Early Finisher Board Archives - Shelley Gray https://shelleygrayteaching.com/tag/early-finisher-board/ Shelley Gray Teaching Tue, 02 Dec 2025 16:12:09 +0000 en-CA hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0 https://shelleygrayteaching.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/cropped-ShelleyGray-08-32x32.png Early Finisher Board Archives - Shelley Gray https://shelleygrayteaching.com/tag/early-finisher-board/ 32 32 153880274 Free 30-Minute Early Finisher Board Tips and Ideas Training to Make Your Board Unique https://shelleygrayteaching.com/free-early-finisher-training/ https://shelleygrayteaching.com/free-early-finisher-training/#respond Sat, 09 Sep 2023 16:03:41 +0000 https://shelleygrayteaching.com/?p=13733   If you are currently using or considering using the Early Finisher Board or Math Choice Board, this 30-minute free training will be helpful for you. Throughout the video, I’ll explain exactly what the early finisher and math choice boards are and how they work in your classroom. I’ll also share tons of pictures I’ve […]

The post Free 30-Minute Early Finisher Board Tips and Ideas Training to Make Your Board Unique appeared first on Shelley Gray.

]]> early finisher board training

 

If you are currently using or considering using the Early Finisher Board or Math Choice Board, this 30-minute free training will be helpful for you. Throughout the video, I’ll explain exactly what the early finisher and math choice boards are and how they work in your classroom. I’ll also share tons of pictures I’ve received from teachers over the years that will inspire you to create your board in a way that works for your unique classroom. Whether you use a tri-fold board, a bin/tub system, a bulletin board, or even portable folders, there are many ways that you can make the materials work for your classroom.

Get instant access to the free training here.

 

The post Free 30-Minute Early Finisher Board Tips and Ideas Training to Make Your Board Unique appeared first on Shelley Gray.

]]> https://shelleygrayteaching.com/free-early-finisher-training/feed/ 0 13733 FREE Early Finisher Activities to Keep Your Students Engaged https://shelleygrayteaching.com/try-the-early-finisher-board-for-free/ https://shelleygrayteaching.com/try-the-early-finisher-board-for-free/#comments Sun, 24 Jul 2022 13:00:55 +0000 https://shelleygrayteaching.com/?p=1544 Fast finishers are one of the most challenging aspects of classroom management. In a typical classroom of 20-30 students, how do you deal with those students who finish way ahead of the rest? How do you ensure that the early finishers are not simply doing busy work and are engaged in a task that is […]

The post FREE Early Finisher Activities to Keep Your Students Engaged appeared first on Shelley Gray.

]]>

Fast finishers are one of the most challenging aspects of classroom management. In a typical classroom of 20-30 students, how do you deal with those students who finish way ahead of the rest? How do you ensure that the early finishers are not simply doing busy work and are engaged in a task that is relevant and fun? How do you ensure that those fast finishers do not become a classroom management issue that distracts your other students?

When I was in the classroom full-time this was always an issue for me. I got tired of telling students to take out a book and read when they were finished their work. Of course, there is enormous value in reading, but it’s nice to be able to offer some variety for the students who finish quickly. I tried putting out folders of activities for the early finishers, but it proved to be hard to keep up with, and hard to keep finding relevant activities that really interested my students.

This is how the Early Finisher Board was born.

The Early Finisher Board is a choice board that includes a variety of relevant, interesting activities for your students who finish their work early. You can set it up on a tri-fold board, a bulletin board, or even an empty piece of wall space or the side of a cabinet. Some teachers even use folders to put the activities in.

 This keeps your fast finisher students quietly engaged while the others take the time they need to finish their work. Additionally, it motivates the other students to finish their work more quickly than usual, because they want to do an activity from The Early Finisher Board too.
 
fast finishers choice board

How exactly does The Early Finisher Board work? 

There are seven sections: Read It, Write It, Solve It, Draw It, Make It, Do It, and Journal It. Each section contains a fun, curriculum-related activity to engage your fast finishers. The tasks are switched out every two weeks so that your students always have new tasks to choose from!

 

The most important aspect of The Early Finisher Board is that students get to choose which activities they do. Some of your students will always choose from the Make It, Do It, or Draw It sections. And that’s okay! Other students will want to try all the activities.

 

Students use an Early Finisher notebook to store all of their tasks. It is important to note that you do not need to mark all of these tasks! That would mean an increased work load for you, with very little benefit for the students – definitely NOT the objective of The Early Finisher Board! The tasks are meant solely as extra pracice – NOT assessment.

Would you like 2 weeks of FREE fast finisher activities?

If you’d like to get started with the Early Finisher Board completely FREE to see if it’s right for your classroom, there’s a way to do that! Just sign up here and I’ll send you:
  • the Getting Started Guide with ALL the labels you need to create your very own Early Finisher Board
  • 2-weeks of activities so you can test it out in your classroom before deciding if you’d like the full 40-week package!
Or alternatively, here’s a 30-minute free training to walk you through how the early finisher board works, along with tons of ideas and inspiration for your very own board!
 
free fast finisher activities

The post FREE Early Finisher Activities to Keep Your Students Engaged appeared first on Shelley Gray.

]]> https://shelleygrayteaching.com/try-the-early-finisher-board-for-free/feed/ 11 1544 How to Create a Fun Choice Board for your Fast Finishers https://shelleygrayteaching.com/earlyfinisherboardinspiration/ https://shelleygrayteaching.com/earlyfinisherboardinspiration/#comments Mon, 05 Mar 2018 19:49:34 +0000 https://shelleygrayteaching.com/?p=4007 What do your students do when they finish their work? Do you have to answer the question, “I’m done! What can I do now?” over and over again throughout the day? Do your fast finishers become a classroom management problem? Are you constantly scrambling to find early finisher activities to keep your students engaged in productive learning? Trying […]

The post How to Create a Fun Choice Board for your Fast Finishers appeared first on Shelley Gray.

]]>
how to make a choice board for your fast finishers

What do your students do when they finish their work? Do you have to answer the question, “I’m done! What can I do now?” over and over again throughout the day? Do your fast finishers become a classroom management problem? Are you constantly scrambling to find early finisher activities to keep your students engaged in productive learning?

Trying to keep your students engaged at all times is no easy task. As a teacher, I always found this even more difficult when some students were finishing their work way ahead of the others. Most of the time when students said, “I’m finished – now what can I do?” my response was, “Read a book or work on your homework.” 

But I never felt good about this answer. 

I noticed that only a minority of students would actually get engaged in their book or homework when they finished their assignment. Most of the time, they were either unproductive or became a distraction to the other students who were still working. 

 

What Should the Fast Finishers Do When They Finish Their Work?

When students finish their work, we don’t want them to distract other students or sit at their seats unproductive. We also don’t want them doing busy work that has no educational value. Instead, we want our fast finishers to:

  • remain productive and engaged
  • practice essential, curriculum-related skills without it feeling like “extra work”

The Early Finisher Board is an ELA and Math choice board classroom management tool that solves this fast finisher problem once and for all. 

 

The Early Finisher Board promotes:

  • freedom to choose based on personal preferences
  • differentiation based on learning styles and interests
  • success for a wide variety of ability levels within your diverse classroom
  • student engagement
  • pride and excitement

What Does the Early Finisher Board Include?

The Early Finisher Board includes seven different task sections: Read It, Write It, Make It, Do It, Solve It, Draw It, and Journal It. Each of these tasks contains an activity. 

Students choose which activity they want to do based on interests and preference.

Most teachers switch the tasks for the choice board about every two weeks.

FREE TWO WEEK SAMPLE!

Get started with the Early Finisher Board for FREE to see if it's right for your classroom!
Yes, please!

Modifications and Adaptations

Although the Early Finisher Board was designed to be used with a tri-fold board (like the kind you use for a Science Fair project), there are many other options to make this work in your classroom. This board can be modified and adapted for any classroom space. You can use a bulletin board, the side of a cabinet, unused wall space, crates, bins, or even a binder. The options are endless!

This system can also be used for morning work, as a math/literacy station, or as a Friday Fun activity!

Over the years, many teachers have proudly sent me pictures of how they adapted The Early Finisher Board for their unique classroom and the space they had available. I’m excited to share those with you now!

If you are currently using or considering implementing The Early Finisher Board (or the Math Choice Board) into your classroom, get ready for some inspiration! 

Fast Finishers Choice Board Using a Tri-Fold Board

I created the original Early Finisher Board with some bulletin board border, stencils and fun file folders. Personally I love lots of color, so I tried to design it to be bright and appealing!

fast finisher choice board on a tri fold board

Pros and Cons to Using a Tri-Fold Board 

No matter what layout you choose to implement in your classroom, there are pros and cons. Here are some things to consider with the tri-fold board:

Pros:

  • portable
  • can be created at home on the weekend or during the summer and brought to school
  • a good option if you don’t have much wall space left in your classroom
  • all the fast finisher activities are easily visible
Cons:
  • Can sometimes fall down when students are getting the tasks (if they aren’t careful)
  • There may be extra wear and tear because of this.
If you are considering this option for your fast finishers, here are some inspirational pictures sent to me by other teachers using this set-up.
fast finisher choice board using a tri fold board
fast finisher choice board using a tri fold board
early finisher choice board using a tri fold board
fast finishers choice board
fast finishers choice board sample
math choice board
fast finishers choice board sample
fast finishers choice board sample

Using a Bulletin Board, Wall, or Side of a Cabinet For Fast Finishers Activities: Pros and Cons

Some teachers find that a bulletin board works best in their classroom. Here are some pros and cons to that option.

Pros:

  • makes a wonderful interactive bulletin board display
  • all early finisher activities are easily visible
  • sturdier than the tri-fold board option

Cons:

  • Will your students need a stool to be able to reach the activities?
  • takes up valuable bulletin board space
fast finisher choice board
math choice board
fast finishers choice board
fast finishers choice board

Using Folders, Crates, or Tubs For Your Fast Finisher Activities

 Some teachers find that even bulletin board space is hard to come by, so they have to get really creative. The great thing about The Early Finisher Board is that it can be used in a wide variety of different ways and can be modified to suit your classroom! 

The teachers who submitted these next few examples got really creative to make this system work for the fast finishers in their classrooms!
 
fast finishers choice board
fast finishers choice board

Pros and Cons of Bins, Tubs, or Crates

Pros:

  • very portable
  • easy organization
  • doesn’t take up much space

Cons:

  • Students can’t see all the options as well.
  • Will have to think about how you are going to post the activities for students to see, rather than having them pull them all out of folders to see what they are
  • May have to use your printer settings to shrink the activities to fit certain bins

Would you like to try the Early Finisher Board for FREE?

I hope all of these pictures and explanations have been helpful, and I’m sure your head is spinning with ideas for how you could make this choice board work in your classroom. I’d love to get you started for free so you can test it out, before deciding if you’d like the full 40 week package.

Get a FREE 2-Week Sample of the Early Finisher Board

multiple grade levels available
Yes, please!

Or, if you’re excited to solve the fast finisher problem once and for all and know you want the complete 40 week package, you can find the Early Finisher Boards here and the Math Choice Boards here.

 

Related: Free 30-minute Early Finisher Board Training

The post How to Create a Fun Choice Board for your Fast Finishers appeared first on Shelley Gray.

]]> https://shelleygrayteaching.com/earlyfinisherboardinspiration/feed/ 2 4007