This is a year for a lot of firsts for me and one of them is Morning Meeting. I began Morning Meeting 4 weeks ago now on the first day of school. Students and I discussed the rules and procedures, the agenda for the day, shared our summer stories, and shared our passions. Within the next few weeks, during morning meeting, I introduced a few ways to tell our classmates good morning using different handshakes, and on Fridays students watch the "Week in Rap" on Flocabulary.
However, Morning Meeting is going to take a different approach for the next 36 weeks. Students will be introduced to a Character Trait from Character Education. Character Education is a resource that incorporates vital character principles into academic activities. These lessons fit perfectly into my 15 minute Morning Meeting Session. Each lesson will challenge students to think about good character and encourage them to practice it daily. The best part about the program is that it incorporates the following academic skills: brainstorming, organizing, communication, problem-solving, high order thinking, analyzing information, summarization and evaluation, compare and contrast, mathematical applications and listening and speaking.
So, beginning next week students will learn about Acceptance. Acceptance means respecting the differences among people. I am going to begin the lesson by showing this video I found on SchoolTube. Then students will turn and talk with a partner discussing the actions of the characters in the short clip. Then students and I will brainstorm using a Circle Map the many nationalities we have in our room and ones we know of. I also am going to search for a Welcome mat to put by my door to show that everyone is accepted into our room. Room 3 Shines!
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