Top Ten Summer Lesson Plans: Make the Kick Off to Summer Fun!

Keeping students’ attention in the final weeks of the school year can be challenging for even the most seasoned educators. You can take advantage of students’ focus on summer by planning some summer-themed lessons to wrap up the school year. Here are some ideas to help you make the most of the final days of the school year.

1. Have students research and report on the history of school vacations. How have vacations changed in the past two centuries?

2. Have students research the summer solstice and relevant ancient traditions.

3. With Independence Day celebrations just around the corner, have students research the events of July 4, 1776, and how America’s observance of this holiday has changed over the years.

4. For math-related activities, students can research and graph summer temperatures and trends in your state or across the country. If students are going to take a vacation with their families, you can have them create a brochure giving information about their destination. If they will be driving, you can students map out their route.

5. You can have students create the ultimate amusement park, incorporating something about the cultures you’ve studied this year in social studies. For example, if you teach ancient civilizations, you can divide the class into small cooperative groups and have them design an ancient-themed amusement park featuring a Wild Nile Waterslide and the Athenian Agora Marketplace.

6. If you teach older students, you have them debate whether or not a longer school year would be beneficial. Then you could have them stage a formal debate following proper debating procedures.

7. This is also a time students can create books to show the places they would like to go this summer. The class can create a vacation book in which all of their summer vacation plans are highlighted.  

8. Science can be incorportated into summer activities as well. Students can learn about environmentally-friendly activities they can do over the summer.

9. Before the end of the year, teachers can help student make a  list of books they would like to read this summer. lInstead of watching television or playing video games, students spend their time in Narnia or at Hogwarts. It can be satisfying for students to check off each book on their list as they read through the summer.

10. Summer vacations might also provide a way for students to learn about money management. You can do activities with students to help them learn how to budget appropriately for a trip.

Whenever you can its important to link your lessons to real life, and right now everyone's thinking about summer vacation. You can use this interest to your advantage with interesting activties.