Ep 332: CTE Teacher Tips: End of Year Activities When Students Check Out

Ep 332: CTE Teacher Tips: End of Year Activities When Students Check Out

From Secondary Teacher Podcast by Khristen Massic, Multiple-Prep Teacher Coach

May 5, 2026 · 11 min · Episode 332

About this episode

Khristen Massic discusses effective end-of-year activities for secondary teachers dealing with disengaged students.

You know that moment when the last weeks of school hit, and you see your students checking out—mentally, physically, or both? The challenge of end of year activities when students check out feels all too real in the secondary classroom, especially for teachers balancing multiple preps. If you’re stuck between throwing on a movie no one really cares about or assigning meaningless busywork, you are not alone. The truth is, those strategies don’t serve you or your kids—not when the school year’s natural chaos takes over and normal routines shred themselves. Host Khristen Massic calls it like it is: teaching bell to bell is a pipe dream when half your class is at assemblies, half are done early, and the rest are still catching up. It’s not a planning problem. It’s that the secondary classroom at the end of the year has its own rules—and expecting normalcy is a setup for burnout. Instead of fighting the chaos, you need teacher tips built for this exact season. So what’s the better way? Khristen lays out three end-of-year activities that hit the middle ground—not all rigor, not all fluff—and actually fit this wild stretch. Think of it as survival mode with purpose. Whether you’re…

People in this episode

Host: Khristen Massic

Topics covered

  • end of year activities
  • student engagement
  • secondary education
  • CTE teaching tips
  • classroom management

Keywords

  • end of year
  • student checkout
  • classroom chaos
  • teacher tips
  • engagement strategies

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