Strategies for Finishing the School Year Strong: A Principal’s Guide

As the academic calendar winds down, you might find yourself facing a familiar challenge as a school leader: maintaining momentum when everyone—staff, teachers, students, and parents alike—can see the finish line.

Your teachers have been giving it their all for months on end, all while juggling personal responsibilities and professional development in addition to their classrooms and teacher leadership responsibilities. Students, sensing the approaching freedom of summer, naturally become a little distracted. 

The phenomenon of “end-of-year” fatigue is a well-documented one—but that doesn’t mean this time of year can’t be rewarding. The most effective principals know that these final weeks aren’t nearly a countdown to summer. They represent an opportunity to celebrate your school community, reflect with your teachers and staff, and set the stage for a successful next school year. Here are a few strategies to help make all of that a reality:

Recalibrate your expectations—without lowering standards

We love this insight from educator and author Kimberly N. Parker: that sometimes, we have to recalibrate our expectations for the remainder of the school year and focus on what’s needed right now. While Parker’s questions for getting to these expectations are asked through the lens of teachers, they’re great reminders that leaders also need to understand the following:

• What does your school community need at this moment?
• What is your school community telling you?
• How can you continue to build and sustain relationships with students, teachers, staff, and parents that enable them to be honest about their experiences this year?

With that, consider what truly matters most as the year concludes. Develop a plan with your teachers and staff to make strategic adjustments that both acknowledge the reality of year-end but also maintain meaningful learning. Perhaps that means focusing on depth of understanding and real-world application instead of trying to cover new material, or guiding your staff in determining what’s essential for year-end wrap-up and what’s simply a “we’ve always done this” practice. 

Celebrate the positives—and put your people first

Ann McCarty-Perez, author and former school principal, says that the “administravia” of the current year shouldn’t take away from the moments of magic with your teachers, staff, and students that are still to come as the school year winds down. “The end of the year is so busy with paperwork that it can keep us from enjoying the best resources in our schools: the people.” 

We know your plate is especially full this time of year. That said, try to make a little extra time for moments where you can catch the people that make your schools the places they are in moments of excellence. This might mean scheduling a few more short classroom visits to see teachers in action—and asking students what they’ve learned (we especially loved this school leader that showed up to “audition” for next year’s pep and jazz band rosters). Create space in faculty meetings for sharing successes rather than just reviewing logistics and to-dos. Consider implementing simple ways of recognition that acknowledge the effort your staff has put forward throughout the year—this blog from Moreland University has six great ways to recognize and reward teachers if you need a bit of inspiration. 

The best way to recognize all the good things happening in your schools is to give them your presence and attention. When you make yourself visible, accessible, and genuinely appreciative during these last weeks of school, you send a powerful message that relationships are what’s at the heart of your school’s mission and vision. 

Facilitate end-of-year reflection for both staff and students

We talk about reflection a lot—and that’s because it’s important. When you create space for structured reflection, it transforms challenges into learning opportunities and successes into practices that become part of your school culture. 

For staff, this might look like implementing a “Year in Review” workshop to identify specific practices they might want to start, stop, or continue for next year. This forward-looking approach can take reflection from a retrospective exercise to a way to channel that into continued growth—and it’s a great way to demonstrate your commitment to your staff’s professional journey while maintaining engagement through the final weeks of school. 

It’s equally important to give students the opportunity to go through their own reflection process. Encourage your teachers to create activities that help students recognize the strides they’ve made over the last year by asking a few of these questions:

• What do you want to remember about this school year, and why?
• What are you especially grateful for this year?
• What successes are you most proud of?
• What challenged you this year, and what helped you face or overcome those challenges?
• How have you grown—as a student, a friend, a community or family member, or a person?

These reflections can be meaningful for both students and teachers, as they can provide valuable feedback on the subjects, conversations, and ways of teaching that resonated most deeply throughout the year. When both educators and students engage in parallel reflection, the entire school community reinforces the value of learning from experience.

Harness the power of parents and families for a strong finish

One of the best ways to keep student engagement high is to partner with their families. While parents and guardians might be focused on their own side of year-end logistics, their engagement directly impacts whether students stay academically connected through the final bell. The key is to engage parents in a way that takes into consideration work and childcare schedules, creating flexible approaches that make family engagement accessible to everyone.

One way to do this is through digital means. Consider creating a year-end showcase where teachers share short videos or photo collections of culminating projects—housed on your existing school platform or shared through already-established communications channels like your social media handles or weekly newsletter. For older students, this might look like having them create their own digital portfolios to share with their families. 

Clear, purposeful communication is also one of your most powerful tools at the end of the year. One idea is to work with teachers to send targeted messages to families that include specific conversation starters that can be used at dinner or in the car while running errands. For example, one of these conversation starters could be, “This week, students completed their ‘Book of the Year’ nominations in English class. Ask your child which book impacted them most this year, and which character they connected with.” Even simple prompts like “What are you most proud of learning this year?” and “What questions are you still curious about” can create additional ways for students to think about the transitions the end of the year brings. 

The end of the school year is more than a countdown to summer

Perhaps the best strategy to end the school year on a strong note is simply a shift in your thinking. 

The final weeks of a school year aren’t just a countdown to summer vacation. They’re a chance to celebrate student growth, build momentum with teachers and staff for the next school year, and help everyone in your school community engage in the kind of reflection that fully cements learning.

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