Do you have a morning meeting in special education in your classroom as part of your daily routine? The morning meeting serves as an opportunity for the teacher and students to come together at the beginning of the school day to accomplish various goals, including building a sense of community, setting a positive tone for the day, and addressing important announcements or activities. These meetings help set a positive tone for the day. There are many ways you can make your morning meeting the best ever.
What should you include in a morning meeting?
So, what should you include in a morning meeting? The answer here is actually easier than you think…you can include anything! The options are limitless. This time is about review and connection, you can’t get it wrong.
Benefits of Circle Time
Circle time in a special education self-contained classroom offers numerous benefits and provides an excellent opportunity for structured and inclusive learning
- Promotes Social Interaction:
- Circle time encourages students to interact with their peers, fostering social skills such as turn-taking, active listening, and expressing thoughts and ideas.
- Enhances Communication Skills:
- It provides a platform for students to practice verbal communication, vocabulary building, and articulation in a supportive and structured environment.
- Facilitates Routine and Structure:
- Circle time establishes a predictable routine, aiding students in understanding the daily schedule and minimizing anxiety by providing a sense of structure.
- Improves Attention and Focus:
- Students learn to concentrate and focus on the teacher or speaker during circle time, improving attention span and active participation.
Some ideas for this time are reviewing the months of the year and the days of the week. You can also chat about reading a clock. It is a good time to discuss the weather by talking about appropriate clothes. At the beginning of the year you can review the key people in the school building and what their jobs are each day. You can use this time to assign classroom jobs or share the agenda for the day. Some teachers also use it to choose from the lunch menu. It might be a time for a quick social-emotional check in or lesson.
Activities during Circle Time
- Greetings and Attendance:
- Begin with a warm greeting and take attendance, encouraging each student to say “good morning” and respond with their name.
Starfall.com has a great interactive calendar
- Weather and Calendar Updates:
- Discuss the day’s weather and update the calendar, teaching students about days, months, and seasons.
Going to Weatherchannel.com to get the local forecast is a great weather activity
- Morning Songs and Movement:
- Engage in songs or rhymes with simple movements to energize and activate students for the day ahead.
- Finding songs on youtube for the month of the year, days of the week and other key details can increase engagement here\
- Storytelling and Shared Reading:
- Read a story or engage in shared reading, incorporating visual aids and props to enhance comprehension and engagement.
- Reading stories aloud or watching digital versions are great ways to answer WH questions.
Current Events & News Headlines
- Stay up to date on current events with these headlines.
Remember to keep the morning meeting positive, engaging, and age-appropriate for your students. It’s a time for building a strong classroom community, fostering social and emotional development, and setting a positive tone for the day’s learning activities. And again, you can’t get it wrong!
How can you stay organized?
If you truly want to make your morning meeting the best ever, you need to make it simple for you. Teachers work hard enough as it is, you don’t need one more thing piling up on you. This means organization and easy prep are a necessity.
I love to use Google slides to organize myself for morning meetings. They are easy to make fun and engaging and you can keep them seasonal throughout the year without a lot of effort. Morning meeting Digital slides are a true time saver.
You Got This!
The best morning meeting in a classroom is one that is well-planned, engaging, and tailored to the needs and age of the students. The specific Digital activities on a smartboard or projector and the structure of a morning meeting can vary widely depending on the grade level, classroom culture, and educational goals.
You got this. You can make your morning meeting the best ever with very little prep work. The key is to just get started! For More Self-Contained Ideas Check out The Exceptional Collective– A monthly membership jam-packed with resources and PD for self-contained special education teachers.
