Every year the last day of school seems to arrive so quickly! No matter how rough the school year may have been, I always get so wistful about how much my Kindergarten students have grown and changed since they first stepped foot in my classroom. It feels like I just sent my students home with the letter for our first day of school. I tried to put my feelings into words in the form of a Last Day of Kindergarten Letter for my Students and am now offering you a free printable version below!
*Pair this with Kindergarten Printables Bundle for Summer!
Your Last Day of Kindergarten (A Letter to my Students)
Dear Kindergartners,
You will probably never see this letter, but I wish I could put it in a time capsule and save it for you when you are older and can better understand the significance of this year you just completed. 9 months ago you walked into this place called “Kindergarten.” Many of you were scared. Some of you cried and didn’t want to stay. Yet, you stayed. I held your hand while you said goodbye to your family and let you sit next to me on the carpet while you were sad. We read a story together and played a game to learn everyone’s name.
In our time together, you learned what it meant to sit in a circle, walk in a line, hold a pencil, use scissors, zip up your coat, and be part of a group. You learned how to read, became mathematicians, scientists, inquirers, and more. You learned what it meant to be a friend. You played with others, took turns, worked through problems, and practiced patience.
You smiled, laughed, and sometimes cried. Not all of our days were easy, but most of our days were filled with learning, excitement, and happiness. You gave me lots of hugs and high fives, and still called me “Teacher” no matter how many times I told you my name.
Related Resource: Kindergarten Summer Homework
Fast forward 9 months and many of you are losing teeth! Some of you are 6 years old now, and all of you are nearly 1st graders. Time has seemed to fly by, and while I am excited for summer, I sometimes wish for time to slow down just a bit so we could have a little more time together. Yet, I know you are ready to go. Our time together is complete. Before you go, please remember that I believe in you and know you are capable of great things.
I know that much of this year will fade from your memories with the passage of time. Some of this year will perhaps fade from my memory as well, but I hope that we see each other again. I hope that if we do, whether you are 7 or 27, we can look at one another with a smile and remember that Once Upon a Time, you were 5, and Once Upon a Time, I was your teacher.
Until that day,
Your Kindergarten Teacher
Grab Your Free Copy
To get your free printable Last Day of School Letter for your Kindergarten Students, click the large, yellow download button below!
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46 Responses
This letter summoned up everything I have always wanted to say. Thank you for sharing it with us. I cried as I read it aloud to my parents and so did a few of them. Very beautifully written. I let them know it was written by a kinder teacher and not me. Thank you.
Hi Tanya,
Thank you SO much for taking the time to leave a comment and let me know that you read the letter aloud – I am so thankful that it was meaningful to you and the parents of your students! I really appreciate your thoughtful words!
Beautiful!! I Love The "teacher" name, hence the name of my blog! Doesn't matter how many times you tell them your name, we are still "teacher!" 🙂
haha exactly! They still always call us teacher! 🙂
Thank you for taking one more thing off my plate for year end….this is lovely, thank you for sharing!
You are so welcome! I am so glad you will be able to use it!
This so perfectly states everything that I am feeling as I wind down from my first year teaching Kindergarten! Although it was slightly different for me since I became their teacher in November, you took my thoughts and put them so beautifully into words. Thank you for sharing! I am tagging you on my blog for credit.
Hi Rebecca! Congrats on completing a great year in Kindergarten! Thanks so much for your kind words. If you are blogging your own letter, that is so nice of you to credit this post. I am not sure what your plans are, but I just wanted to remind you that this printable letter cannot be uploaded anywhere else on the internet please. Thanks so much! Have a wonderful summer!
This is so sweet!!! It is definitely hard to say bye to our kindergarten friends!! We have seen them grow SO much throughout the year! Thanks so much for sharing! 🙂
Thank you Heather! It is definitely hard to say goodbye, even though we may be excited for summer!
I LOVE this Alex! I got tears in my eyes reading this. I especially love how you ended it with the "Once Upon a Time" sayings. Great post!
Suzanne
Kindergarten Planet
Thanks so much Suzanne! I really appreciate your kind words!
Love it! Why is it always so hard to say goodbye.
~Laura
Luv My Kinders
Isn't it though? It is so hard every year! Even though we are ready for summer, there is always a bit of sadness on that last day, and happiness too!
Aww I love it!
Thank you Aide! I appreciate you taking the time to read it!
Aww I love this! It's beautifully written and so captures that bittersweet feeling of letting kiddos go at the end of the year.
– Miss Giraffe
Thank you so much! I always get emotional at the end of the year – goodbyes are definitely hard, even though we are excited for summer!
That is the sweetest letter! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks so much for stopping by and taking the time to read! I really appreciate it. 🙂
This is perfect!
Thank you so much! I really appreciate it. 🙂
This is perfect. Love from Sri Lanka.
We are so happy to hear that you love this letter! Have a great day! 🙂
LOVE!
Thanks so much Carrie!