6 Opening and closing routines you need to know

Great leaders understand that how you start and finish your class makes a huge difference. A great start prepares the minds of students to acquire and manipulate new information. A great finish helps students to reflect on and recall what they learned. Check out these Opening and Closing Routines from Dr. Rebecca Alber.

Share One Word

As a quick check in, ask students how they are feeling today. Instruct them to describe in one word.

Quote of the Day

We may not always have the right words to convey a message that is inside of us. That’s why we turn to quotes. Invite a student or two to share an inspirational quote with the class.

The Reading Minute

Share with the class an excerpt from any poem, story, article or song. Once you finish, invite the students to write a single sentence in response to what they just heard.

Rate the learning or lesson

This is a simple exit ticket in which students are asked to rate their understanding of the lesson on a scale of 1 to 10.

Closing statement or question

Encourage students to collaborate in pairs and reflect on the lesson. Questions to ponder are what did you learn? What’s surprise you? Or what is unclear? Next, invite the students to create a closing statement or question and write it down.

Grab a goal

Ask students to create a goal. It can be a content related goal or it can pertain to something outside of class. Here are some prompts:

  1. Tomorrow, in class I will be ready to__________
  2. Tonight, I will__________
  3. I will___________
  4. By the end of the semester, I will ___________

What opening and closing routines do you use in your classroom? Please share in the comments section.

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