After doing many Morning Meetings, teachers often wonder how to keep the sense of comfortable routine while also varying the meetings enough to keep students (and adults) interested and engaged. Greetings can be especially important because they set the tone for the whole meeting—and the whole day. Here are answers to questions teachers frequently ask about greetings. (The answers apply to the group activity component, too.)
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JUL
29
2013
Morning Meeting & Science
How can we build upon children's natural sense of wonder about the world around them? How can we include more science learning during our busy school days?
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MAY
01
2012
Fostering Imagination
Children need to develop the ability to think imaginatively and creatively. Children with imagination do a better job visualizing what they are reading, solving problems, entertaining themselves without devices, and thinking creatively…
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APR
18
2012
Morning Message Idea: What Do You Know?
Here’s a Morning Meeting message idea from 80 Morning Meeting Ideas for Grades 3–6, by Carol Davis: Use a message like this one to tap students’ prior knowledge and engage them in…
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APR
11
2012
Morning Message Idea: Favorite Numbers
Here’s a Morning Meeting message idea from 80 Morning Meeting Ideas for Grades K–2, by Susan Lattanzi Roser: Use a message like this one about favorite numbers to engage students with math.…
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APR
03
2012
Group Activity Idea: Encore!
Here’s a Morning Meeting activity idea from 80 Morning Meeting Ideas for Grades 3–6, by Carol Davis: Encore! Students team up to connect vocabulary words with favorite songs. How to do this…
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MAR
29
2012
Group Activity Idea: Lost Tooth Poem
Here’s a Morning Meeting activity idea from 80 Morning Meeting Ideas for Grades K–2, by Susan Lattanzi Roser: Lost Tooth Poem Children will relate to this poem about a missing tooth! My…
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MAR
27
2012
Sharing Idea: Who Remembers My Favorite Book?
Playing a fun remembering game builds on children's listening and memory skills.
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MAR
20
2012
Sharing Idea: My Favorite Season . . . and Here’s Why!
Here’s a Morning Meeting sharing idea from 80 Morning Meeting Ideas for Grades K–2, by Susan Lattanzi Roser: My Favorite Season . . . and Here’s Why! Challenges students to articulate a…
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MAR
15
2012
Greeting Idea: Secret Handshake
Here’s a Morning Meeting greeting idea from 80 Morning Meeting Ideas for Grades 3–6, by Carol Davis: Secret Handshake Greeting Creating secret handshakes taps students’ creativity and builds community. How to do…
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MAR
13
2012
Greeting Idea: Backward Day Handshake
Here’s a Morning Meeting greeting idea from 80 Morning Meeting Ideas for Grades K–2, by Susan Lattanzi Roser: Backward Day Handshake Greeting Students pass along a friendly handshake, but say the greeting…
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MAR
09
2012
Partner Sharing in Morning Meeting
If you visited my classroom during Morning Meeting these days, you’d probably see first graders working with partners and using the conversation skills we’ve been working on all year. We’re now doing…
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FEB
23
2012
Partner Greetings in Morning Meeting
By now my first grade students are pretty good at chatting with a partner. They know how to pair up quickly and how to decide who will go first. They sit knee-to-knee…
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FEB
06
2012
Weekly Plan for Morning Messages
In addition to the other tips I shared for getting out of a Morning Meeting Message rut, I strongly recommend making a weekly plan. Instead of trying to come up with ideas…
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FEB
03
2012
Are You in a Morning Message Rut?
If so, you're not alone! I've been hearing from teachers who feel they could do more to make this part of Morning Meeting as purposeful, fun, and engaging as greeting, sharing and…
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JUL
20
2011
The Power of Morning Meeting
The earnest fourth grade girl straightened up tall and looked around the circle, drew a deep breath and began: “Our greeting today will go like this. First you say your name, then…
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JUL
20
2011
Morning Meeting Is for Everyone
Welcome to Morning Meeting in my full inclusion classroom. Twenty-one first graders sit in a large circle on a brightly colored rug. I'm in a small rocking chair, my hand lightly touching…
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JUN
02
2011
Morning Meeting and Academics
You may have heard it said: "Morning Meeting isn't another thing you add to the plate—it is the plate." If you use Morning Meeting in your classroom, you know about its benefits:…
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MAY
06
2011
Morning Meeting: A Powerful Way to Begin the Day
In the spring of my first year as a secondary school teacher, I got a letter from a student for whom I had a particular fondness, letting me know that she was…
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APR
05
2011
Morning Routines
What happens in your classroom during arrival time? Those first minutes are so crucial for setting the tone and the pace for the day! The routines you put in place for arrival…
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MAR
24
2011
Good Morning, Friendly Workers!
Question: In many classrooms, the morning message chart is an important part of the beginning of each day and the first place that students go as they enter the classroom. On the…
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MAR
04
2011
Ideas for Morning Meeting Messages
Question:I often struggle to write the Morning Meeting message because my imagination runs dry. What suggestions can you offer that might help me come up with fresh and interesting messages?Answer:This is a…
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NOV
09
2010
What Do You Think a Decimal Is?
During a recent visit to a third grade classroom, I was tickled by students' responses to a question on the morning message chart. The class was about to begin a unit of…
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SEP
13
2010
Books for Back-to-School: Say Hello!
Here’s another children’s book that might come in handy early in the school year. Say Hello!, a picture book by Rachel Isadora, is a good one for when you are introducing Morning…
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AUG
01
2010
Opening the Door to Math
Morning Meeting activities can provide a confidence-building environment for math review, and Morning Meeting messages can be used to pique students’ curiosity about a math lesson that will take place later in…
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JUN
30
2010
Morning Meeting: One-Minute Greeting
Carolyn Bush prepares her fourth grade students to start their Morning Meeting with a successful, safe, fun “One-Minute Greeting.”
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JAN
26
2010
Math is Everywhere!
Recently, I was standing at an airport baggage claim area when a large ceiling tile fell and grazed my left shoulder. At about the same time as I felt the tile, I…
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