What happens when students finish work early?
It is a tale as old as time. Work gets assigned, and before you can blink your eyes, that one speedy student is already finished. Early finishers are both a joy and a bane to the classroom, especially if you have a particularly chatty one on your hands. Left unchecked, quick students can become disengaged, distract other students, or simply sit and wait until the next directive. So, how can one manage a racetrack student without disrupting the rest of the class? Today, we will go over why simply giving students additional work doesn’t help, and three ways to keep early finishers engaged while everyone else works towards that finish line.
why “more of the same work” doesn’t work
You’ve maybe noticed how giving students additional standards-related worksheets doesn’t necessarily equate to overall engagement. Students absolutely know busywork when they see it, and under this action they quickly equate being “fast and efficient” to “more work” being delegated. Sound familiar? To address this, we recommend giving students meaningful choice.
option A: reading library
A classic tried-and-true option is to have a library for quiet independent reading. This offers a way for students to take a break from material, refresh their mind, and delve into a world different from this one. It may help to have shelves for various sections - such as fiction, non-fiction, or even mystery. Having a library, and if possible, a reading nook, offers a way to reward gifted learners with quiet time, and it improves literacy engagement.
option b: study hall
A common way to keep students quiet and give them a break from the material they just conquered is via study hall. Study hall is a favorite as it offers a double benefit: teachers can maintain a relatively quiet space, and students have an opportunity to either work on other homework that they have procrastinated on, or knock out some homework to have a stress-free weekend. In this case, everybody wins.
option c: journaling with creative writing journals
Let’s say you have students who prefer to neither pick up a book, and they also do not have other homework to do. In such cases, you can keep them engaged by offering low stakes journaling opportunities. Journaling is helpful as it offers the mind a reprieve to learning material, and it encourages students to connect with their creative side. If you enjoy the idea of students quietly writing with creative journal prompts and flexible differentiated response options, we invite you to check out our Creative Writing Journal, which features 10 prompts that can be done over the span of two school weeks. Students are provided ample response space to write and draw as they see fit during downtime. And if you are looking for meaningful engagement during the summer months, we have got you covered with our Summer Writing Journal - available in print and digital formats.
By taking any of these actionable steps, you help your students to feel refreshed and ready to jump back into material with the rest of the class when the rest have caught up.
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