Pre-K Kindergarten Graduation Ideas

End of the Year

Here are some ideas for end of the year celebrations.

Click on the links under "Resources" for more fantastic ideas.

Books

Speeches

If you have to give a speech this one won't leave a dry eye in the house, especially yours!

Dear Parents,
I give you back your child, the same child you confidently entrusted to my care last fall. I give him back pounds heavier, inches taller, months wiser, more responsible, and more mature then he was then.
Although he would have attained his growth in spite of me, it has been my pleasure and privilege to watch his personality unfold day by day and marvel at this splendid miracle of development.
I give him back reluctantly, for having spent nine months together in the narrow confines of a crowded classroom, we have grown close, have become a part of each other, and we shall always retain a little of each other.
Ten years from now if we met on the street, your child and I, a light will shine to our eyes, a smile to our lips, and we shall feel the bond of understanding once more, this bond we feel today.
We have lived, loved, laughed, played, studied, learned, and enriched our lives together this year. I wish it could go on indefinitely, but give him back I must. Take care of him, for he is precious.
Remember that I shall always be interested in your child and his destiny, wherever he goes, whatever he does, whoever he becomes. His joys and sorrows I’ll be happy to share.
I shall always be his friend.
Author Unknown

End of the Year Poems

Take a class picture with your digital camera and Xerox this poem. Glue the poem on the back of the photo and give to the students on the last day of school.

You're a very special person,
And I wanted you to know,
How much I enjoyed being your teacher.
How fast the year did go!

Please come back to visit me
As through the grades you grow,
Try hard to learn all that you can
There is so much to know!

The one thing I tried to teach you
To last your whole life through,
Is to know that you are SPECIAL
There is no one else like you!

Love,

Printable version available from A to Z Teacher Stuff ~ CLICK HERE

Class Picture & Poem

Take a class picture with your digital camera and Xerox this poem. Glue this poem on the back of the photo and give to the students on the last day of school.

Here is a picture that you can treasure.
Teaching you has been a pleasure!
The year now ends, and we must part,
Always know you are in my heart!

End of the Year Souvenirs

I take this printable poem and shrink it down so it fits 4 per page. Then I cut the poems apart and glue them to the inside cover of a Scholastic book to give as a gift to each child. You can collect enough Scholastic books for your entire class for free by using your bonus points.

I’m glad I was your teacher
I’ve come to love you so.
I can’t believe the end is here.
I hate to see you go.

Remember all the fun we had
In all the things we did.
But most of all remember …
You’re a Very Special Kid!

Printable version available from A to Z Teacher Stuff ~ CLICK HERE

Beach Ball Souvenir

This idea is a sure hit with any grade level! I ordered inflatable beach balls by the dozen from Oriental Trading (see link below) then inflated them and wrote with a permanent marker on each ball "I had a ball in Mrs. ______'s class" along with the year. If your students are old enough they can all sign the beach balls with a permanent marker. HINT: for little ones I ordered the mini beach balls.

Click HERE to look for beach balls at Oriental Trading.

Forget Me Not Seeds & Card

Order packages of Forget Me Not seeds in bulk from: American Meadows or buy them at your local nursery. Print the following poem on paper and glue to the front of a card. On the inside of the card glue a package of the forget me not seeds and sign your name.

We've shared good times.
You've learned a lot.
I hope you will
Forget me not!

Butterfly Card & Seeds

Order packages of Butterfly Garden seeds in bulk from: American Meadows or buy them at your local nursery. Print the following poem on paper and glue to the front of a card. On the inside of the card glue a package of the Butterfly Garden seeds and sign your name.

All year long I've watched you learn and grow,
There is so much you've come to know!
I know it's hard to say good-bye,
But now it’s time to stretch your wings and fly!

Good-Bye Backpack

This was an idea that we had great fun with.

Picture coming soon!

Write the words "We Had a Ball in Pre-K" on a banner (you could use sheets of butcher paper) in big black letters.
Have your entire class pose for a class picture holding the banner.
Have each child draw a picture of their favorite thing about Pre-K, Kindergarten etc on a piece of paper.
Bind all the pictures together to make a class book.
Use the class picture as the cover for the book.
Put the class "We Had a Ball..." book into a backpack that a different child can take home each night.
I added an inflatable beach ball, a pencil from Oriental Trading that said "I Had a Ball in Pre-K", and a cassette tape of each child's favorite songs to the backpack for the child to keep. You can order 10 minute blank cassette tapes in bulk from The Tape Guys- click HERE
Make sure to add an instruction sheet to the bag so parents will know which items their child will keep and which ones to return.
I also added a $5 walkman to each bag so the child could listen to his or her tape. The walkman was returned in the bag each day.

Each day a different child took the bag home. I had to re-stock the bag each morning with a ball, pencil, and cassette when it was returned. We recorded the child's favorite songs from the whole year during our large group time daily.

Click HERE to go to Oriental Trading

Memory Book

This idea is a simple, yet very effective substitute for a yearbook. I caption blank pages with the following sentences and copy:

Title page reads "My Pre-K Memories" with school year and place for child's name.
Page 1: I went to __________ Elementary School (child draws a picture of the school)
Page 2: My teacher's name was ________. (child draws picture of the teacher)
Page 3: My friends names were______________. (child draws pictures of his or her friends)
Page 4: My favorite story was __________. (child draws picture from his or her favorite book)
Page 5: My favorite song was __________. (child draws a picture to accompany his or her favorite song)
Page 6: "Autographs" Have the students sign each others memory books on the last blank page.
Bind all the pages together to make a book that both students and parents will cherish forever.