We all have early finishers in class. And we’ve all been unprepared. Then those kids are doing one of three things: 1. Sitting and staring. 2. Talking and distracting others. 3. Playing and distracting others. Either way, it ends up leading to problems. So I’ve learned the hard way being prepared for these kids saves so much time and energy when you’re trying to keep your students focused. If you’re like me, you want classroom activities that are meaningful, but don’t require a ton of prep. Who has time for that?! That’s why I came up with these these writing activities that are simple and ready at the drop of a hat.
Writing Office
To get started, you’ll want to assemble your writing offices. You can find your office here. These are great and come in handy for so many different reasons. Exhibit A: 6 activities for early finishers. Your students are able to use these offices for a variety of activities, and they include much of the information your students ask questions about. For example, how to spell high frequency words and the question, “Does the letter b go this way or this way?” Do you really teach elementary school if you haven’t heard that question?
Writing Activity One: Rainbow Words
Rainbow words is a fun activity that kids really enjoy. It’s a simple and allows kids to practice handwriting and the spelling of high frequency words. Your students will choose several colors to write one high frequency word. Just right the word in one color and trace over it with different colors.
Materials:
- Writing Office
- Paper
- Crayons or colored pencils
Writing Activity Two: Ghost Words
This activity is always a student favorite. It’s like magic! First your students will choose a high frequency word from their writing office. Then they’ll write the word with a white crayon on a sheet of white paper. Using a marker, color over the word. The word will appear and your students will be truly impressed. Eventually, your students will enjoy doing this so much, they’ll want to write notes to friends. What’s better than kids writing and having fun?
Materials:
- Writing Office
- White Crayon
- Markers
- Paper
Writing Activity Three: Color Words
In this activity, students practice writing their color words. On a sheet of paper, they draw pictures or a scene. Instead of labeling the objects, have your students label the colors of each object. For instance, a students can draw an apple and label it red, brown, and green. The perfect activity to practice spelling colors!
Materials:
- Writing Office
- Paper
- Crayons
- Pencil
Writing Activity Four: Transition Word Hunt
With this activity, your students will need a book, a sheet of paper, and a pencil. Many times kids don’t pay attention to something in text unless it’s the focus of the activity. So, have your kids focus on how often transition words are used in books. Have them write each transition word and tally up how many times they find it. This will give students the opportunity to practice reading and writing words that they’ll use time and time again in their own writing.
Materials:
- Writing Office
- Book
- Paper
- Pencil
Activity Five: 3 Sentences
This writing activity gives students the chance to practice using different types punctuation–periods, question marks, and exclamation marks. They’ll be able to practice capitalization, spaces, and handwriting too. Using the writing office, students can check their three sentences to make sure they have all parts of a sentence. And, if necessary, your students can use the other parts of the writing office to help them out.
Materials:
- Writing Office
- Paper
- Pencil
Activity Six: Building Words
Magnetic letters can be used for so many activities. They are perfect for young learner in that they are able to manipulate letters to build words. As an early finisher activity, your students can grab a set of magnetic letters and build their high frequency words. Have them build the words, read the words, and write the words. To extend the activity, ask your students to write a sentence with the words they build.
Materials:
- Writing Office
- Magnetic Letters
Having something prepared for your early finishers has so many benefits. Your students build independence and their confidence grows. These writing activities encourage kids to practice spelling high frequency words, colors, handwriting, punctuation, spacing, capitalization, and much more. If you don’t have your writing office, be sure to get it! And if you’re looking for ideas for writing centers, find it here.
