. Bind students’ pages together into a booklet, and place it in your classroom library for students to look over next year.

Create your own classroom book of records! Make a list of records that students in your class might set. Some possible records might be:

• Most words read in 1 minute
• Most jumps on a jump rope in 1 minute
• Fastest times tables
• Highest stack of blocks
• Farthest (or highest) jump

Over the course of a few days, have kids compete to see who can set the various records. Write down the results, and then make a classroom book with the records listed. (If you have a digital camera, you can take photos of the winning kids to include on the pages.) Let students decorate the pages, and then bind them together into a book. Keep the book in your classroom library for next year’s kids to read—then let them try to break the records and set new ones!

Celebrate the end of another great year by staging your own classroom Olympics! Divide the class into a few groups, and let them choose a name and make a flag for their group. Start the games with an opening ceremony, letting kids march around the playground or classroom, waving their group flags.

Next, have the teams compete in a series of events. Below are some possible events you might stage.

• Balloon Race: Kids put a balloon between their knees and run or hop to the finish line. Children can compete as individuals or as relay teams. (NOTE: Don’t inflate the balloon all the way. Leave some room so that the balloons can be held comfortably between kids’ knees.)
• Balloon Hug Relay: Place a balloon between two kids’ bellies. Have the kids move sideways to the finish line without dropping the balloon. The first team across the finish line wins!
• Drinking Straw Race: Have each child hold a drinking straw, balanced on her upper lip. Show kids how to curl their lips to hold the straw in place. Then, have a race to see who can run to the finish line without letting their straw slip.
• Feather-In-My-Toes Race: Have racers take off one shoe and sock, and then fit a feather in between two toes. They then race, trying to cross the finish line without losing their feathers. (If they do, they have to go back to the start.)
• Egg-On-A-Spoon Race: Have children try to balance a plastic egg on a spoon while walking to the finish line. This can also be done as a team relay race. In a relay, children have to transfer the eggs from their spoons to the next child’s spoon before the race continues.
• Backwards Race: Have children walk backwards to the finish line. Make sure that kids don’t try to run—they are likely to fall if they try to go too fast!

After the games are over, have a closing ceremony. Let everyone march around with their teams and flags again. You may want to encourage kids to sing songs or chants to help make things festive! Healthy snacks can also be served at the closing ceremony.