22 Quick and Effective Plenary Ideas for Secondary Teachers

A strong lesson doesn’t just start well, it ends with purpose. Plenaries are a powerful tool for you to consolidate learning, check understanding, and connect today’s lesson with what comes next. However, at the end of a hectic lesson, we know from experience that they can often be rushed or overlooked completely.

Help is at hand, thanks to our expert team of educators. Whether you’re running low on time or simply want a go-to bank of resources, use these quick and effective plenary ideas to help you wrap up any secondary school lesson with impact.

Quick Plenary Ideas That Work for Any Subject

1. Exit Tickets

Give each student a small slip of paper to answer a prompt like:

• One thing I learned today...

• One question I still have...

• Today I understood...

This strategy is quick to implement and really helpful for formative assessment. Keep a bank of printed slips to hand for use on any occasion. 

2. Traffic Lights

Using red, amber and green cards (or thumbs up/down), students show how confident they feel about a topic. Optionally, they can write why.

This plenary provides a simple, visual and immediate way to assess understanding. It also allows for differentiation.

3. One-Minute Summary

Challenge students to summarise the key learning from the lesson in 60 seconds or fewer. You could allow time for them to share with a partner or read aloud to the class.

This is useful for encouraging concise thinking and expression, and is also great for retention of knowledge.

4. Think – Pair – Share

Pose a reflective question for students to think about individually, then discuss in pairs. Finally, they can share with the whole class.

This activity is excellent for metacognition and for involving all students.

5. ‘If This Is the Answer…’

Write an answer on the board. For example, “1945” or “electricity”. Students must create a question that would lead to that answer.

This is a great way to stretch understanding and flip student thinking on a topic.

6. Emoji Summary

Students choose 3–5 emojis to summarise the lesson. Then explain their reasoning. 

This fun activity always engages students and can prove surprisingly insightful.

7. Plenary Pass

Students throw a soft ball or toy around the room. Whoever catches it shares something they’ve learned before passing it on.

I’ve used this plenary on many occasions, and it’s also a great way to manage whole class discussions. Your classroom mascot will end up a little battered, but I prefer to call it ‘well-loved’.

8. Three Words

Ask students to summarise the lesson using just three words. Then have them justify their choices. 

This encourages reflection and vocabulary recall.

9. Starter Creator 

Students write a series of quiz questions and answers that can be used as the starter in the next lesson. One of the students can volunteer to lead the starter.

This serves a great dual purpose of both consolidating student knowledge and providing you with the next lesson’s starter. Students are engaged, and there’s a little less work for you!

10. Quiz Time

Conduct a short quiz covering the lesson's content. This can take several forms and is an excellent way to reinforce learning and assess comprehension.

Plenary Ideas for Maths Lessons

1.Spot the Mistake

Present a worked example with a deliberate error. Students must identify and correct it.

This promotes critical thinking and application of knowledge.

2.Silent Sums

Pose 2 or 3 related problems for students to solve individually without discussion. 

Review answers as a class to assess fluency and correct misconceptions.

3.One-Minute Review

Students have 60 seconds to write as much as they can about what they’ve learned in that lesson. They mustn’t pause to avoid overthinking. 

This builds mathematical fluency and reveals retention.

4.Problem-Solving Relay

Students solve a series of problems in groups, passing the solution to the next team member. 

This helps to promote a spirit of collaboration among students and allows them to demonstrate application of skills.

Plenary Ideas for English Lessons

1. Literary Ladder

Students create a ladder of learning by listing the five most important takeaways from the lesson in order of significance.

This reinforces learning and promotes critical thinking.

2. Grammar Hunt

Students must identify grammar features in a given text or within their own writing. 

This is great for reinforcing technical accuracy.

3. Mini Debate

If you’ve spent the lesson analysing a contentious text or idea, frame a provocative question from the lesson and have students briefly argue different sides.

You can stretch students’ analytical thinking by asking them to argue for the side they would naturally oppose.

4. Lesson Headlines

Students write a newspaper headline that sums up the lesson. 

You can extend this by asking them also to create a subheading or supporting quote.

This plenary encourages concise thinking and expression, and is also great for retention of knowledge.

Plenary Ideas for Science Lessons

1. Concept Map

Students draw a map linking key terms or ideas from the lesson. As a bonus, they can colour-code it based on how clear the ideas are to them.

This reinforces connections and structure in their learning.

2. Chain Reaction

Begin a sentence based on the lesson. For example, “Photosynthesis is important because…” Students build on it one by one. See how many ideas can be added.

3. Fact Shuffle

Give students a series of key facts or steps in a scientific process and ask them to place them in chronological order.

This activity works well to reinforce a practical experiment or learning about a process.

4. True or False

Present students with statements that are true and others based on common misconceptions related to the topic they have just studied. Ask students to identify statements as true or false and to explain their reasoning.

This activity is great for identifying and correcting misunderstandings, encouraging critical thinking, and reinforcing scientific concepts.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the purpose of a plenary?

A plenary at the end of a lesson helps students reflect on their learning, reinforce key concepts, and check their understanding. 

It also gives teachers valuable feedback to assess progress and identify misconceptions, which they can use to inform future planning.

What makes a good plenary?

A good plenary is short, focused, and purposeful, linking directly to the lesson objectives. 

Plenaries encourage active reflection on the part of students, and help teachers identify progress or misconceptions.

How do I choose the best plenary for my lesson?

Choose a plenary based on your learning objective, the time available, and your students’ needs and learning styles. For example:

• Use creative tasks for engagement

• Use exit tickets for assessment

• Use group activities for discussion and shared reflection

Mix it up - consider varying plenary types to maintain student engagement.

Do I need a plenary for every lesson?

Not necessarily, but regular use of plenaries really helps to embed learning. 

Even a 2-minute recap can make a difference. The key is consistency and relevance, not routine for its own sake. You’d be surprised - often a great plenary is the part of your lesson your students remember best, long after the bell!

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