Current Issue

The Art of Ending Class in the Language Classroom

January 2026

With the new year, many of us are focused on new beginnings. However, this month, let’s take some time to think about new endings: ending our classes in ways that can encourage further learning beyond our classroom doors. This issue is full of our readers’ creative suggestions for how they go about ending their classes that are sure to inspire you!

“Don’t count the days, make the days count.” – Muhammad Ali

APA Reference for this issue:

(author). (2026). (article title, sentence case). MindBrainEd Think Tanks: The Art of Ending Class in the Language Classroom, 12(1), (pages).

Watch before you read...

We’re kicking off the New Year by featuring readers’ stories of ending class. The Main video showcases five closing activities teachers can use to finish lessons. In the More podcast episode, Don Saucier discusses how instructors can navigate the end-of-semester stress and provide students with valuable learning opportunities. In this month’s Theme Song, the Choral Scholars of University College Dublin perform a beautiful rendition of “Auld Lang Syne.” Then, Heather Kretschmer introduces the issue.

In the Think Tank, the contributions fall into two categories:

Ending Class Sessions: Narjes Nasrpour, Glenn Magee, Harumi Kimura, Amanda Gillis-Furutaka, and Curtis Kelly write about different ways of finishing class.
Finishing Courses: Brian G. Rubrecht, Richard O’Shea, Jonathan Baker, Christopher Regier, William Kumai, David Kluge, and Heather Kretschmer share anecdotes, reflections, and practical tips for wrapping up courses.

Finally, we conclude our January issue with a special outro: a playlist for ending class, including songs mentioned in this issue’s contributions.

Our Thoughts on Ending Class

Bidding Farewell to Students Heather Kretschmer

Roughly a dozen students, four teachers, and the program director sat around a restaurant table and enjoyed a convivial meal together, one last meeting before they parted ways for good. Smiling, the students recounted amusing stories from the past year and expressed their hopes and dreams for the next phase of their lives. Organized by the students after their nerve-wracking final exams, this special celebration marked the end of a hard year of their dogged perseverance.

Pause for a moment and think of the school-leaving celebrations you have witnessed, taken part in, or even helped organize. What were the characteristics of the best ones?

Think Tank Articles

Auld Lang Syne Brian G. Rubrecht

I have been living and teaching in Japan for quite a long time (in fact, I have been teaching at the university level in Japan for over two decades). In my very early days in Japan, I learned that many stores—particularly department stores and large shopping centers—signal closing time by playing “Auld Lang Syne” over their speaker systems…

Balloon Dictation: A Joyful Ending Narjes Nasrpour

One of the best moments I remember from ending a class happened with a group of six- to eight-year-olds who were just beginning to explore writing and the alphabet. To encourage them to practice spelling in a fun way, I introduced something we called “Balloon Dictation.”…

Robot Wars Richard O'Shea

It was the final week of the semester, and everyone was already mentally halfway out the door. I sat among a very nice group of junior-college students. I enjoyed the class, but the students lacked motivation. The course had moved steadily, we had uneventfully worked our way through the course book and completed an assessment…

Finishing on Time: A Quiet Form of Care Glenn Magee

While the end of the academic year brings its own specific pressures and ‘Auld Lang Syne’ farewells, it is also a reminder that our daily sessions are just as critical. I used to end my daily lessons the way that many teachers do. I would teach right until the last moment trying to squeeze in one more explanation, example, or helpful piece of advice…

An Award to Remember Jonathan Baker

Many of us chose to become teachers because we ourselves had life-changing moments with our own teachers in the past. For me, perhaps one of the most defining moments of my life came in the final lesson of my 10th-grade history class. My teacher had gotten to know us deeply over the year, and to end our time together, she gave out awards to each student…

Be Thankful! Harumi Kimura

My routine practice in ending a class, any class including those of language and lecture, is to have students express gratitude to their partner of the day and the whole class. Nothing special, nothing interesting, and nothing fun. I say, “Now, thank your partner and all!” Students smile and say something like, “Thank you for working with me today.” Or “You were a great partner today. Thank you!”…

Ending the Semester with a Song Christopher Regier

When I think back to my Grade 8 science and math classes taught by Mr. Anderson, two things stand out: killer bees, and math suddenly having letters for some reason. Unfortunately, science and algebra weren’t my thing. However, a few times during that academic year, Mr. Anderson brought his acoustic guitar to school and played a couple of songs for us…

What is Your Score for Today? Amanda Gillis-Furutaka

This is an activity that I learned from the students in my university’s English Studying Society (ESS–a club for students who love using and improving their English). It has always struck me as a great way to finish a lesson because it helps students share something of their personal lives (to the extent they wish to)…

What Do You Get When a Book, a Bird, and an Angel…? William Kumai

At Nanzan Junior College (now closed) in Nagoya, Japan, I taught a year and a half seminar course of about 24 students. For our last gathering after their graduation ceremony, I would give each student a present consisting of four origami models: a book, a flapping bird, an angel, and a tsuru/crane envelope to contain them all…

Touching Hearts at the End of Class Curtis Kelly

No matter how much I mess up a class, ending with a touching story always gets the students to overlook my sloppiness. But, of course, that’s not why I do it. I love having my learners leave class feeling warm and happy inside, and in the process, happy they get a little English practice too…

An Emotional Emoji Ending David Kluge

I teach General English to 25 students at a university in Nagoya, Japan. Of 15 class meetings, I start with two face-to-face class meetings, then teach seven Zoom class meetings, and the last six class meetings are face-to-face….

A Little Treat for Myself Curtis Kelly

We always tell our students about ourselves, but how many times do they get to do the same to us? In my classes, every time, even in my big 60-student classes! How? By using a brilliant idea I learned from the great Professor Hiroyoshi Harakawa: communicards….

Rethinking the Last Day of Class Heather Kretschmer

So, I’m curious. If you teach classes where you have to give grades, do you finish your semester or school year by giving a final exam or some other anxiety-inducing summative assessment?

Think Tank Plus

Call for Contributions: Ideas and Articles Think Tank Staff

Become a Think Tank star! Here are some of the future issue topics we are thinking about. Would you, or anyone you know, like to write about any of these? Or is there another topic you’d like to recommend? Do you have any suggestions for lead-in, or just plain interesting, videos? How about writing a book review? Or sending us a story about your experiences? Contact us.

Inspired by contributors Brian G. Rubrecht, Jonathan Baker, Christopher Regier, and David Kluge, we’re concluding this issue with a special playlist with music for ending class and the school year. Enjoy the beautiful songs–some fun and upbeat, others poignant and tugging on your heart strings–as you finish this Think Tank!

Let’s end the playlist with this issue’s theme song…

Auld Lang Syne!

The MindBrained Think Tanks+

is produced by the Japan Association for Language Teaching (JALT) Mind, Brain, and Education Special Interest Group (BRAIN SIG). Kyoto, Japan. (ISSN 2434-1002)

Editorial Staff

Stephen M. Ryan Curtis H. Kelly Julia Daley

Afon (Mohammad) Khari Heather Kretschmer Nicky De Proost

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