SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL LEARNING

Morning Meeting: The Best Way to Build a Positive Learning Community

21 February 2024/ By Zineb DJOUB

Today’s classrooms are inclusive places of learning, where teachers’ role is to make the learning process accessible and stress-free for students. This requires creating opportunities for students to talk to their classmates and build teams in a secure and safe learning atmosphere. However, such a process might seem challenging for many of us due to the substantial time and effort it demands. Yet, with well-organized and seamlessly integrated opportunities within daily lessons, we can achieve this goal with reduced time and effort. Morning Meeting is among those great opportunities to build a positive classroom community.

What is Morning Meeting?

Morning Meeting is a structured whole-group gathering to be held daily in classrooms for 20-30 minutes. During such meetings, teachers can use activities that support student belonging and connection to one another, reinforce academic skills, and practice appropriate behaviours and classroom expectations.

One of the founding principles behind this strategy is the responsive classroom approach which was developed in 1981 by a group of educators who saw the need to embrace social and emotional learning to meet students’ needs.

The practice of Morning Meeting evolved from preschool and early childhood programmes that traditionally started with “Circle Time.” In this routine, students engaged in singing, counting, calendar activities, attendance-taking, and sharing.

So, “Morning Meeting builds upon this, understanding a child’s need for social guidance, structure, and interaction” (Allen-Hughes, 2013, p. 12).

Benefits of Morning Meeting

Morning Meeting can be a powerful strategy that would help teachers build community in the classroom.

Kriete and Bechtel’s (2002) research findings show that using this strategy in class helped students learn and practice social skills.

These include active listening, giving appropriate questions and comments to a speaker, sharing, empathy, problem-solving, critical thinking, taking turns, and being a contributing member of a community.

In the same concern, Allen-Hughes (2013) noticed the students used social skills that were taught in isolated situations during the Morning Meeting and then transferred the skills into their everyday environment.

Positive effects of such classroom meetings on improving teacher-student relationships were also evident as students developed their ability to solve conflicts, communicate more effectively, and be respectful (Grant & Davis, 2012).

Consequently, in positive communities, distractions and interruptions diminish, leading to students actively engaging in their learning.

 The classroom runs smoothly, and less time is spent on management and more time on active learning. Students learn lifelong interpersonal skills and are better prepared to function in an increasingly pluralistic society (Kagan, Robertson, and Kagan, 1995, p. vi).

Further, Morning Meetings are learning opportunities where you can assess students formally and cover any existing learning gaps among your students.

Morning Meeting: The challenge

Though several research has proved the power of Morning Meeting in building community and creating a positive learning experience for students, there are some major concerns with its use.

How can teachers devote time to morning meeting activities if they are always struggling with time to finish the syllabus and assess students?

So, Morning Meeting may not seem required with the overwhelming demands of teaching.

Further, implementing such kinds of routine requires time and effort. It may take weeks and months for students to follow the expectations.

You also need to employ the strategy consistently throughout the entire year; otherwise, undesired behavior may recur, and social skills and learning support may fade away.

Besides lack of time and commitment, knowing how to implement Morning Meeting is also essential for the strategy’s success.

For instance, if students are not shown how to greet each other properly, how to collaborate with their peers, and what to share, Morning Meeting will be less or not effective.

Therefore, we need to recognize that like any teaching strategy, Morning Meeting requires planning and using effective tips and tools that lead to a smooth and successful experience.

So, learning about its key components is necessary along with the tips for effective implementation.

It is also important not to view this strategy in isolation but rather as an essential component intertwined with the academic content being taught.

So, Morning Meeting is not a waste of time as it can support learning besides fostering a sense of community.

Components of Morning Meeting

Morning Meeting is structured into four key components:

1. Greeting

Each student is greeted by name with a smile including a high five, handshake, etc. After being greeted by their teacher, students also greet one another.

Greeting others and being greeted by others at the beginning of the day not only sets a positive tone for the day but also provides children with a sense of community and belonging.

2. Sharing

Students share personal news, stories, and games and ask for details. This helps them get to know one another and strengthen their communication skills and active listening.

3. Group activity

This whole group activity can include games and activities that foster social and emotional skills (how to wait for a turn, self-regulate, etc.) and learning activities that align with the curriculum.

The aim is to reinforce learning and foster cooperation and inclusion.

4. The Morning Message

A brief note or announcement from the teacher to the students about what they’ll be learning that day. This Morning Message builds excitement about the learning that will happen each day

Yet, the message can go beyond informing students about the day’s lesson to addressing questions, using pictures or materials to activate prior knowledge about this lesson, integrating many areas of the curriculum, introducing a new material/activity/expectation, and discussing and sharing the daily choices.

Tips for successful Morning Meeting

# Planning

Effective preparation is crucial for Morning Meeting to be successful. It aids in ensuring that academic material can be seamlessly integrated into the strategy.

Here are some essential tips for planning successful Morning Meeting:

• Determine how much time you have and what ideas you can use accordingly. Some morning meeting ideas take more time than others.
• Consider the learning objectives of the day so that you can incorporate activities that support these objectives.
• Think of students’ strengths and needs and decide what academic or social skills need extra reinforcement or practice.
• Be sure to choose interactive and engaging activities such as games, brief discussions, and projects that promote team building, communication, and social-emotional development.
• Set your expectations and guidelines for active listening, respect, and participation.
• Prepare the needed supplies for morning meetings (ex. Charts of songs and poems, flash cards, sticky notes, balls, CD/MP3 player, etc.).
• Maintain a structured format, but be adaptable to the unique dynamics of each day and your student’s needs.

# Successful implementation

Successful implementation is based on teaching morning meeting skills and routines and getting students engaged.

Some essential tips for successful implementation:

• Avoid overwhelming students by minimizing the number of instructions given. Break down routines into manageable segments, introduce the remaining components gradually, and scaffold learning.
• Begin with the greeting, specifying the language and body language to be used then move to the other components. Add new greetings one at a time.
• Model morning meeting skills and routines through explicit explanation, repetition, using signals, and your body language.
• Get students involved in supporting their peers to understand their responsibilities.
• Create a positive atmosphere by encouraging students’ participation, positive sharing, and celebrating achievements.
• Assign different roles to students (timekeeper, leader, sharing facilitator, etc.) and rotate them to promote a sense of responsibility and leadership.
• Seek students’ ideas, suggestions, and preferences and incorporate them to foster a sense of ownership and engagement.

 

Engaging ideas for Morning Meeting

There are plenty of creative and engaging ideas for different components of classroom Morning Meeting. Rotating through these can keep it fresh and engaging. Here are some examples:

Greeting ideas for Morning Meeting

-Students form a line facing each other, walk down the line, and exchange a unique handshake with each classmate.

-They greet each other using non-verbal gestures or signals, such as giving a thumbs-up or a peace sign.

-Greeting games such as sharing compliment cards, sharing a riddle, mimicking an emoji’s expression or gesture to greet others, Mix-It-Up Ball Greeting (after receiving the ball, students greet each other in a particular way “Good Morning! What is your favourite song? etc.

-After creating some quotes that are aligned with your students’ level and objectives (kindness, perseverance, teamwork, or any other relevant topics), have students pick the quotes and use them to greet each other. They can also reflect on them and discuss them in class.

Share ideas for Morning Meeting

-Students tell about who they are by writing about their hobbies, talents, personality types, favourite food, etc., on a slip of paper and putting it in a box. During each morning meeting, have students take turns sharing their own facts.

-They share facts about themselves as a response to questions or prompts (cards, visual elements, etc.). You can address those questions or invite them to ask each other.

-Sitting in circles, they discuss their opinions in pairs about the day’s topics which can be related to the day’s theme, and current events (what you have learned recently, your goal this week, exam preparation, etc.).

-Students share best-learned lessons from stories, reading, movies, life, etc.

-For more advanced levels, you can invite students to share effective learning strategies, study tips, and pieces of advice and reward the best ones.

Group activity ideas for Morning Meeting

A review game

Ask a question to review learned materials. Students think about the answer. The ball is tossed around, and the one who holds it has to answer the question. If a wrong answer is provided, the ball is tossed again until you say stop.

The Treasure Hunt game

In this game, students in groups follow a series of clues related to upcoming material; these are hidden around the classroom and they need to collaborate to solve them.

Community project

Students work together on a project that benefits the local community. The project could include activities such as organizing a community clean-up, creating awareness campaigns, or collaborating with local organizations.

Classroom Gallery

Students set up a classroom gallery to showcase all the wonderful things they have done together during morning meetings. They update their gallery displays monthly.

For more ideas to incorporate into your group activity, check out this post:14 Ideas to Build a Positive Classroom Community.

The morning message ideas for Morning Meeting

-Highlight upcoming events, projects, or achievements within the class.

-Share an inspirational or thought-provoking quote to spark discussion or reflection.

-Tell a joke to start the day with smiles.

-Address a thought-provoking question or challenge to foster critical thinking and creativity.

-Invite students to share something they’re grateful for.

-Introduce a new vocabulary word, show how it is used, and encourage students to use it throughout the day.

-Share an interesting fact related to the subject being studied.

-Incorporate a brief mindfulness or relaxation activity to help students focus on learning.

-Encourage students to set small goals for the day or week.

-Suggest a book for students to read in relation to current lessons or themes.

-Share a snippet of uplifting or calming music to create a positive atmosphere.

To conclude, Morning Meeting is not a waste of instructional time. Instead, this strategy can be a powerful tool to maximize it. Besides, if you incorporate meaningful elements into these morning gatherings, you will create an environment that not only enhances social and emotional well-being but also lays the foundation for effective and focused learning throughout the day. So, Morning Meeting is worth the effort.

References

Allen-Hughes, L. (2013). The social benefits of the morning meeting: creating a space for social and character education in the classroom. (Master’s Thesis). Dominican University of California, San Rafael, California.

Grant, K., & Davis, B. H. (2012). Gathering around. Kappa Delta Pi Record, 48(3), 129-133. doi: 10.1080/00228958.2012.707505.

Kagan, M., Robertson, L., & Kagan, S. (1995). Cooperative learning structures for class building. San Juan Capistrano, CA: Kagan Cooperative Learning.

Kriete, R., & Bechtel, L. (2002). The morning meeting book. Greenfield, MA: Northeast Foundation for Children.