What it Is
An exit card or slip is one that students complete
and turn in before leaving class – or when
finishing a lesson. Give the students a prompt
and ask them to write their answers on the card.
Students turn their cards in and you have a
chance to see the pulse of their learning. You can
quickly sort the cards into students who have the
concept, and those who don’t have it yet – and
provide a quick intervention the next day. This
also works as an entry card to tie in learning from
a previous lesson or reading.
Levels of
Recall, Relate, Connect, Create
Thinking
1. Answer questions from the exit slip.
Strategy
2. Verify knowledge of a concept or make note of what still needs to
Objectives
be learned.
Time
Approximately 3-5 minutes.
Numbers
Individuals
Materials and
Pieces of paper
Other
Pencil or pen
Resources
Steps for Conducting the Activity
1.
Determine a key concept you want to have students think about.
2.
At the end of the class period, put the question on the board or project it on a screen. Ask
students to use a half-sheet of paper to answer the question you pose. Give students 3-5
minutes to respond.
3.
As students leave the class, have them put their exit slips in a designated place near the
door. You can also have students give the cards directly to you as a nice personal touch
at the end of class.
4.
Read the exit slips and sort them into two piles – those who “get it” and those who don’t.
Use this information to focus the next day’s lesson.
On the next two pages, I’ve included ideas for exit slips: Exit slips to determine knowledge and
exit slips to provide open feedback. See if some of these ideas will work for you – and don’t
forget to add your own ideas as you teach students important concepts.
Deborah Wahlstrom