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Are you looking for a fun and meaningful spring activity for your students? An end-of-the-year memory book is a perfect option! Not only are students able to complete a fun craft and activity, but they are creating a special keepsake to take home at the end of the school year. In this post, I’m going to share five reasons why an end-of-the-year memory book is worthy of a spot in your spring activity rotation!
When students look back at their early years of school, it’s fun for them to see some facts about their classroom, teacher, classmates, and even themselves! This provides a snapshot that students can use as a reminder of their early years of school.
Another popular page for a memory book is a “My Favorites” page. A few years down the road, students will enjoy seeing how their tastes have changed since they created the memory book.
Throughout the year, students participate in a variety of exciting activities and memorable events. By the end of the school year, many young students have forgotten about some of the field trips and activities!
Before students complete a memory book, it’s helpful to go through pictures from the school year or even just brainstorm as a class the different activities that the students enjoyed that school year. This way, students can reflect on these special memories and then decide which ones they would like to include in their memory books.
When you hear the term “memory book” you’re probably thinking of documenting events that have already occurred, not necessarily the future. However, the end of the school year is a great time to have students think about the next year! The end-of-the-year memory book can give students the opportunity to do just that.
It’s a good idea to include some thoughts about the future in memory books. This helps students begin discussing what will happen in the next grade and how they feel about it! Students often have a wide range of emotions when they think about leaving their current class and starting again with a new teacher.
Another interesting thought about the future is what students want to do for their occupations. This is always a fun question to include in end-of-the-year memory books because students will enjoy looking back on what they wanted to be when they grew up.
As primary grade teachers, we jump at every opportunity for our students to practice and strengthen their fine motor skills in engaging ways! Creating an end-of-the-year memory book is a great way for students to practice skills like handwriting and coloring. I like to remind students that they are creating special books that they will look back on when they are older. This often encourages them to take extra time on their writing and coloring so that they are doing their best work. As teachers, it’s fun to see them carefully applying their fine motor skills to a special keepsake.
Consider adding interactive crafts to your memory book, as well! Students can cut out and glue the pieces, which provides even more fine motor practice. For example, the memory book that I’ve created includes an interactive bucket list page! Students can write what they want to do this summer on the cute sand shovel, then place it in the bucket. This fun craft activity is the perfect addition to a memory book!
There are many ways that you can use the end-of-the-year memory book to practice social skills!
If your memory book includes an autograph page, students can practice asking someone to sign their book. Before setting them loose on this task, though, it’s helpful to model the process for students. First, show students how to politely get someone’s attention instead of interrupting an activity or conversation. Next, show them how to ask nicely for an autograph. Finally, remind them to thank the person who signed their book.
After the books are complete, you could also have students practice sharing their books with others. As students take turns sharing their memories, they can practice listening to and even complimenting their peers on their completed books.
One final reason why I love to create end-of-the-year memory books is that they are a flexible spring activity during a busy time of the year. Memory books can be worked on slowly over time, which is helpful for younger students. Depending on the needs of your students, memory books can be incorporated into whole class activities, small group instruction, or even during your spring centers.
Memory books could also be a great activity to work on during the last couple of days of school, when there are odd periods of time between assemblies and other activities. Once they’re completed, students love to take their memory books around with them on the last day of school to get autographs from other staff members and peers!
Would you like to have your students complete an end-of-the-year memory book? Save some time and energy by downloading a low-prep memory book template for the end of the school year!
I have created a printable memory book that your students will love, with options for preschool to 3rd grade! Your students can record fun facts about themselves, document special memories, think about the future (including upcoming summer fun), and ask their classmates for autographs. This printable memory book also comes with fun pop-up elements that students LOVE! They are easy for students to cut out and glue, so it’s a simple way to bring a lot of fun to the memory books.
If you’d like to download this fun printable, you can find it in the A Spoonful of Learning shop or on Teachers Pay Teachers.
I know that spring is a very busy season for teachers! If you don’t have time to download and print this memory book right now, be sure to save this pin to your favorite classroom board. You’ll be able to quickly find this post and resource when you’re ready to come back to it.
These alphabet books will have students dive deep into learning about each letter of the alphabet while eager to see what activity they get to complete next!
