Scenario:

How do you start your school day? Do you have a meeting? What opportunities do your students have to talk, share, ask questions and thank others?

 Try This: 

Here’s a meeting format to try in your classroom that is more than ‘show and tell’. This meeting format provides ways for your students to communicate, build relationships and demonstrate leadership in a relaxed and purposeful atmosphere.

 

TWAF – Morning Meeting Routine   TWAF – Morning Meeting Routine

  1. The Attendance Role 

 2.  What’s On Today: A quick run through of what will be happening during the day. (Consider having the information  written up on your white board). 

  3. Cares, Concerns and Celebrations Time (CCC’S)

Note – The Care, Concern, or Celebration must be short and specific.

*One turn only to share one of the 3 CCC’s.

•  Cares: Something you care about or you have done something to show you care.
• Concerns: A worry or problem you may have that you are willing to share with others and ‘get it out of your head’. You may have heard about something happening in the community that you are concerned about.
• Celebrations: Special events you have attended, special occasions you are celebrating, awards you may have received.

4. Teacher Messages: Reminders, information, feedback, expectations. Keep it short and specific, great time to provide feedback from the previous day or other outcomes from specific sessions.

5. Student Messages: Any messages you would like to pass onto the class. Students decide what is important and worthwhile. It could be reminders, information and feedback.

7. Question Time: Any questions re the days activities and organisation plus any other general questions.

6.  Thank You Time:

• Open to anyone who wishes to thank someone. It can be someone in the class, family or others. You are publicly acknowledging your appreciation.
• One ‘thank you’ only from anyone who is a participating.
• Teacher to provide a thank you also.

Click here to download a pdf copy of the TWAF – Morning Meeting Routine

Ideas:

• The TWAF – Morning Meeting Routine provides options for Hands Down Wins i.e. alternatives to students putting up their hands to respond.

Two ways for students to contribute without hands up during the meeting.

1. The Ripple Effect.
2. Use your hands to make a small sign to show you have a contribution.

e.g. a ‘c’ for CCC’s, a T for Thank You Time, a Q for questions, an M for messages.

• Once you have established the TWAF – Morning Meeting Routine routine nominate one or two students to take on the role of chairperson for each meeting. Note: Students need to provide appropriate responses as each person contributes.
• The TWAF – Morning Meeting Routine can be held everyday or on nominated days – what ever suits your classroom routine best.
• Download a Morning Meeting Format Card for students to use as they conduct the meeting.

Outcomes:

Feedback from Year 2 students:

What’s on Today: You get to know what to expect for the day.

Cares: When you share a care it makes everyone know that you care about the world and what happens.

Concerns: It makes students feel ‘braver’ when they talk about their concerns.

Celebrations: It makes you feel proud and others get to hear about your adventures.

Thank you Time: When you give a thank you it makes the person appreciate what you feel.

Question Time: If you are not sure about something or what is going on you can ask and check.

Teachers Messages: It gives you some feedback or information you might need!

Feedback from a Year 4 Teacher:

I learnt so much about my students since starting the meetings. If we don’t have time first thing in the morning due to specialists my students ask if we can have the meeting later in the day. It means that much to them. 

A Story:

While working in a Year 4 class introducing the TWAF – Morning Meeting Routine it was time for Cares, Concerns and Celebrations (CCC’s). A student made a small ‘c’ with their hand to indicate they had a CCC to share.

I have a concern. Would it be ok if I talked to my teacher privately later on about what is worrying me? 

The student met later with their teacher to discuss the problem. Without the Morning Meeting providing a forum to bring a concern out in the open, the problem may not have been shared. The student showed great courage in front of their peers to state they had a problem.

Try a Morning Meeting with your students and build relationships, learn more about their lives after school, share their celebrations and be ready for appreciation via thank you time.

One More Idea:

Here’s a  great way to start the day with every student.  As each student comes in to the classroom in the morning they either:

1. Call out ‘good morning’ to you and you respond.

2. Put away their bag, come to find you and say good morning and you respond.

You will need to tell the students that this is expected every day. Remind them during the Morning Meeting (Teacher’s Messages Time) and thank those who did remember (Thank you Time).

Why?

Having the students say good morning to you first puts the onus on them to make an effort and be in control of the first greeting of the day. It’s such a highlight when a student bounds in and calls out good morning to you or even enters calmly and quietly and calls out the greeting, or comes over to greet you. It will give you such a lift first thing in the morning.

Your responses might include: a return greeting, a question, a compliment – it’s a great time to compliment them on something positive they have done the day before or continue to do everyday. Gives them a boost first thing in the morning.

Gosh you make me feel great when you come over to greet me.

Thanks for the effort you put in yesterday during maths. I noticed how you gave your friend some tips too. 

How’s the family?

This small idea will contribute to the positive relationships you build every day with your students and make you and your students feel great!