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Outlaw “I’m Done!”

Classroom Management

Every teacher has heard the inevitable chorus of I’m Done’s! that follows an assignment or activity in an elementary classroom. We all have those so called “fast-finishers.” There are tons of ideas for filling that gap of time between the “I’m Done!” and the class transitioning to the next lesson or activity, but what if there was no gap? What if there was no “I’m Done”? Learn why you should ban those 2 little words forever and don’t miss the handy (FREE) tool I’m sharing to help you do just that!

The Problem with “I’m Done.”

My biggest issue with kids saying “I’m done!” is that it implies “getting done” was the goal in the first place. It’s not just the words, but what the words reveal about student thinking.  It means that the kids believe their goal was simply to finish the task. This leads to rushing through work, racing to be the first one finished, and looking forward to the next activity rather than focusing on the task at hand. Plus, as soon as one student calls out “I’m done,” many students feel pressure to catch up or end up distracted from their work.

I outlawed the words “I’m Done!” in my first grade class many years ago and the practice works just as well with my third graders. It was easy!  I simply told the kids that we were no longer using that phrase and then we listed some other examples that had the same meaning, just to safe.  I explained that work time was exactly that: work time.

Fast Finishers

Once the kids realized that there wasn’t another activity waiting for them after they completed their task, I saw a huge change in how kids approached their work. There was no more race to finish. There was no stress to keep up with the “fast finishers.” My students began to think about the time available and set their pace more accordingly and the quality of their work improved!

How to Outlaw “I’m Done.”

1. Give Clear Expectations

Have a class meeting to discuss the problem with those words. Create a chart listing similar phrases and proclaim these phrases OUTLAWED! In the beginning, you’ll want to remind students of this new class rule before any independent work time.

2. Refocus on the Purpose of the Work

Help your students uncover the purpose of their work time. As a class, have students help brainstorm the purpose of different independent work times and all of things they can be doing during that time. I only did this once for a few different parts of the day, and we never had to do it again!

For example, the REAL GOALS of math work times might be to try out new strategies, grow problem-solving skills, and build math fluency.  The REAL GOALS of independent reading time might be to apply reading strategies, make sense of the text, learn while reading, build fluency, and get lost in a great book!

Help your students refocus on the real goals, and then give clear examples of things they could be doing during these different work times.

Classroom Management

Want help? I’ve got ready-to-go posters for Math, Reading, and Writing, plus blank versions, in my TPT Store. Click to grab your FREE posters!

3: Help Kids Develop Time Management Strategies

Many kids are so used to the “rush through so that I can be finished” mindset, that they have very poor time management. Help your students learn to use their time wisely! Before an independent work time, explain how much time students will have and how you expect them to use that time.

For example:

“Before we begin our independent writing time, let’s remember that our goal for today is to revise our writing and begin a final draft of our work. You’ll have 30 minutes to work. You might want to spend the first 15 minutes rereading and revising your writing and the last 15 minutes beginning work on your final draft.”

Then after about 15 minutes, give students an update on their time:

“Just a reminder that we are about halfway through our work time. You have about 15 more minutes. If you’re still revising, you might try to finish up and move on to your final draft.”

By removing “I’m Done!” you can refocus on the real learning goals and end the race to finish first. Kids learn to put their best effort into their work and develop time management strategies that can carry over into other areas of their lives.

I use this strategy during ALL independent work times including those during reading or writing workshop, tests, independent projects, or even crafts. And I use it during most partner work and group work!

Classroom Management Strategies

Troubleshooting

But won’t some kids still finish early?  Yes! You’ll still have some students who will “finish” early. Remember, these habits are often ingrained from years of being encouraged to “finish your work.” With these students, I first respond by pointing to the poster we created as a class that lists what they should be doing. I then quietly remind that student of the time left and encourage them to find a useful way to use that time. On occasion, I’ve had to pull certain kiddos into a little mini-conference where we talk through the work and I guide them in next steps of how to use the time wisely. In my experience, kids learn quickly that you’re not just going to give in and will adjust their behavior accordingly. Many of my “fast-finishers” were simply rushing and turning in messy work or work filled with silly mistakes. By holding them accountable for using this time, I could then suggest rewriting the work more neatly, checking for silly mistakes, adding more detail, etc.

But aren’t some kids just faster workers than others? Yes! We all have bright students that really are faster workers and can produce high quality work in a shorter amount of time. BUT, I find that when I hold those same students accountable for using their time wisely, I get HIGHER quality work! It’s about pushing every student to do their absolute best, not just trying to reach a minimum standard and be done.

But when will I fit in enrichment games? Not during independent work times. 🙂 If you have a fun activity waiting for students when they finish their “real work,” you’re encouraging them to rush. Don’t do it! Fast-finisher task cards, classroom Boggle boards, and enrichment games are great, but not when used as the final outcome of independent work. Essentially, you’re telling kids: “The goal is to finish this work so you can play this game.” This also goes for having fast-finishers do classroom jobs or walk around as peer helpers. Anything that takes the focus off the work at hand is harmful in the long run. Move those games to the 5 minutes before lunch or the ten minutes at the end of the day if the class has worked hard all day. Move them to the morning before the instructional day begins. Or if they aren’t really serving a purpose, get rid of them!

Do I have to stick to this on all activities? I do this for almost all independent work and much of the partner and group work, as well. I find that students get used to this expectation quickly and there is no need to turn it on and off all the time.  On some activities, such as tests, I know that I’ll have some students who can do an awesome job but will be done way earlier than others. My solution for this is to provide a minimum work time. For example, if the kids are taking a big math test, I might say that I expect everyone to work for at least 40 minutes and will not accept work before then. And I also explain beforehand what students will be allowed to do after finishing their test (usually reading quietly at their seat). I don’t want finishing fast to be a reward!

Build a Community of Hard Workers

I think it’s important to teach kids about the value of hard work and the importance of doing your very best. I guess the outlawing of “I’m Done” is one way I try to help students grow perseverance!

Thanks for reading! I’d love to hear how you handle this classroom dilemma in your own room! 🙂

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36 thoughts on “Outlaw “I’m Done!””

  1. This is so amazing! I always thought this…however could not put it in such simple words for students to understand it. Thank you very much

  2. This is one of the biggest problems I see when I substitute! I am currently finishing my degree and can’t wait to apply this in my own classroom. Thank you for a wonderful solution!

  3. What a brilliant idea and strategy to deal with it. Well done and thank you. I would love to have had this 10 years ago! I really concur with what you say about not rewarding the ‘fast finishers’. The goal is good quality work done to the best of your ability – it’s not a race!
    Thanks again.

  4. Thank you for the wonderful article! I’m a casual teacher at the moment and have been trialling different methods to extend students past the “fast finisher” point. You’ve captured the concepts and strategies perfectly in your article and I will definitely be giving them a go!

  5. Emily Sheehan

    I LOVE this!! I will admit I am guilty of falling into the trap of just “getting it done.” And I do get messy work or work with careless mistakes. Since we are almost at the end of the year, this will be difficult to implement now; however, I am definitely going to use these ideas next school year. I am so glad I came across this as I’m so tired of hearing “I’m done.”

  6. this is a great idea, i havent thought of it in this light! I definitely am going to introduce this to my students. I have special needs students and the competition to be the first done is getting ridiculous, we don’t offer any fun things to do when they are done, but they just like to have the bragging rights. thank you, Paula

  7. I love outlawing “I’m done!!” This is the best article and I will be implementing it in my kinder class when school starts in August! Thank you so very much!!

  8. Kady,

    This was an exceptionally thoughtful post. I love what you had to say to the point I shared on FB. I had to commend you! Thank you for sharing!

  9. This is one of those blog posts that has the potential to be a major game changer for my classroom. It seems so simple, yet I’ve never even thought about it this way. Thank you so much for sharing!

  10. Thank you for sharing! I always tell my students to look over their work but they quickly say they did. I hope having the students help with the rules and making a poster reminder will be a better way for them to really put more effort into their work.

  11. This is spectacular! I have been racking my brain for a way to stop the constant “I’m done!” I can’t wait to try this on Monday morning! 🙂

  12. I LOVE these ideas. This could be revolutionary for my classroom. What grade do you teach? I teach 2nd grade, and my only concern is right now we have only had about 15 days of school and they are still really like first graders, aka not independent at all with their work, never mind managing and self monitoring revising. I also have some really struggling kids who need my support and I wouldn’t be able to do mini conferences at all right now with kids who think they are “done” but just not following through on your amazing ideas. Any advice? Thanks a ton for sharing your amazing advice!

  13. I’m a private music teacher, and one thing I heard constanlty from parents, is that their child would play a song through once, and thought they were finished practicing. And so I begin teaching my students how to practice, which they finally begin to understand was different from what they were doing. What you are through outlawing the “I’m done”, is basically teaching your students how to study.

  14. I’m speechless! But I’m not done! I’ve thought this for a long time. Thank you for putting it into words and sharing your ideas! I’m on it!

  15. Thank you for this post. GAWD, how I hate “I’m done”. I teach grade six social studies, and I tell my kids that they are “done” when they are ready to teach a college course on ancient Rome. The activity that I prescribe when kids claim that they are done is for them to create a worthy question such as “What were some solutions that Romans came up with to bring fresh water into their cities?” or “In what ways did Augustus Caesar improve the lives of Romans?” and attempt to find an answer to their own question. This takes a lot of teaching during the first days of school so that they all understand that learning about a big topic like Rome does not allow anyone to ever truly be done, because historians, archaeologists, and researchers are always finding new information about the ancient world. Their mission, when they claim that they are done, is to add on to their learning. Again, I need to teach them how to do this. But I, too, have outlawed cries of “I’m done” in my classroom.
    I’ve seen lists that suggest, “Take a nap, tidy up the room, write a note to your classmate, and other disjointed busywork for kids who are finished early with an assigned task, but I think that’s terrible. Kids should understand how to expand their knowledge of a topic, they should be given the tools to create good questions and then go on a quest to answer those questions.
    I hope everyone has a wonderful year.

  16. I love this post and the importance of helping students not rush, but complete their work thoroughly. How do you use this in conjunction with a must do/may do activity?

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