End-of-the-Year Read Alouds

Looking for some fun book ideas to use as read-alouds for your end-of-the-year activities? This post shares a list of book ideas that teachers across grade levels can use during the last days of school! PLUS, grab some FREE writing templates to use with any book!

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Why End-of-the-Year Read Alouds?

Reading out loud to your students during the last days of school gives a special opportunity to end the year well. Each year, I begin my end-of-the-year read alouds about two weeks before the last day of school. I know some may consider this too early, but I have so many themed books for this time of the year, with activities for each, that it takes me about that long to get through them all. PLUS, students (and teachers!) are so excited about the summer days ahead that students are motivated to engage with these books! If you aren’t able to read these end of year read alouds out loud to your students, you can display some of these books on a display bookcase to encourage students to read them during their independent reading time.  My students enjoy the variety and surprise of each end-of-year read aloud!

Reading for the Final Weeks of School

It may seem like a challenge to get students seated quietly for reading during the final weeks of school. But it is a lot easier than you think! Having students gather quietly on the carpet for read-aloud time each day actually keeps the end-of-year crazies from being unleashed! Although I teach 4th graders, I read books across grade levels because the reading ability level of my students calls for that. But I also want to read for the FUN of it! Your students will be more interested in the theme and content of these end of year read alouds than the book level anyway!  

End-of-the-Year Read Aloud Books

Last Day Blues by Julie Danneberg

I begin each school year with First Day Jitters by the same author, which displays the same characters. So it is always a very special surprise to my students when I end the year reading this one. Even if you don’t read the part one version, the book is still such a cute way to showcase students’ perception of teachers during the end of the school year vs. the reality!

The Last Day of School by Louise Borden

This book is good for reflection about our school year. We usually make our End-Of-The-Year Picture memory books after reading it. Plus we write about our school experiences with the writing templates you can download below.  

No More Pencils, No More Books, No More Teacher’s Dirty Looks! (Gilbert)

My kiddos LOVE this book! Besides the rhyming title, they are pulled in to the main character and his “mischief!” I often use writing activities to go along with my end-of-year read-alouds. We write our own last days of school poems after reading this book. You can download the writing templates I use for FREE below!  

Related Post: Ways to Keep Your Students From Going Crazy at the End of the School Year

 

The Night Before Summer Vacation by Natasha Wing

Both of Natasha Wing’s books present the perfect opportunity to talk about the students’ summer plans. I find all sorts of fun ideas on Pinterest and Facebook for showcasing their upcoming summer-fun!

  I Wish You More by Amy Krouse Rosenthal

Warning: this one is a tear-jerker! This book is also one of my favorite books to give to my Room Moms or parent volunteers as a gift. I pass the book around the room for students to sign and we present it to our helpers. All those remaining boxes of tissues are used up very quickly with this read aloud!

Summer Days and Nights by Wong Herber Yee

This book is full of adventure! It really gets students thinking about the fun summer days ahead. Plus we have fun writing about our own summer days and nights after this read aloud.

F-R-E-E Writing Templates for your Read-Alouds

You can grab the free writing templates I mentioned above by clicking the link or image below.  These templates can be used with any end-of-the-year read aloud, as well as, other fun writing activities in your classroom! I did not want to give too many details about each book because I might give the goods away if you haven’t read them! But I included the link for each one to be easily found so you can choose the best ones for your kiddos.

Do you have any good books you would recommend for reading during the last days of school? If so, please share them in the comments below! We could never have too many!

Want More Ideas???

This post was originally published on The Butterfly Teacher. You can access it, along with extras, by clicking HERE.