>>Karen: Good morning, Dianelys. >>Dianelys: Good morning, Karen. Good morning, Angell. >>Angel: Good morning, Dianelys. >>Valerie Gallagher: I think
before any learning can take place, the students really need to feel
safe, feel like they're seen, and feel like they're cared about. The impact I see from morning meeting
is that classes are true communities. We're learning from each other's
strengths, we're helping each other. It's a foundation for
everything that comes after. >>Students: Good morning, Ms. Gallagher. >>Valerie Gallagher: Morning
meetings are a really important part of the responsive classroom model, which we use here throughout
Highlander Charter School. It's a chance for the students to make
that transition from home to school. It's a way for everyone to settle in and
feel that they're a part of a community. >>Monica: It puts me in
a focused and good mood. It makes me feel ready to learn. >>Dan Baldassi: So, welcome. I'm so excited to see you guys today. >>Dan Baldassi: Our morning
meeting lasts about fifteen minutes and we have four parts
that we do together. Each classroom might be a little
different the way the teacher runs it. We start with our greeting. The kids choose what their
greeting is for that day that helps them want to participate. >>Student: Good morning, Apple. >>Student: Good morning, Analise. >>Valerie Gallagher:
We make eye contact. We're having our ears, our eyes and
our brain on the person who's speaking. >>Student: Good morning, Benjamin. >>Jane Picciotti: "How
are you feeling today? Are you ready to learn?" If you're not ready to learn,
what can we do to get you there? >>Dianelys: After the
greeting, we do share. I like it when people share because
we get to know them a little better. >>Jamarie: There's like a
little board and whoever went, you have to check them off and you have
to say what you did on the weekend. >>Student: I went to the movie. >>Student: What was is in the movie? >>Student: When they died-- >>Valerie Gallagher: We've had
a lot of interesting issues come up through shares, whether it be
deaths in the family, politics and people feeling safe or
not safe because of that-- you know, things you might not normally
talk about in a first-grade classroom. Morning meeting gives you the space and
the time to have those conversations. >>Students: Today my
grandparents are coming. I'm ready for questions and comments. >>Valerie Gallagher: They
get to answer questions. "Somebody cares about me. All these hands are interested in me." >>Student: Didn't they come last time? >>Student: Yeah, but they had to go back because something happened
in their country. >>Marcella: Morning meeting
makes me feel calm and happy. My favorite part is the glitter jar. >>Dan Baldassi: We shake the glitter
jar, we put it in the middle. The kids have a moment to watch. >>Adrian: Mr. B puts the
timer on for a minute. We reflect on what we can do to
get yourself ready for the day. >>Monica: Today we got to think about
how you can be helpful to your friends. >>Dan Baldassi: So, is there
someone who would like to share? Chrisana. >>Chrisana: If somebody's sad, you can help them feel
better by playing with them. >>Dan Baldassi: Okay, I like that.
Nice job. Dianelys: After the
share, we get to do a game. >>Student: One, two-- Dianelys:
Someone counts without looking and people go into corners-- >>Student: -- nine, ten! Corner number three! >>Valerie Gallagher: Oh! >>Student: One, two-- >>Valerie Gallagher: It really gives
them a chance to get that last burst of energy out before
it's time for them to sit down to the serious business
of literacy. >>Student: Corner number one. >>Valerie Gallagher: Ooh! >>Valerie Gallagher: Then after
that I go over the agenda every day, knowing what's going to happen
next is really important to kids. >>Valerie Gallagher: After that is-- ? >>Students: PE! >>Valerie Gallagher: Then
we get to eat our-- ? >>Students: Lunch! >>Valerie Gallagher: Then
we're going to have some-- ? >>Students: Math power! >>Valerie Gallagher: So
that kind of sets the tone. We're here together, morning meeting. We know what's going on with everyone. We're ready to go. >>Dan Baldassi: So, I know fifteen
minutes can sometimes be a hard thing to try to put in your schedule,
but students in each classroom know that they're coming into safe places. This is a chance for them to
have voice in their classroom. >>Jane Picciotti: It's about respecting
each other, respecting your teacher. It's rooted in positive interactions. It definitely helps set our culture. >>Adrian: I think it wouldn't be
as easy to do the rest of the day. It helps me a lot.
