Students of all ages get burnt out on school at one time or another. At the beginning of each school year students are excited for all the upcoming fun but the novelty of a new school year soon wears off. For many students to engage and be excited with school once more teachers have to break out something that catches students attention and curiosity. Nothing does that job better than swapping out homework or a test for a fun project. Below are the top three projects that can be used to help students become interested once more. 

Create a Comic Strip

Everybody loves comics right? A project that is loved by many students is creating a comic strip as a way to show their mastery over a subject. The best part? It can work for almost any class taught in school! For example:

• Social Studies – A comic strip on a historical event (trip on the mayflower, signing the declaration of independence, etc)

• Science – A comic on a scientist or the scientific process

• Reading – A comic strip of a chapter or scene (Harry Potter, Huck Finn, etc)

A pro tip would be to have groups of students create a comic strip for an assigned chapter of a classroom read and at the end collect them all to create a comic book that they all contributed to!

United States Tour T – Shirts

Instead of having students read about each state and being bored, why not give them a chance to research a state on their own, and design a t-shirt that teaches about the state. The best thing about this project is that it can be scaled for different levels for younger or older students.

• Beginner – Have students draw or trace the state on the front and mark the capital with a star. On the back they can list five facts about the state.

• Intermediate – Students can draw or trace the state for the front but on the back they can draw things that represent the state.

• Advanced – Students need to draw or trace the state on the front and mark the capital but should also add geographic highlights such as oceans, mountains or other features. Students should also add big cultural sites (The Alamo in Texas). On the back students can draw things that represent the state and their main source of exports or industry. 

This not only allows for students to become experts on their one state but become familiar with states across the country. A pro tip for teachers not wanting to get t-shirts for students to wear would be to get t-shirt cut outs on a regular sheet of paper or if resources are available, to give each student a big piece of butcher paper. 

Cereal Box Book Reports

For many students nothing cuts their interest quicker than a book report. However, not all book reports are created the same. Ditch the boring paper book report and replace it with something fun like cereal box book reports. This fun book report allows students to create a new product based on their reading of the story while also checking for their understanding of the basic elements. Students will be so caught up in designing their project that they’ll forget they are writing a book report.