The Magic of Morning Meeting

 

              

            One of the most important parts of the day in my classroom is Morning Meeting. It is one of those routines that if I forget to include it in my sub plans or we have a change in schedule, my students will give me an earful about not missing it! In fact, one parent told me that her kiddo would get onto her when they were running late because she COULD NOT miss Morning Meeting. Morning Meeting not only gives my classroom family a chance to start our day on the right foot, it directly supports my SEL and community building focus. In this post, I will lay out how I run my Morning Meeting and give out some ideas and suggestions that you can implement! Typically, my Morning Meeting takes about 10-15 minutes once we get the routines down. I find that dedicating this time out of our packed schedule saves me time in the long run since my classroom community is strengthened and students learn important relationship skills.

Morning Meeting Routine

Greeting

              Every Morning Meeting should begin with a greeting! Since I teach young children, I start the year by introducing each student to the class and having the class say “good morning, ____” as we go around the circle. As the kids start to know each other’s names, I model how to say good morning to the person next to me and how to shake hands or complete whatever greeting I have chosen for the week. We talk about how it is important to say the person’s name and look each other in the eyes when they greet each other. I also encourage my students to greet other members of our school family. It is so cool to see your kiddos begin to introduce themselves or greet other students and adults in the school with confidence.

              Ideas for Greetings:

-          Shaking Hands (Air Shake)

-          High Fives (Air Five)

-          Knuckle Bump

-          Elbow Bump

-          Sparkle Fingers

-          Wave

 

Sharing

              The next step of Morning Meeting is a sharing time. This can be done with a “lightning share” around the circle, with partner talk, by using equity sticks, or having students sign up for a day to share. I usually supply my students with a question and choose the method in which they will share depending on the question. If it is a question that is a quick or one-word answer, we go around the circle. If it is a high-order question, we will utilize partner talk or equity sticks. The most important aspect of the sharing time in Morning Meeting is that every student feels that they get a chance to speak in a safe, uncritical space. It is also important to note that students do not have to share if they do not want to but DO need to be good partners. I usually pair my low frequency talkers with a chattier student and encourage them to ask their partner questions about what they are sharing and to paraphrase what they heard to ensure engagement.

Activity

              Most of my Morning Meetings include a quick team building activity. In the beginning of the year, this is a great opportunity to do get-to-know-you activities, sing songs, play games, and just build classroom community and connections. This is often the most fun part of my day and it gives the kiddos a chance to start their day with some joy and laughter.

              Some Activity Ideas:

-          Create Classroom Rules together

-          Student of the Week

-          Going on a Bear Hunt

-          Create a class song together

-          Affirmations

-          Four Corners (Ask a question and students go to one of the corners that indicates their answer.)

-          Charades

-          Pass the Marker (Students stand in a circle, one student in the middle, the students in the circle pass around a marker behind their back and the student in the middle tries to find who has the marker.)

 

Closing Meeting

              As a bookend to our day, I also conduct a Closing Meeting. This is another opportunity to connect, reflect, and close our day on a high note. I typically ask a reflection question about our day and have students share their thinking. This question could be targeted to discuss an issue that we faced during our day and how we solved it or just simply reflecting about how our day went and what we enjoyed about it. We also always do a farewell greeting. I believe the closing meeting is just as important as our Morning Meeting for building and maintaining our classroom community.

Impact in the Classroom

            Morning Meeting is an incredibly natural and calming way to start the day. It gives you the opportunity to get a pulse on how each student is feeling that morning, what may be going on in their lives, and allows them the chance to practice crucial life skills. Incorporating SEL instruction into our Morning Meeting routine, helps to cultivate our classroom community and creates a safe environment where students feel loved, respected, and connected to their teacher and peers. The impact of Morning Meeting can be felt throughout the day and throughout the year as I see my students exhibit less arguing, less excluding one another, and less defiant behavior towards me and other adults. There is no better classroom management than the intentional building of relationships and community.