In this post from The Responsive Classroom, Carol Davis provides several ideas for making Morning Meeting more accessible for a diverse group of learners. She recommends, for instance, that teachers take time to teach the structure before jumping right into using it. She also suggests teaching routines to ensure that the structure is not too overwhelming for young students. Both of these ideas are sure to help students who struggle with novelty and benefit from learning things in chunks instead of in “whole bites”!
Morning meeting is such a flexible structure, so keep in mind all of the ways you might bend or expand it to make it more welcoming for your students. Do you want to add a daily announcement so that a student with autism can use his new communication device to share that message? Do you need to introduce some alternative seating choices so that all students feel comfortable? Are you considering giving students more leadership so some can be challenged in new ways? Experiment until Morning Meeting works for you and for your students.
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