The end of the school year is always a bittersweet time. On one hand, you are thrilled to be done with your courses and to have three months off to relax (or work). On the other hand, you are sad that some of your favorite classes are over, never to be seen again.

But there is still a long way to go until summer vacation officially begins. Here are five simple tips for creating a positive end to your semester:

1. Do not procrastinate! If you have papers or projects due at the end of the semester, keep chipping away at them. Try to write several pages every day and then edit and polish it as you go along so it won’t be so overwhelming later on.

2. Don’t stress about finals! Finals may seem like a big deal, but in the grand scheme of things they’re not (unless you fail one; then that final can really hurt your grade). So study hard, but don’t get too stressed out about them. You will survive.

3. Take care of yourself! Make sure you get enough sleep, eat healthy foods and make time for exercise – all things that will help protect your immune system and keep you feeling good as the semester winds down to an

As the school year winds down, you may find yourself with a lot of free time on your hands. It’s time to relax and unwind for the summer. As you get ready to close up shop for the year, here are 5 simple tips to create a positive end of the school year.

1. Re-evaluate your goals

The end of the school year is a great time to take a step back and re-evaluate your goals. Did you set goals at the beginning of the year? Did they include things that you want to continue working towards in the coming year? Perhaps there were some areas where you didn’t do as well as expected (or hoped). The last few weeks of school is a great time to reflect on those areas, figure out what went well and why, what didn’t go so well and why, and set new goals for next year.

2. Celebrate your successes

If there was something that went really well this school year, celebrate it! If it was an award or accomplishment from one particular student—congratulations! If it was developing a new program or initiative—great job! If it was creating a new way of doing things in your classroom—yay! Whether it was big or

The end of the semester is fast approaching, and while we are all looking forward to summer break, it’s still important to wrap up the school year on a positive note. Here are a few tips for wrapping up the school year:

1. Review important material from the entire school year instead of just from the last unit or semester.

2. Reflect on what you learned and how you’ve grown as a student, person, and individual.

3. Review your goals that you set at the beginning of the school year and see how far you’ve come toward reaching them.

4. Take time to congratulate yourself on your accomplishments, both big and small!

5. Celebrate your success with friends and/or family members. It’s all about having fun!

Well, we are officially on the home stretch. There is only a month left in our school year and I can’t help but feel split between two emotions: excitement at the prospect of summer and dread at the thought of finishing strong. How do I end the year in a positive way? How do I show up as my best self with so little time left? How do I take care of myself when there is SO much still to be done?!

I am sure these questions sound familiar to you. They are questions that have been on my mind for the last few weeks and ones that are often asked of me by teachers at this point in the school year. So, I decided to tackle these questions by creating a blog post about them.

Here are 5 simple tips for finishing out your school year positively:

1. Take breaks! (And use them wisely!)

As tempting as it is to keep working through lunch or stay late to get things done, it is so important to be intentional about taking breaks. Sometimes our bodies need rest more than they need extra work and you cannot pour from an empty cup. If possible, try to step away from your work space during a break because you will come back feeling re-energized and ready to finish strong

The end of the semester is approaching, and for many students this means that finals are just around the corner. As you finish your final assignments and projects, it’s important to stay positive and grounded in order to finish the semester strong. Follow these 5 simple tips to help you wrap up the year.

1. Take a break. After studying all day, it’s important to take a break in order to give your brain a rest. This can be as simple as listening to music, talking with friends or watching an episode of your favorite show.

2. Stay organized. As everything begins piling up, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Staying organized is key when trying to keep track of due dates, classes and other responsibilities. For example, I write all my due dates on a whiteboard calendar so I can clearly see what’s due each day and week.

3. Eat healthy meals and snacks. It can be tempting to pick up fast food when finals season rolls around, but it’s important to eat healthy when you need energy for studying! I like to prep my lunches for the week on Sundays so that I have healthy options available whenever hunger strikes during the weekdays.

4. Exercise daily

The end of the school year is right around the corner, so I’m sure many of you are scrambling to get your papers in on time and get ready to take your finals. In the midst of all of this, it’s easy to forget that you have a life outside of school! This can be a very stressful time for many students, but here are some tips to help you stay focused, stress less, and have fun!

1. Plan ahead for finals week. Make flashcards for your vocab tests or study guides for your classes. Having everything organized ahead of time will help you feel more prepared for the exams and reduce your overall stress level.

2. Make sure you take time for yourself! Set aside some time each day (even if it’s just 20 minutes) to do something that you enjoy doing: reading a book, watching an episode of your favorite tv show, going to the gym, etc. Taking small breaks like these throughout the day will recharge your batteries and keep you from burning out.

3. Sleep is always important when it comes to studying and keeping up with class work, but it is especially important during finals week since you will be taking so many tests! You want to be well rested before

Credit where credit is due. The information in this blog was heavily influenced by the book The Sketchnote Handbook: the illustrated guide to visual note taking by Mike Rohde.

I am a huge fan of sketchnoting! I love the simplicity and accessibility of this method of note-taking. It’s also a great way to process information as you are listening to a presentation, lecture, or meeting.

To be completely transparent, I’m not great at sketchnoting, yet. But that’s okay because practice makes progress. As a teacher learning new things everyday, I decided to invest time into improving my sketchnoting skills this summer.