Podcast: Converting ‘Fast Finishers’ Into Self-Directed Learners
With a toolkit of smart, no-fuss activities and a small amount of prep, fast-finishing students can be quickly engaged and develop academic skills.
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“I’m done, what’s next?” In every classroom, a handful of students will finish the work at warp speed. While the rest of the class is still mid-task, teachers must quickly pivot to keep the fast finishers busy, without missing an instructional beat.
Former K-12 teacher Todd Finley argues this challenge presents a golden opportunity. “Instead of asking the question: ‘How do I keep fast finishers busy?’ the question should be: ‘Am I providing them with activities that are really meaningful?’” he says.
In this episode of School of Practice, Finley, a professor of English education at East Carolina University, shares flexible, low-prep strategies for keeping speed racers engaged in meaningful work that’s immersive and challenging. Plus: Logistical tips for busy classrooms, and pointers for aligning tasks to classroom objectives.
Related resources:
- Your Student Finished Early—Now What? These extension activities for all grades will help teachers keep fast finishers engaged in meaningful work.
- Early Finisher Activities Your Students Will Love Former third-grade teacher Tara Dusko created these activities for her early finishers so that they could “continue practicing important skills” independently.
- The Representation of Semantic Information Across Human Cerebral Cortex During Listening Versus Reading Is Invariant to Stimulus Modality Researchers at UC Berkeley asked people to either listen to a story or read it, and measured their brain activity. They found that reading and listening activate the same parts of the brain to make meaning.
- We Drastically Underestimate the Importance of Brain Breaks When it comes to optimizing learning, we don’t value breaks enough, neuroscientists suggest in a new study.
- Classroom Cheat Codes: Effective Teaching Strategies to Power-Up Engagement Todd Finley’s new book offers practical strategies for creating student-centered learning environments that “foster engagement, deeper understanding, and unforgettable classroom experiences” (Routledge/Eye on Education, 2025).