How to Celebrate Elementary School Graduation

Elementary school graduation is a big deal. It celebrates all of the achievements your students have made thus far in school. Whether you call it graduation day, moving up day, or recognition day, this is a day to honor and celebrate your students moving on to middle school.

Many school districts try and make this day special by holding graduation ceremonies to celebrate their students' accomplishments. While this is a wonderful way to acknowledge students, their are other ways to recognize your students' achievements, here are a few.

Create a Journal

Create a journal for each student in your class. This may take a little planning ahead of time but will definitely be worth it. Throughout the year have students write things they are thankful for, or what they want to accomplish by the end of the year. Also, ask their fellow classmates and teachers to write something nice about them. Then at the end of the school year, present them with their journals.

Have a Parade

A great way to recognize and honor your students moving up to the middle school is to have a parade. Students can make special t-shirts to wear and decorate the hallways.

Moving Up Day Dance

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By Janelle Cox

While dances are usually only in the middle and high school, they can be a fun way for elementary students to celebrate graduating. Plan a special dance for all of the students moving up to middle school and make sure to only play fast-paced, appropriate music!

Create a Memory Photo Book

Sites like Shutterfly make it very easy to create a photo book, and offer great deals on them, too. Make sure you take a lot of photographs throughout the year, so by the time your ready to create the photo book, you will have enough pictures.

A Slideshow

When you think of a slideshow you may think of the "old school" protector, but you can use the newest ​tech tools to achieve a flawless presentation that the students will not forget. The iPad and Smartboard are just two great examples of how you can achieve a great presentation of your students accomplishments. There are numerous apps, such as Proshow and Slideshow Builder that will allow you to create a great presentation for your class.

Have a Field Day

Plan a field day to celebrate students that are moving on to the middle school. Students can participate in fun activities, such as water balloon toss, relay races, and a baseball game.

Have a School Picnic

A picnic is the another fun way to celebrate your students' achievements. Get out the school grill and have a cook-out, invite parents to join in, and ask students to wear the special graduation t-shirts they made.

Give an Award

Recognize academic achievement with an award. This can be done at the graduation ceremony. Reward your students with a special ceremony and give them certificates or trophies to recognize their academic achievements.

Take an End of the Year Field Trip

The best way to recognize all of your students' well-deserved accomplishments is to take an end of the year field trip. Some school districts have the funds for students to go as far as staying at a hotel for the night. If you are one of the those schools, you are very lucky. If you are not, then plan an end of the year field trip to a local amusement park where students can enjoy themselves.

Buy a Student Gift

Recognize students' accomplishments with a gift. Fill a sand bucket with school supplies, bake a treat, give them a new book, or purchase a beach ball and write "Hope you have a ball this summer."