Ticket out the door - Summarizing Strategies

Summarizing strategies can be a great way to get instant feedback and information from your students. There are quite a few things I do in my classroom. None of which are original but, hey, why reinvent the wheel when someone has already proved something will work? I like to use the Parking Lot strategy and I am currently creating my own Parking Lot poster board that I intend to laminate so I can re-use it every year. If you do not know what a Parking Lot is, please let me explain.


A Parking Lot is a designated space for students to reflect upon what they have learned, answer a question, or ask any questions they may have remaining after a lesson, activity, and/or discussion. This past year, I designated my classroom door as the parking lot and would give each student a post it note. I did not do this after every lesson because with 100 students, that would get pricey. However, after a specific discussion, I would use it as an informal assessment. I would give each student a post-it note and I would ask them to answer the driving (essential) question from class that day or I might ask them to pose a question they still have or just explain one thing they learned from the lesson, activity, and/or discussion. It was a great way to wrap-up a lesson. As students were finished and the bell was getting ready to ring, my students would place their post-it notes on the door. I would read them at the end of the day or in-between classes. It gave me the opportunity to see what students were thinking or the questions they still may have had. This upcoming school year, I am making a cute Parking Lot poster and I am going to laminate it so I don't have to use my classroom door or precious wall space. I am still working on this poster board and once it is finished, I promise to post it up here :)


Another exit strategy I used frequently was the "ticket out the door" approach. If I did not feel like peeling off  20+ post-its each class period, I would pass out my ticket template. I chose to do this template in black and white to save colored ink and I just print them off onto colored paper.

I do not always pass out the templates. Sometimes, I have the students jot something down on a scrap piece of paper and hand it to me on their way out. I use these templates whenever I feel like the kids need something new or colorful! My 6th graders loved these tickets. I would ask them to answer the driving question, write something they learned, or a question they still have on the ticket and then they would give it to me as they leave my classroom. This technique worked better at times than my parking lot since I teach 5 periods a day. It allowed me to keep the tickets separated by class period.


I also enjoy the 3-2-1 Pyramid strategy. I would often times have students draw this in their interactive notebooks (blog post to come soon about my notebooks!)

Using this strategy, students write 3 things they learned, 2 interesting facts, and 1 question they still have. You can use this strategy in other ways too. For example, you could ask students what are three functions of the US government, what are two roles of the US government, and 1 way we could improve the government or one question they still have, etc. The template I have placed in here is the template I use for my summarizing strategy at the end of a lesson, activity, and/or discussion. I do not always pass out the templates but they are great to use for students who may not draw the pyramid as quickly or students who need modifications. Sometimes it is just nice to give students something already made an in color!


Feel free to download and use my templates by clicking on the images above or visiting my TPT Store :)
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