the morning routine

Starting at Open House, I shared with the children our morning routine - sign in, put things away in your cubby, wash your hands, and sit at a table with books. The Kindergarteners have become incredibly independent with our morning routine and their is academic learning connected to all parts of this brief 15 minutes. 

Children are reading their name and the names of their peers when they sign in each morning. Children are noticing what letters are the same and what letters are different in their comparison of names. Children are commenting on the length of names, answering the math question, how many letters? 

Children are taking care of their needs independently. They hang their backpacks and jackets on the hook in their cubby and they put their own indoor shoes on. On Thursday morning, I asked children to check their cubby space, ensuring that they take care of our cubbies in the same way we take care of our classroom materials and environment.

At the tables, children are talking about the illustrations in the books, they are pointing, noticing, and questioning. They are laughing. I remind them that this is a time to also check in with the peers at their table, ask a friend how their night was, or share a hope for the day. When I notice children making unsafe choices with the books at their table, we have a quick community meeting on the rug. We talk about how we hold books, how we care for books, and model what this looks like. These conversations are rich with learning, too. We talk about the front cover, the back cover, the title page and how we always open and read a book left to right. 

This year, we have middle school TA's volunteering in our classroom from 8:00 - 8:45 each morning. Cindy, Sandy, and I have been able to check in with these students, inviting them to lower their bodies to the level of the children, to listen, to read, and to talk with them. Cindy and Sandy both know many of these students, as Cindy may have been their Kindergarten teacher and Sandy has worked with all of them! I see this as an incredible opportunity to make connections across classrooms and to begin building a feeling of whole school community. 

When the early morning routine feels successful and children are able to connect with their books and peers on their own, I find this to be one of the most special parts in our day. The children feel fresh and ready to learn, I have the opportunity to read alongside students, to listen to their 'book talk' or to listen to their stories about their night at home. It is a time to make connections, it is a time to settle and begin our day together.