Why I Want to Be a Teacher...

Hi Bloggers..

Today, I was thinking about why I want to be a teacher. Of course I love children, the schedule of a teacher and having summers off. But my number one reason is that I want to make a difference in as many lives as I possibly can. This includes fellow co-workers, parents and most importantly the students. Every child deserves to be appreciated, praised and listened too. Some children will not receive this from home but I want to provide a place where they can feel safe and comfortable enough to share their feelings and emotions. I found this quote online that sums up what being a teacher really means..

"Teaching is not for the faint of heart because a teacher can literally go through the whole spectrum of emotions in an entire day. Kids do not just drop their personal lives at the classroom door and become consumers of knowledge. Even with their own emotions and those of 25+ students, a teacher has to put the needs of the students first. I may need more support in my classroom, or be upset that I cannot attend a particular technology conference, or dealing with personal relationship issues, but that all needs to be put aside for the good of those precious students."

http://timothyscholze.wordpress.com/2013/05/06/for-the-love-of-teaching-what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-teacher/

This little excerpt that I found is very powerful. Putting students first is the most important thing that you can do for a child. Children don't know how to deal with emotions like adults do, they express themselves differently and as a teacher I need to be ready everyday to put all their needs before mine. I want every single student to feel successful, loved, confident, and happiness every single day at school.

I wanted to pick one quote to finish this blog but there were so many that stood out to me... These are just a few that I loved. 

This is why I want to be a teacher. I know I CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!! 

Till next time.. :) 

Differentiating in Math Class

Hi Blogger Friends, 

In my last post I talked about how you could differentiate in science class, but today we are going to talk about how you can differentiate in math class. I found an article online that gave some really good strategies to remember when differentiating in math. A few of those ideas are.. 

• At the beginning of the year, review student records, examining standardized test scores and previous mathematics grades to help you understand the level of each student.
• Before beginning, give students a learning style inventory to determine which strategies will work best for each student.
• Throughout the year, give students interest inventories to determine real-world situations that interest them. For example, are students more interested in sports statistics or architecture? Use these topics to help you design assignments and projects.
• Before you begin a topic, chapter, or unit, give the students a pre-test to assess their knowledge and skill level for the content. To write the pre-test, make a list of the objectives you want your students to accomplish and write items to measure each objective.
• Keep a file folder for each student with pertinent information you have compiled.
• Have computers and/or a variety of resource books available to facilitate student-directed research.
• For projects or activities, group students according to ability or interest. For example, during a unit on percent, several students may be interested in population growth.
• Ask the special education department about resources that are available. For example, will an aide be provided to assist you with these students? Are one-on-one tutors available?
• Have older students act as aides or tutors during class to help students with special needs if your school allows.
• Group ESL students with students who may have some knowledge of their language. In small mixed language groups, have ESL students share basic terms in their language with English-speaking students.
• Don't forget the gifted student. Find projects or activities that will challenge these students

I want my students to love math and be able to do it and be confident while completing the task. These are a few ways that I can help my students with their learning process. 

Till next time.. 

Differentiation in Science Class

Hi Bloggers, 

It is important to know how to differentiate in all settings of the classroom. I found a really great article online about how to differentiate in the science classroom. There are many things that you can differentiate in science. Some things that I feel could be especially applicable to science are..

1. Develop learning stations. Create areas in the classroom for independent or small-group investigation of a scientific principle or process. Provide necessary materials and resources at each location. The topic at each station should relate to a major theme of study. Tasks should emphasize thinking skills and should force students to actively solve problems. Move among students as they work, asking questions and cementing understanding.

2.Utilize complex instruction. Design an open-ended task related to a current topic of study. Have students work in small groups to complete the assignment. As students are working, move among groups asking questions that extend thinking and stimulate concept development. Design groups based on ability, interest, learning preference, or other factors.

These are just a few options that you can use when differentiating for science. With proper planning, science teachers can provide multiple options for students to acquire information, comprehend concepts, and demonstrate what they have learned.

Till next time...

Creating Community Through Morning Meetings

Hey Bloggers, 

Creating a classroom community is one thing that I feel very strongly about so I made the decision to write 

yet another blog post about community. A few posts ago I talked about music and how it can create a 

positive classroom environment. Today, I want to focus on Morning Meetings and how it can create a 

positive impact in the classroom. 

Morning meetings are an excellent tool for building a community. I believe that students are more likely to share if they feel safe and welcome in any given environment. Morning meetings can provide a way for those students to gain a sense of courage to speak to the rest of the class. In morning meetings there is no negativity, judgment or mean words said to one another. This is the only time of the day where students are required to speak kindly and positively about themselves and others. I truly believe that if you instill these qualities in children that it will start to become a habit and students will eventually forget the negative or mean thoughts that they once had about themselves and other and replace them with uplifting positive thoughts. Another reason that I feel morning meeting is a wonderful tool to build community is because each morning every single student will be greeted with a smile. I believe that this can make or break a student’s attitude for the upcoming day. Moring meetings provide a place a support, encouragement and comfort throughout the entire day for every student.

Check out this video to see more about how classroom community can be established through morning meetings!

Till Next Time! 

Differentiation in Action!!

Hi Friends,

So for this post I wanted to catch you all up on my awesome field experience. I had the best time in 2nd grade and I was able to actually see a few things that were very interesting. First, was that I was able to go into another classroom and participate in a Morning Meeting with some 5th graders. It was so cool!! I loved it. I am so glad that I was able to see a Morning Meeting in real life. It was so nice to actually see it and not just hear about it and watch various YouTube videos. I loved it! The top three reasons why I loved it were because every single student was involved and you could tell that they all felt successful. Next, is that the 5th grade teacher had fun saying for everyday of the week. For example, on Friday it was "Funny Friday" and the students were able to turn in little slips of paper with funny videos that they found online. On Friday she would show one of the videos and all the kids loved it. They thought it was so great. Lastly, you could feel the community in this classroom. It was fantastic. I am going to do Morning Meeting in my classroom and I couldn't be more excited!

My cooperating teacher had a really strong grasp on differentiation. She was able to differentiate most of her lessons for all of her learners. I saw it most in math, guided reading, and re-teach/enrich. I know, you are probably thinking what is re-teach/enrich? Well it is probably the greatest thing that a school can do! Every student is placed in a group and for 30 minutes they go to another classroom where the lessons are designed specifically for their group. For re-teach, they cover things in math that the students may have not grasped onto the concept yet. For enrich, students are provided with activities that extend and expand their learning. This is how the whole school differentiates for students specific needs. I was very impressed with this program. I feel that every school needs to do something like this to help all students to be more successful. This program helped to differentiate for readiness and interest. It was a wonderful program!

Overall, my experience in field was full of learning experiences that I needed to have in order to be more prepared for my internship next year! My favorite part was watching differentiation in action!

I found this picture that pretty much sums up what differentiation means to me! 

Till next time, 

Creating a Community through Music

Hey Blogger World!

Today, I have been thinking a lot about how to build a classroom community and what ways I can incorporate the things that I love into my teaching. One thing that I am very passionate about is music. I love music, every part of music fascinates me. I have been playing the piano since I was about 8, singing in a choir since about 9 and I picked up the guitar when I was a teenager. Music is my passion and I want to create a community that revolves around it.

 Music is timeless. It can connect people from different countries, ethnicities, and even break language barriers that you may be having in your classroom with English Language Learners. Music makes everyone feel better and almost everyone can connect to a piece of music in some way. Sometimes it can be the beat, tone, pace, or melodious notes of music that we connect to or it can simply be the words just make us feel happy. In my classroom I would use a choir as a metaphor for success and support because in a choir every single person’s voice is heard to create something fantastic and a classroom can be seen in the same way. Every student is important and loved by their fellow peers, teachers, staff and parents and they need to know that. Overall, music can build a community because every single student has a part in making the song sound beautiful. The parts can be as simple as boys and girls, or I could even split the class into the four parts of soprano, alto, tenor and base. Anyway that I decide to do it for my classroom it still means that every child has a part that they have to know in order to create something wonderful. I would tell the students that everyone’s voice counts equally. I think this would help build community because by sharing music together I can help foster connections between students that may have not been there otherwise. Each child needs to know that their voice can be heard! 

Check out these YouTube video about how music can create a community! 

PS 22 Choir's Story

PS 22 Choir ROAR

Till next time, 

Simple Hard Truths about Teaching

Hey Bloggers! 

There is no one size fits all when it comes to the classroom. According to James Stronge he defines effectiveness as creating a positive effect on student achievement as well as other important outcomes that have positive and lasting effects on the lives of students. There are a few things that Stronge's research tells us about differentiation. 

First I want to talk about what the students want. They consistently want teachers who respect them, listen to them, show empathy toward them, help them work out their problems, and become humans by sharing their own ideas and lives with them. Students also want teachers who create a warm and supportive classroom environment. 

Second is to be an effective teacher you have to develop awareness of students's cultures out side of schools, spend a great deal of time working and interacting with students and have high levels of motivation. There are also so many other ways to be an effective teacher and differentiate so that all students can succeed. 

So why do teachers think that it is so hard to differentiate? Well one of the keys is that effective differentiated teaching is just RESPONSIVE TEACHING!! There is no formula for excellent teaching, we cannot buy a book about it or take a course that shows us the answers. Although, there are ideas that help teachers to become a responsive teacher. It takes time, knowledge, and dedication to become a differentiated and responsive teacher! 

Till next time... 

How to Respond to Students Different Needs!

Hey there Bloggers! 

Responding to every child's different needs can be a lot of work, but it is very important to remember that that no child has the same learning needs. One thing that I need to remember is all the differentiated work needs to be respectful and engaging work for all students. Some ways that you can provide differentiated work for students in the following ways.. 

• Incorporating complex instruction that are at a high level.
• Using a variety of rubrics to guide quality, not every student should be graded the same for their work. 
• Provide learning contracts that allow teachers to focus students on work necessary for their own development and growth. 
• Aim high because we often underestimate our students abilities.
• Take a "No Excuses" Stance by accepting no excuses for work that is undone or incomplete. 
• Help students to realize that success comes from the result of effort and hard work. The most successful students understand that their results and success come from their own hard work. 
• Establish a peer network that will use a Think-Pair-Share strategies because they promote learning. 

There are many things that come along with responding to students needs. The most important thing to remember about teaching is that THERE IS NOT A ONE SIZE FITS ALL!!! 

Till next time... 

A Vehicle for Students

Hey Bloggers,

For the next three weeks I have the opportunity to be in a second grade class for school. Today was the first day and so far I love it! My cooperating teacher happened to be telling me about how important curriculum is and even showed me a curriculum map that the second grade team designed. A vehicle for students? What does this even mean? Well it is a vehicle for addressing students needs based on curriculum and instruction. As I started reading tonight, I found that the next chapter was about curriculum and instruction. In the classrooms, we run our students like a hamster in a wheel going through the curriculum to try and get everything taught in one day! One way that we can find a way to make sure to get everything taught are..

IMPORTANT-What we study balances knowledge, understanding, and skill

FOCUSED- Whatever we do is unambiguously aligned with the essential learning goals.

ENGAGING- Students most often find meaning in their work and provokes their curiosity.

DEMANDING- The work is often a bit beyond the reach of the learner.

SCAFFOLD- The teacher teaches for success, use modeling, organizers, and other strategies to point out success.

By providing all these things in our curriculum we can use these tools as a vehicle for student success with the curriculum. By providing curriculum and instruction that is important, focused, engaging, demanding, and provides a way to scaffold will give the opportunity to establish an environment that is crafted on relationships and procedures that will maximize the likelihood of success. We need to expect great things from our learners! We need to see a more that one size fits all solution for students. Every child has needs that require differentiation to every child to succeed!

Till next time!

Classroom Routines for Flexible Teaching!!

Hey there Blogger Friends, 

Lets talk about routines, not dance or gymnastics or ice skating routines. This is even better. CLASSROOM ROUTINES. And to add the cherry on top of that.. FLEXIBLE classroom routines. Having routines is great especially if you can reach out to the various learning needs of each child. This is where the flexibility comes in. In order to have flexibility in your routines you have to help your students develop a sense of autonomy with the regular classroom routines so where there is a change in the day they know how to react and are able to stay on task. We need to strive to teach our students to do things for themselves because as teachers we become skilled at "doing things for them". Some ways that I have found very helpful and that I am going to try to implement in my classroom are.. 

• Use visual cues- Have signs posted around the classroom so that the students know what they are doing and where they are supposed to be. You can also incorporate signs like holding up a fist so students know when to stop and listen or to transition. 
• Pre-Established Groups- This is where differentiation comes into play. Tell the students which group they are going to be in so that way there is no fighting about where they are going to be. Make sure that you are constantly switching up the groups so that the students don't fell neglected or stuck with the same partners all year long.
• Use Goal Cards- These are when students are working individually or in small groups and then they can write their goals down or steps that will help them to complete the activity. 
• Teach for Smooth Transitions- There is going to be a process for everything in the classroom so why not teach those transitions and processes to be smooth? Have the students practice these so that they know what is expected of them. Give them feedback every time so that they know how they are doing with their transitions! 

By having these flexible routines you will be able to have a classroom that is connected, self-sufficient, and differentiated to the best of your ability for the hallmark flexible use of time, space and materials. The key thing to remember is to plan ahead for flexibility. It's hard to think of on the spot so be prepared. I know that in my classroom I will do my best to be flexible in all my procedures and keep in mind the different needs of all the learners in my class!

Till Next Time... 

Fostering Classroom Communication

Hey Bloggers, 

So, I got an internship! Woohoo! As I was thinking about how I wanted next fall to play out a thought came to my mind about how to communicate effectively and properly with my students so they feel comfortable and successful in my classroom... So I decided to blog about it. 

Communication is an early and fundamental decision that needs to be made before the school year begins. There is a broad array of how you can have effective communication in the classroom. Some of the ways that I found are to... 

• Build a group identity
• Ensure that the teacher has ways of getting to know each student better
• Enable the teacher to share their own thoughts about teaching
• Provide a shorthand for quick communication among members of the classroom. 

One way that I have decided to foster communication is to have morning meeting in my classroom everyday. This is one way that all students will feel 100% successful and be able to share their thoughts and concerns. I will also have a mailbox where students can leave me notes about anything they want to talk about. This way I will be able to respond to them thoughtfully and on my own time without having to interrupt class. Another way that I found in the book that I really liked is hold goal setting conferences with the students. These are when the student and teacher meet to talk about their progress and they examine some of the students work, their strengths and their weaknesses. Another way to establish good communication is to use Dialogue Journals. These are designed solely for the purpose of allowing students and teachers to communicate and talk in ways that are not possible during class. The entries can be about anything they want and then they turn it into the teacher and she writes back to them by showing interest in their writing. I really love this idea. I think that it would really help students who need someone to talk to. Sometimes writing things down is a lot easier for kids than talking about it. 

I want to be able to have the type of relationship that student will be remember for a life time. 

Till next time, 

A Differentiated Classroom Environment

Hey Fellow Bloggers, 

Today we are going to have chat about Classroom Environment.. Okay? Ready, set, go! 

Classroom Environment includes both physical and effective attributes that individually and cumulatively establish a learning atmosphere that is positive and welcoming to all. It is a place where you can feel that learning an teaching can take place! A few attributes of a great classroom environment are.. 

WALLS- Decorate the walls of the rooms with bulletin boards and other things that showcase the work of all the students from your different learning groups. Each child should get the opportunity to show their work no matter what level they are on. This is showcasing the hallmark of respectful work for all students! 

FURNITURE ARRANGEMENT- This is something that is so small yet so crucial for a good classroom environment. The arrangement can speak volumes about a classroom, it represents the presence of interests, learning needs, talents and materials for various activities.  It is important to remember that when making your differentiation groups for the different subjects to have a place for all the students to go so they can work together and scaffold each other in order to learn more and expand their knowledge!

THE TEACHER IS THE ARCHITECT-The teacher invites the sense of learning into the classroom by how they speak to their students, their excitement level about subjects, by showing equal respect to all students, and by having humor that is positive and energizing. 

By remembering these three things, any teacher can create a great classroom environment. It is important to remember that you need to do what works for you and your students. If something isn't working, then change it! The environment of a classroom communicates loudly to your students, their parents, and the administration. It tells others of your personal affirmation, potential for individual contribution, purposefulness, and also a high challenge. I know that in my classroom I want to create an environment where all children feel comfortable to do their best and be themselves no matter what level of learning they may be on compared to the class. 

Till next time.. 

The Teachers Response

Hey Fancy Bloggers!

So, have you ever thought about how to respond to students needs effectively? Well I know I have. Being a "almost new" teacher I think about it all the time. I want my students in my class to feel like I am responding to all their needs. A few ways that I have found from researching and reading are the following..
Invitation:When you are invited to do something you are more inclined to want to participate in it. This is the same for children. As a teacher it is very important to invite each child to learn and grow through out the school year. This invitation needs to happen when the students first enter the learning environment. You want your students to feel like you have time for them and that you believe in them wholeheartedly.
Opportunity: Think back to when you were in elementary school. Was there a time when your teacher wasn't giving you all the opportunities possible to develop your skills? I know I had a few that gave me all the opportunities possible. One that comes to mind is my 4th grade teacher. She was a wonderful example of opportunity. She not only provided all of us with individual tasks based on our levels but she also provided each of us with the opportunity to serve the community, be apart of something great and gave us the opportunity to make new friends by building a classroom environment where we felt safe. She also challenged us so that we would push ourselves to become better. One attitude to remember when thinking about how to provide opportunity to your students is by saying to them that you have important things for them to do today and that the things that I ask you to do will open up possibilities for your future.
Investment:Being a teacher is a huge time commitment. You want all your students to know that you work hard to make all this work and that you love to find new pathways to success for each individual student. Being invested means that you will immerse yourself into the classroom in every way that you can. Invested teachers are often the ones that share their thoughts about the classroom with the students and also whose classroom has students in it before school, during lunch, and after school just because they LOVE to be there. Be invested!
Persistence: When I think of a teacher, the first adjective that pops into my head is hard working. Classrooms can get messy, busy, and imperfect. There are procedures that are set in place to help everything work smoothly but sometimes it just doesn't work out the way you want it too. This is when you just have to pull your boot straps up and move on to bigger and better things. Being persistent means that when one route doesn't work, there are others that you can find. Also that there is no finish line in learning! Show your students that you genuinely believe in the possibilities that are there for each of them and you will not give up or be discouraged. You want them all to succeed no matter what it takes!
Reflection: This could easily be the most important part of being a teacher. I have heard from numerous professors at UVU that this is crucial to being a great teacher. The reflective teacher not only questions daily practices but reflects on things like: "To what degree am I being an example of the kind of learner and person I ask my students to be?" or "Am I aiming for the norm for my students or for the best each child has to offer?" By asking yourself these questions it will reflect to your students that you try to see things through their eyes and that you watch and listen very carefully and systematically. One easy way to reflect is to ask yourself "How can I do this better?"

By combining all of these different responses, I really do feel that you can become a great teacher. All of these things show your students that you really do care about them and that you know that they can succeed if you and them put the best foot forward and strive to achieve the highest potential. In my classroom, I am going to focus on all of these elements in order to become a responsive teacher to all my students individual and different needs that they may have!

                                     

Well, till next time! 

Morning Meeting Ideas!

Hey fellow bloggers,

So I know that I have already once talked about Morning Meetings and how beneficial they are, but while doing some research for our class Morning Meeting assignment I found some FANTASTIC ideas that I thought were really great so I thought I would share! These ideas are for the what I feel are the hardest part of morning meeting.. The Themes, Greetings, Class Game, and Sharing time!

First lets start with the THEMES:
Morning Meetings can ALWAYS relate to the core subjects of math, science, reading, and social studies but sometimes it is just pure fun to mix it up a little with things that are interesting to the students. Some ideas that I thought were fun and different were..

• The Wizard Of Oz (My Personal Favorite) This can be used to teach Fairy Tales. Best part about this one is that you can combine it with reading and math throughout the week!
• The Wizard of Oz
• The Wizard of Oz (Part 2)

            

• How to Be a Peace-Maker. This is great for the first weeks of school. I think it would really help students to learn how to work together all year!
• PeaceMaker

• You can also find things for all the holidays! Pinterest is a great Go-To place for holiday activities for.. 
• Valentines
• Thanksgiving
• Christmas
• Presidents Day
• Martin Luther King Day

Next lets Talk about GREETINGS:

This site has some wonderful greetings. My favorite Hit the floor! It goes like this..

Everyone stands in a circle and chants,

“1-2-3-4!

Come on, __________, and hit the floor!

We’re so glad you’re here today,

Hooray, hooray, hooray!”

Once a student’s name is called, he/she jumps out into the middle of the circle and dances during the end of the chant
Check out the link for more fun greetings!

Greetings

Now onto Class Games:

Now, onto the next hardest part.. coming up with a game or activity that the whole class can participate in.. 

                                                                The Toss and Talk Ball 

Pass the mask
Students sit in a circle.The first student makes a face and passes that face to the next
student. That student them imitates the face and then changes that face. The changed 
face is passed on to the next student. Each me a face is passed the face is imitated
then changed

Next is the Sharing Time:
Sharing time can be hard for kids because they will want to make it a time where they vent, you have to keep the atmosphere positive. Some ways you can do this is by asking good prompts. Some ideas for these are.. 

                                                                    30 Jar Questions

I Wonder Questions

You can also do a lightning share about.. 
Favorite colors
Favorite sport
One quality about themselves that they like
or one quality that makes a good friend

Well I hope you all enjoyed my post and can find a way to incorporate all these great ideas that I found online. I know that by using engaging things in the classroom during Morning Meeting everyone in the class will have a better and happier day!

Till next time!

What do Students Seek?

There are many things that students seek for when it comes to DIFFERENTIATION. The most BASIC need of every child is that they feel safe and a feel a sense of belonging. By helping a child feel safe they will be more willing to learn. WHAT ELSE DO STUDENTS NEED? Well there are 5 simple things that you as a teacher can think about to help each student to be successful in your classroom...

AFFIRMATION. What is affirmation you ask? Well, you want all the students to be able to say to themselves "I am safe here as I am" and "People believe in me here" 

CONTRIBUTION. Have you ever felt like you don't bring anything new or unique? I think everyone feels this way at some point in their life, but we do not want our students to feel this way at school. We want them to say to themselves "I make a difference in this place" and "I help others and the class as a whole succeed"

POWER. Gaining a sense of power is something that has to do with growing up. For example, if you look at a toddler they gain that sense of power and dominance over their own little world when they make it all the way across the kitchen floor. We want our students to have this same sense of empowerment. We want them to say that "What I am learning now will be useful to me" and "I can make my own choices that will contribute to my success."

PURPOSE. Why do we want our students to feel like they have a purpose in our classroom? Well the answer is simple, just like us adults students do not want to do busy work. They see it as a waste of their time. We want our students to say "What we do here reflects me and my world" and "What we do here helps me to make meaning of the subject, my world, and the wider world"

CHALLENGE. There is something about taking a risk to attain a goal that is appealing to humans. We love to reach and discover things that are just outside our grasp. As teachers, we need to make sure to make challenges to students that are personal so they WANT to reach as far as they possibly can. We want our students to say to themselves "The work here complements my abilities" and "I often accomplish things here I didn't believe were possible."

Effective differentiation begins with awareness and understanding of basic student needs. Teaching is about building lives. To be an effective teacher using differentiation you have to know your students a make EVERY SINGLE ONE of them feel comfortable. I know that when I am a teacher I am going to do my best to have all my students feel this way about my classroom. 

                                    

Morning Meeting--The most influential 30 minutes of the day.

Morning Meeting!! 

Soo.. What is Morning Meeting you ask? Well let me tell you. Morning Meeting is something that I consider to be something that is very important in a classroom. It has many beneficial factors that I would love to tell you about! First off, Morning Meeting builds a classroom community. Morning meeting is also an opportunity to get to know each other. Among these two fantastic benefits you can also add less behavioral problems, students will know the schedule, acceptance of all children, empowering, and mostly importantly 100% OF STUDENTS FEEL SUCCESSFUL!! 

             

There are some components to Morning Meeting that I feel are extremely important to include... 

Class Creed- This is what you say everyday. Every single day. Talk about it so the students know what they are saying. 

Greeting- Every single child deserves to be said hello to. EVERY DAY!! 

Pledge- We live in a beautiful country. We need to teach our students that we need to be very grateful for the country that we have the OPPORTUNITY to live in. 

Memorization- Don't make this something that is hard or that is graded. Let each child know that you will not go on with out them. Everyone can go on their own pace and work together to succeed. 

Class Buisness- During this section you set goals, talk about the things that are good for you (vegetables). things that the students did well, praise them for their accomplishments (desserts). Lastly, things that need to be addressed like behavioral problems (medicine). 

Two Literacy Terms-Do this everyday this is a great OPPORTUNITY to teach students in a setting where they feel COMFORTABLE AND SUCCESSFUL.

One Quote-This can be funny, insightful, encouraging, or anything you want it to be! 

News or Current Event-The world is constantly changing around us. We need to keep students up to date with what is going on. Keep students aware of their surroundings. 

Sharing-This helps students to feel like everyone is there for them. Help all students to feel comfortable to share. One thing to remember is that this is NOT A THERAPY SESSION. Help students to share the positive, uplifting ideas that they have. 

I feel that Morning Meeting is a crucial thing for students. In class we had the opportunity to listen to a guest speaker named Sylvia Anderson. She has been doing morning meeting since she started teaching and has seen many benefits from it. My favorite story she shared was about a parent who called her principal and said my child is doing things at home that they have never done before like doing the dishes and making their bed with out being asked.. What is happening at school to make my child act this way? So the principal went to her and she responded with Morning Meeting. 

I want to implement Morning Meeting in my classroom so that I am able to make all my students feel 100% successful in school even if it is only for 30 minutes of the day.