Early Finisher Activities Teaching Resources
Explore early finisher activities created by teachers to help you answer the question "I'm done, now what?" when your students complete work ahead of their classmates!
This collection of worksheets, quiet activities and more for those "fast finish" students is packed with options that provide students with a challenge that will keep them occupied — and keep them learning — while classmates complete a task!
Looking for ideas for early finishers and how to build this important part of classroom management into your classroom routines? Read on for a primer from our teacher team!
What Is an Early Finisher?
Whether it's completing a test before their classmates or wrapping up an assignment in half the time that you allotted, some students work more quickly than their peers.
The reasons are varied. Some kids speed through work because they aren't taking time to carefully read what's in front of them or address the assignment, but others are finishing early simply because they can.
Early finishing could come down to:
- Differences in Abilities — We know our students have individual learning styles and abilities, and with that comes an ability for some to work at a faster pace than others.
- Prior Knowledge — Your early finishers may possess prior knowledge or skills related to the task, whether from a previous class or even something learned outside of the school setting.
- Motivation Levels — Some students may be highly motivated and focused, leading them to complete tasks efficiently.
What to Do if a Student Finishes Early
Before you decide what to do with your early finishers, you need to consider why and how your students are completing their work at a rapid pace.
If the "why" is that a student is not appropriately addressing the assignments, you'll need to work with them to slow down and focus on the task. If you're looking at students who finish work early simply because they can, the next question is how to keep them engaged so they're not disrupting their classmates and getting value out of this class time.
How Do You Engage Early Finishers?
We recommend you focus your early finisher activities on a mix of practice and enrichment work rather than focusing on "fun" that may tempt students to speed through their work. As you explore this collection of activities, you'll find they're focused on skill building, rather than simply giving students a chance to goof off!
We didn't stop there! Here are some clever ideas from our teacher team to engage fast finishers.
- Establish early finisher procedures. Let students know from the first week of school what to do when they've completed individual tasks so that they can move on directly to early finisher work. You may want to establish a "must do," "may do" and "may not do" structure for this procedure so students know what they should — and should not — be doing when they've completed a task! The actual procedures will look different depending on your grade level — a kindergarten early finisher activity procedure will likely be simpler than one for fifth grade — but having it set in stone is key to good classroom management!
- Set up an early finisher destination. Minimize classroom disruptions by setting up a spot in the classroom where students know they can go to find their early finisher work such as a set of busy bins, a "what do I do now?" station or even a bulletin board with folders where students can find challenging worksheets to complete for extra credit.
- Have fast finishing students help you keep classroom supplies in line. Do you have puzzles that may or may not be missing a few pieces? It's an all-too-common problem in classrooms, and it's one that you can solve by having your fast finishers count out the pieces to ensure everything is in place. Similarly, students can use this time to ensure board games are still in working order and so on.
- Assign a classroom job. If some kids are always finishing ahead of their classmates, why not assign them a job such as helping classmates who could use their assistance?
- Differentiate your instruction. If you recognize that the same students are always finishing their work ahead of their peers, plan ahead with extension activities, independent research projects or creative assignments that encourage critical thinking.
- Have early finishers work together. You can challenge your early finishing students to work together on group projects such as a STEM challenge which can help them build their teamwork and social skills.
- Extra reading. When in doubt, allow students to spend time reading to keep their brains active (and their mouths quiet) while their classmates finish up a task or test.
- Plus Plan
Roll and Write - Telling Time Dice Game
Practice telling time and have fun learning how to tell time with a Roll and Write Telling Time Dice Game!
- Free Plan
CVCC Word Work Mat
Practice segmenting and spelling simple words with this set of 24 CVCC picture task cards.
- Plus Plan
Alliteration Sorting by Beginning Sound Activity
Explore beginning sounds and alliteration with this engaging and age-appropriate picture sort activity—perfect for your phonics and early literacy lessons.
- Free Plan
Time Dominoes - Five Minute Intervals
Practice telling time to the nearest 5 minutes by matching 32 analog and digital clock dominoes.
- Plus Plan
Roll, Read and Write – High Frequency Word Game Pack
Practice reading high frequency words with this set of Roll to Read and Roll to Write High Frequency Word Game boards.
- Plus Plan
Rhyming Card Game
A concentration style rhyming card game that can be used to consolidate students' knowledge of rhyming words.
- Plus Plan
Vowel Team Dominoes - OA, OW, and OE
Decode words with oa, ow, and oe vowel team conventions for representing long vowel sounds using this set of 28 dominoes.
- Plus Plan
Antonyms Word Search
Download this antonyms word search set that helps students identify opposite meanings and strengthen their understanding of contrast in language.
- Plus Plan
CVC Word Chain Task Cards
Manipulate individual phonemes in CVC words to create new ones with this set of differentiated task cards.
- Plus Plan
Ketchup, Mustard, Mayo, Pickle - Fast Finisher Bulletin Board
Keep fast finishers learning and growing with our Ketchup, Mustard, Mayo, Pickle Fast Finishers Bulletin Board Display.
- Plus Plan
Make a Sentence Activity Task Cards
Boost early writing skills with this engaging Make a Sentence Activity designed to help students understand sentence structure through fun, hands-on learning.
- Plus Plan
Sentence Building Cards and Mat
Use these Sentence Building Cards with Mat to explore the main features of a simple sentence with your Kinder students.
- Plus Plan
CCVC Word Work Mat
Practice decoding and spelling simple words with this set of 24 CCVC picture task cards.
- Plus Plan
Compound Word Dominoes
Practice making new words with this compound word-matching game that includes 28 picture/word dominoes.
- Plus Plan
Vowel Team Dominoes - EE, EA, and EY
Decode words with ee, ea, and ey vowel team conventions for representing long vowel sounds using this set of 26 dominoes.
- Free Plan
Perimeter and Area Dice Game
Use this area and perimeter dice game as a math center activity when teaching area and perimeter to your 3rd and 4th graders.
- Plus Plan
Math Brain Teaser Task Cards
Spark critical thinking with math brain teasers embedded in real-world scenarios to engage and challenge your upper elementary students.
- Plus Plan
CVC/CCVC/CVCC Word Flashcards
A comprehensive set of flashcards for CVC, CCVC, and CVCC words.
- Plus Plan
Adventure Story Starter Task Cards
Print and use these Adventure Story Starter Task Cards to inspire adventurous narrative writings.
- Plus Plan
Color by Number Addition and Subtraction Worksheets
Combine math and art with our color by number addition and subtraction worksheets that feature problems with solutions up to 20.
- Plus Plan
Preposition Game – Roll and Cover
Use this preposition game as a fun and collaborative way of learning about these important parts of speech.
- Plus Plan
Differentiated Vocabulary Menus
Use our Differentiated Vocabulary Menus to give your students daily independent vocabulary practice.
- Free Plan
Improper Fractions Activity Cards
Provide these improper fractions activity cards to your students to give them a variety of ways to practice converting improper fractions to mixed numbers.
- Plus Plan
Color by Letter Worksheet Pack
Help students with their recognition of the letters – s,a,t,p,i,n and c,k,e,h,r with this color by letter worksheet pack.
- Plus Plan
Subitizing Card Game
Utilize this subitizing card game to reinforce number recognition and subitizing skills with some friendly competition!
- Plus Plan
Story Ideas - Character, Setting, and Complication Cards
Help your students choose a topic to write about with this set of 36 character, setting and compilation task cards.
- Plus Plan
Magical Story Starters Task Cards
Get your students writing magical stories with this set of story starter task cards.
- Plus Plan
Unit Fractions Roll and Cover Activity
Explore unit fractions with this fun partner game for math rotations in the classroom.
- Free Plan
Free ABC Tracing Sheet Bundle Pack
Use ABC Tracing Worksheets to help your students develop their handwriting and fine motor skills.
- Plus Plan
Roll and Read Vowel Teams Diphthong Activity
Explore different diphthongs with this fun gamified diphthong activity.
- Plus Plan
Exploring Rotational Symmetry Worksheets - Drawing Prompts
Encourage creativity and practice knowledge of rotational symmetry with a set of exciting symmetry drawing worksheets.
- Plus Plan
Synonyms Word Search Pack
Strengthen vocabulary skills with this synonym word search set that helps students compare shades of meaning and use precise language with greater confidence.