After agendas are copied and all the housekeeping items are taken care of, we gather in a circle on the big red carpet and begin our day in a new way. We shake hands with the person next to us and give them a hearty "Good morning"! Then, we talk, learn, laugh, sing, you name it!
- shake the hand of the child next to you
- check in about how we are feeling
- talk about the learning goals for the day
- learn something new (today it was how to solve the scale problems that'll be on EQAO)
- have some fun (this week, it's been learning about how to improvise in drama and how we never deny what the other participant says)
- we sing a song or two
- we read a story (this week, we read "The Bad Seed" and talked about how it's never to late to change your ways (perfect for report card week, dontcha think?)
After all this (about 20 minutes or so), we head back to our seats for Morning Message. I've shortened that up quite a big and I'm okay with that.
I've noticed changes in the 10 or so school days we've done Morning Meeting. We all seem more connected. Everyone is more alert and engaged. I'm learning more about my students because I've designated time in the day that is specifically for relationship building.
There's no question about it, and the kids agree, Morning Meeting is here to stay!
