Home » Teacher's Corner » 61 Fun End of Year Activities & Games for School

61 Fun End of Year Activities & Games for School

If you’re looking for some fun end of year activities and games, you’ve come to the right place. Your class has worked so hard to make it this far and now it’s time to celebrate and have fun together. I’ve gathered tons of entertaining end of the year activities to do just that.

This blog post may contain affiliate links. This means that if you make a purchase using my link, I make a small commission –at no cost to you. Read the full disclosure here.

End of the Year Countdown Ideas

Let’s start off with some fun idea to countdown the final days before summer break.

1 | Let’s End the Year With A Bang Balloon Countdown

end of year countdown idea for the classroom
Image Source | mrsmunchsmunchkins

For a creative way to countdown to summer vacation write fun activities, challenges or mini class rewards on slips of paper and put them inside balloons. Students can take turns popping a balloon to see what fun the class has in store for the day! Here are some ideas:

  • Virtual Field Trip, I’ll tell you some more ideas for this later in this post!
  • Class Talent Show
  • Switch Seats Day, Let students choose where they get to sit for the day.
  • Glow Day- Dim lights and use glow sticks and play glow in the dark games and activities.

2 | ABC Countdown

kindergarten end of the year countdown idea
Image Source | kinder.and.kindness

Here’s another fun idea to countdown the final 26 days of the school year. Create an ABC countdown with gift bags with a letter from the alphabet on each. In each bag you can put a note for a fun game, or class reward. Here are some ideas:

  • Ice Cream Party
  • Minute to Win it Game Time (See more ideas for that later in this post)
  • Movie and Popcorn
  • Game Day- The class gets to play board games, card games, and group games like charades.
  • STEM challenge- Read on for more ideas for STEM challenges!

Fun End of Year Activities

Let’s check out some more end of year activities to help end the school year on a high note! I’ve gathered some great activities that will work for students of all ages.

3 | End of the School Year Treasure Hunt

Create a classroom scavenger hunt with clues and riddles leading students to different spots in the room. Use items from the school year, like books, art projects, or classroom supplies, as part of the hunt. You can lead students to a treasure like candy or small prizes!

4 | Memory Jar

Ask students to recall memorable moments from the past year and write them on slips of paper to put in a “Memory Jar.” You can randomly choose slips of paper and read them to the class as the end of the school year approaches so you can reminisce of all the fun you’ve had for the year.

5 | Talent Show

Let students showcase their talents, whether it’s singing, dancing, telling jokes, or showing artwork. This can be a fun way to celebrate everyone’s unique abilities at the end of the year.

6 | Classroom Awards Ceremony

Have an award ceremony where you present your students with fun and positive rewards. Here are some fun ideas:

• The Friendliest Face Award – For the student who makes everyone feel welcome.

• The Team Captain Award – For the best leader in group projects.

• The Class DJ Award – For the student who always suggests the best songs for classroom activities.

• The Fashionista Award – For the student with the most unique or creative style.

• The Most Likely to Be a Teacher Award – For the student who loves to teach their peers.

• The Future Comedian Award – For the class clown who always has everyone laughing.

This is a great opportunity to celebrate each student with something positive and fun.

Classroom Theme Days

To create everlasting memories for your students a great option is to create a theme day on one of the last days of school. Check out some ideas below.

7 | Beach Party Day

beach theme day for the classroom
Image Source| dollartreeclassrooms

Transform the classroom into a summer-themed area with beach towels, sunglasses, and music. You can hit up the Dollar Tree for tons of summer themed décor and maybe even find hula skirts to put on the desks!

8 | Class Carnival Theme

classroom carnival theme day
Image Source | thatteachertaylor

Kindergarten teacher Taylor transformed her classroom into a carnival for an end of the year party. She incorporated carnival theme learning games to review skills learned during the year. Here are some examples:

Bottle ring toss

  • Put letters on the bottom of plastic bottles. When students get their ring on a bottle they will draw something that starts with that letter.

Can Knock Down

  • Have Students work on subtraction after they try to throw a bean bag to knock down a stack of cans!

9 | VIP Class Day

VIP class day
Image Source | myclassroomdiaries

Transform your room for your VIP class by adding a red carpet, and movie theme decorations. Students can munch on movie theatre popcorn while playing games like charades, trivia and bingo featuring some of your student’s favorite movies!

Fun End of the Year Classroom Games

Now let’s check out some fun games to play with your class during the last weeks of school.

10 | What’s in the Box? Guessing Game

Place items related to what was learned during the year in a box. Students feel inside the box and guess the items without looking. Have them write their guesses on a blank sheet of paper and see who guessed the most right!

11 | The Secret of Our School Escape Room Game

end of the year classroom games escape room
Printable School Escape Room | Find it Here

An escape room game is the perfect way to bond classmates at the end of the school year. This fun escape room game is a digital download that you print off yourself.

Students can break into small groups to solve challenges and puzzles to try to find the secret of the school! You can find this printable escape room game on Etsy here.

12 | End of the Year Classroom Bingo

Create Bingo cards with activities or items related to your class (e.g., favorite subjects, field trip destinations, inside jokes). Use small prizes like stickers or pencils for winners.

13 | Outdoor Field Day

Here’s an idea for the entire school. Play classic outdoor games like relay races, sack races, or capture the flag. You can also incorporate water activities for a refreshing twist.

14 | End of the Year Pictionary or Charades

Play a game of class Pictionary or charades with an end of the school year twist. Use categories from what they learned during the year or summer themed categories. Students can take turns drawing or acting out concepts.

Stem Games

STEM challenges help encourage teamwork, critical thinking and hands on learning, so they are the perfect end of year activities.  Divide your class into small groups and have them work on one of these fun STEM games during the last week of school.

15 | Balloon-Powered Car

  • Objective: Build a car using materials like straws, bottle caps, cardboard, and balloons that can travel the farthest distance when powered by the air released from a balloon.
  • STEM Focus: Motion, propulsion, friction.

16 | Catapult Contest

  • Objective: Build a small catapult using popsicle sticks, rubber bands, and a spoon to launch objects (e.g., marshmallows) the farthest or most accurately.
  • STEM Focus: Simple machines, energy transfer, trajectory.

17 | Solar Oven

  • Objective: Design a solar oven using a pizza box, aluminum foil, and plastic wrap to melt s’mores or heat food.
  • STEM Focus: Renewable energy, heat transfer, and insulation.

18 | Summer Themed Word Search

Printable Summer Word Search
Printable Summer Word Search | Find it Here

Have students do a summer themed word scramble looking for words like ice cream, swimming and vacation. You can create your own or you can find a pintable word search like this one on Etsy.

End of the Year Whole Class Projects

Now let’s check out some projects that your class can work on together to wrap up the end of the year.

19 | Graffiti Wall

Create an end of the year classroom graffiti wall. Here’s how you pull it off. Cover one wall or a section of a wall with black bulletin board paper or construction paper.

Then give students white and light colored markers. Have each student write their favorite memory of the school year or a message to their class.

20 | Last Day of School Coloring Page

End of year activity Summer Coloring Page
Summer Coloring Page | Find it Here

For a mindful classroom activity how about have the class work on a huge summer themed coloring page. This could be the perfect classroom display when they’re finished.

21 | Summer Photo Shoot

Summer Photo Booth Props
Summer Photo Booth Props | Find them Here

Provide fun summed themed photo booth props and have a summer photo shoot. Use a Polaroid camera so students can take the pictures home with them or add them to their end of year memory book.

22 | Summer Post Cards

50 Hello Summer Post Card Pack
50 Hello Summer Post Card Pack | Find it Here

Here’s a great writing activity to wrap up your school year. Get some fun summer themed post cards and have students write to a friend or family member. They can write about what they learned at school or their favorite memory from the year.

23 | Virtual Field Trips

Virtual field trips are a great way to educate students about different places and instill the love of travel without leaving the class. This would be fun to add to your end of year activities to do with your class. Here are some ideas.

For an animal experience you could explore a zoo like the San Diego Zoo or an aquarium like the Monterey bay aquarium. Another idea is to let students go on a museum adventure to Smithsonian or the Louvre in Paris

Explore a national park like Yellowstone National Park or the Grand Canyon National Park. Or take a virtual field trip to outer space and tour the International Space Station or explore Mars with the Curiosity Rover from the NASA website.

24 | Bucket Lists

end of year activity Bucket List
Bucket List Printable Activity | Find it Here

Here’s a writing activity and a bulletin board in one. You’ll have your students write their summer bucket list on beach buckets. Have them write what they are looking forward to and want to do over the summer.

Then use their buckets to decorate you bulletin board. This is a printable kit that you can find on Etsy here.

25 | End of Year Fun Packet

Summer Activity Packet
Summer Activity Packet | Find it Here

Consider sending students home with an end of the year fun bundle! You can create it yourself with some learning and fun activities or you can find this printable packet on Etsy here. This pack includes:

  • Printable games
  • Drawing challenge cards
  • Summer Time Capsule
  • Indoor and Outdoor Treasure Hunt Activities
  • Summer Memory Journal and more!

26 | Create an End of the Year Time Capsule

Ask students to bring in cylinder containers like pringle containers to create end of the year time capsules. Students will open them their senior year of high school! Cover the container with a sheet of paper with the students name and date that it can be opened.

Here are some ideas of what to put in the time capsule:

  • A string that measure how tall they were in kindergarten.
  • Have them write their name and draw a picture of themselves.
  • Include a handprint.
  • Ask students what they want to be when they grow up and write it down.
  • You can have students write a letter to themselves.
  • Include a selfie!

27 | Friendship Bracelet Activity

friendship bracelet end of year activity
Photo Source | hellomrsredfern

Here’s a fun end of the year activity or an idea for an end of the year classroom gift. You can give students a sweet note that says, “I had a great year with you, Let’s stay friends forever.” With the note you can give students beads to create a friendship bracelet.

End of the Year Writing Prompt

Have students finish a writing prompt focused on the end of the school year or the summer. Here are some ideas:

28 | My Favorite Memory

  • Write about your favorite moment from this school year. Why was it special?

29 | Lessons Learned

  • What is something important you learned this year, either in class or about yourself?

30 | The Funniest Thing That Happened

  • Describe a funny moment from this year and why it made you laugh.

31 | Thank You, Teacher

  • Write a letter to your teacher thanking them for something they did that made a difference.

32 | A Classmate I’ll Always Remember

  • Write about a friend or classmate who made your year special and why they’re memorable.

33 | My Perfect Summer

  • If you could plan the perfect summer, what would you do and where would you go?

34 | A Day in the Life of My Future Self

  • Imagine it’s 10 years from now. What are you doing, and how has school helped you get there?

35 | End-of-Year Time Machine

  • If you could travel back to the first day of school, what advice would you give yourself?

36 | What I’m Most Proud Of

  • Write about something you accomplished this year that makes you proud.

37 | Next Year, I Want to…

  • What is one goal you have for next school year, and how will you achieve it?

38 | A Letter to My Future Self

  • Write a letter to yourself to read at the end of next year.

39 | The Year in Review

  • Summarize the school year in five words and explain your choices.

40 | Dear Next Year’s Class

  • Write a letter to the students who will be in your grade next year. Share advice or encouragement.

41 | Goodbye and Hello

  • Write about what you’ll miss most about this year and what you’re looking forward to next year.

42 | Snapshots of the School Year End of the Year Memory Book

Printable Memory Book end of year activity for the classroom
Printable Memory Book | Find it Here

Encourage your students to reflect on their memories of the school year with this end of school year memory book activity. This is a printable kit from Etsy where they can write:

  • Their favorites (such as hero, books, tv show, movie, sports, etc.)
  • Their accomplishments (including things that surprised them)
  • Favorite Memories
  • Things they’ll miss and won’t miss
  • People around them
  • A place for autographs
  • Their plans for the future

They can add class photos and write about the best memories of the school year!

Minute-to-Win-It Challenges

Kids love minute to win it games and they are a perfect to add to your end of school year celebration. Check out some easy game ideas that involve little prep below. Then divide students into teams for a friendly competition.

43 | Cup Stack Challenge

  • Materials: Plastic cups
  • Objective: Stack 36 cups into a pyramid and then unstack them within a minute.

44 | Cookie Face

  • Materials: Cookies (like Oreos)
  • Objective: Place a cookie on your forehead and move it to your mouth using only facial muscles—no hands!

45 | Balloon Keep-Up

  • Materials: Balloons
  • Objective: Keep two or three balloons in the air for a full minute without letting them touch the ground.

46 | Straw and Pom-Pom Race

  • Materials: Straws, small pom-poms, tape to mark start/finish line
  • Objective: Use a straw to blow pom-poms across a table and into a designated “goal.”

47 | Chopstick Challenge

  • Materials: Chopsticks, small objects like marshmallows, candies, or beads
  • Objective: Use chopsticks to move items from one bowl to another within a minute.

48 | Speed Sorting

  • Materials: Skittles, M&Ms, or buttons in various colors, bowls
  • Objective: Sort a pile of items by color into separate bowls within a minute.

49 | Marshmallow Tower

  • Materials: Mini marshmallows, toothpicks
  • Objective: Build the tallest freestanding marshmallow tower within a minute.

50 | Ping Pong Bounce

  • Materials: Ping pong balls, cups
  • Objective: Bounce ping pong balls on a table to land them into cups.

51 | Penny Stack

  • Materials: Pennies
  • Objective: Stack as many pennies as possible in one minute using only one hand.

52 | Water Bottle Flip

  • Materials: Plastic water bottles (partially filled)
  • Objective: Flip a water bottle to land it upright as many times as possible in a minute.

53 | Dice Balance

  • Materials: Dice, Popsicle sticks
  • Objective: Balance as many dice as possible on a Popsicle stick held in your mouth.

54 | Spoon and Ping Pong Ball Race

  • Materials: Spoon, ping pong balls, start/finish lines
  • Objective: Carry a ping pong ball across a room using only a spoon.

Classroom Board Games

The end of the school year is a great time to break out some of your students’ favorite board games. Check out the best games below that will have your students learning and having fun at the same time!

55 | The Settlers of Catan

The Setters of Catan best classroom game
The Setters of Catan | Find it Here

This is a great game for upper elementary students because it promotes critical thinking, resource management and it encourage players to build settlements and trade resources. You can find the Settlers of Catan here.

56 | Taco vs. Burrito

fun classroom game for end of year
Taco Vs. Burrito | Find it Here

This is the perfect game for an end of year party because have kids so much fun with it and it’s a quick game. It’s a simple game but it will involve students using strategy. You can find Taco Vs. Burrito here.

57 | Blokus

end of the year classroom game
Blokus | Find it Here

Here’s another great game that’s perfect for your end of the year celebration. In this game students aim to place their pieces on the board while blocking their opponents.

It’s an abstract strategy game that enhances both spatial awareness and critical thinking skills. You can find Blokus here.

Fun End of the School Year Games Middle School and High School

Now let’s check out some fun indoor games that are perfect for older students.

58 | Grudge Ball

Grudge ball is a fun game to play to review key lessons that students have learned in class.

Supplies-

  • Trash Can
  • White Board
  • Plush Ball
  • Slides with review questions on them

How to Play

  • Divide the class into teams of 2 to 4 students each
  • Each team begins with 10 Xs on the white board
  • Display review questions and teams take turns answering the questions.
  • If a team answers correctly, they can erase an X from the other team. They can also shoot the ball into the trash can to earn a chance to steal an X from the other team to add to their team. But if they miss the shot, they don’t erase the X.

59 | Balloon Volleyball

  • Divide the class into teams and use a balloon instead of a volleyball. Use desks or chairs as a net.

60 | Human Tic-Tac-Toe

  • Create a large tic-tac-toe grid on the floor with tape. Students get into two groups of Xs and Os and must strategize to win.

61 | Relay Races

  • Create indoor-friendly relays like balancing an object on a spoon. Have each student solve a riddle or a math problem or answer a question before they pass the object to their teammate.

I hope you found some new end of year activities games that you’re going to try this year. Feel free to save this post to Pinterest for future reference. To do that just click on any of the pictures and then the P and choose your board.

If you liked this post, you should also check out these-

31 Fun Summer Bulletin Board Ideas

41 Clever Rewards for the Classroom

21 Best Classroom Reading Games to Make Learning Fun

50 Fun Indoor Classroom Games for the Entire Class or Recess