A couple of years ago, I discovered one of the most meaningful times in my teaching day. It was the end of the day! Yes, I am serious! If you are like me, right now, you probably have visions of student chaos and the craziness of the end of the day packing, and you think I am crazy. But let me tell you about something that changed my entire classroom and the relationships in my classroom. A few years back, I decided to stop my day a little early, pack up a little early and end the day on the carpet. I used that time to have an end-of-the-day reflection. This little 5-minute practice guided my teaching in more ways than I can count. There are so many benefits to this practice:

• I could identify students' feelings about school and the day's activities.
• I discovered the teaching that they found to be the most meaningful.
• I was able to find out who needed some extra support.
• I could locate the teaching they didn't connect with, so I could improve it.  
• No student was able to walk out of my room each day unnoticed. 

I used this time to ask the students questions about the day. My favorite question that I would ask is, "What was your favorite part of the day?" This little question answered so many questions for me as a teacher. The students loved this part of the day so much that if our time ran short, they would remind me because they loved it so much. So today, I want to encourage you to give it a try. Ask your students what they love. I believe you will find out so much about your students during this time, and it will become a favorite of your classroom. Below I have included some other questions you could ask your students if you would like to change it up sometimes.

End of the Day Question Ideas:

• What was your favorite part of the day?
• What is something easy for you today?
• What is something hard for you today?
• What is something that someone did that made you happy today?
• What is something you did that was kind today?
• What is something we learned that you loved today?
• If you were the teacher, what would you do differently today?
• If you were the teacher, what would you do the same today?
• What was the best part of your day?