This term seems longer by the second! After the year that schools have had, and some much later-than-usual holiday dates, we know that many of our teacher friends are dragging themselves through the last few weeks.

To that end we thought we would offer up some ideas for end of term lessons and activities to keep fun and education going whilst reducing your workload. Let us know if you have any more to add as we love to share best practice and ideas to all of our schools and beyond!

Let’s Go Live! – Free science activities for use in school or at home 

Maddie Moate and Greg Foot set up Let’s Go Live at the start of lockdown in March 2020 and were hosting live shows via YouTube through the various school closure times to support families with learning at home. Then they were asked to turn the activities into methods which could be used in schools too. The Let’s Go Live Science website was created and now has 90 activity pages. Each page has a video to watch with Maddie and Greg showing how to do the experiment or activity. Then the kit list of what you need (always things that are easy to find and get hold of) and the method with photos to help you through the make. Curriculum links are added to so it’s easy to add these to lesson plans and let them do the hard work for you with the scientific explanations! With 12 themes to look through we are sure you will find some activities to match your end of term plans. 

Twinkl’s 20 Fun End of Term ideas

In 2020 Twinkl put together a blog full of ideas for you – many of which involve printing off their resources if you have an account. This can take some of the stress away from resourcing the end of term activities while you are also trying to pack boxes and move classrooms! Although this blog is from last year there is still lots there to give you inspiration, and we are sure they have added some new things this year too to find! If you have subscribed as an individual or for your school then it is worth having a look to see how they can help you reach the end of term without too much pressure. We particularly like the idea of reflecting back over the year and writing down the memories – these may be in the history books of the future given the year we have had!

National Geographic Kids

The National Geographic Kids website is packed full of educational videos, quizzes and games which keep children busy for hours! They have videos covering set topics and also some DIY craft ideas and project idea starters. Whether you want children to learn about animals and habitats, or to start planning on how to save the world from climate change issues, there is something for you on this website. Their “Weird but True” series also gives great conversation and debate starters. We are sure you can find something to get brains whirring and thinking right up until the summer starts officially!

Try and get a Blue Peter badge!

Blue Peter badges give children free entry to 200 attractions (including theme parks, zoos and castles!) across the UK so they are well worth having. But getting one is easier than you may think. There are a variety of badges, including the recently launched special Sports Badge which asks children to try a new sport for a certain amount of times. There are challenges to complete for a Green Badge, or get the class watching the show in class and then applying for their fan badges or Blue Badge by sending in letters and pictures to the show. Can you get your whole class a Blue Peter badge by the start of the next term?! Across the Blue Peter website you will also find more challenges, quizzes and games to keep pupils busy all day long if needed!

The Hour of Code sessions are great for all ages

The Hour of Code is a taught lesson which takes students through everything they need within the platform. And students can pick the one that suits them most from their age range. They can do more than one if they wish and they will be able to print off a certificate at the end to show what they have managed. There are teacher’s notes for each session if you want to teach the whole class with everything ready for you. Build a Star Wars galaxy, code with Anna and Elsa, or create your own Google doodle. There are so many choices and all are engaging as each other and give students a solid base of coding skills which can spark their interest to go further via many available longer courses.