This week's topic for Monday Motivation hosted by Jen at Teacher at the Beach is morning routines.
Our first bell rings at 8:21, and my third graders come in from their outside line-up spot at about 8:25. I do greet them at my classroom door - I believe having a happy face meeting them in the morning can set the tone for the day.
Once they are in the room, they mark their lunch choice for the day, note any reminders I have posted on the Smart Board and.........................read.
That's it.
I don't plan any morning work. The students just pull out a favorite book and read for about 20 minutes. They don't have to log the time, they don't have to use a post-it for a reflection, they don't have to record a response in a journal,
they - just - read.
Students can also work on a writing project if they'd like to do that, too.
I love it, and I think they do too.
During this time I am taking attendance, checking assignment notebooks, and if needed, pulling students aside to review something from the previous day.
In the photo below you can see the assignment notebooks that we use.
Students bring a 3-ring binder at the beginning of the year, and we put their school-issued assignment notebook inside. Parents initial it each night (well, most of them do), and I check and initial each morning.
Also, I create a weekly update of events and learning for students to slide into the clear pocket on the cover of their 3-ring binders.
Usually one day of the week I ask students to review multiplication and division facts with flashcards or sheets.
We switch classes for science and social studies at 8:45, so these options work well for the short time we have before switching.
Also, students do get more reading time during our workshop session later in the day.
What do you think about students having read-to-self time to start their day?
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