The teacher says, “What is something that makes you happy?” Go around the circle and have students share one at a time. Students can respond with “[blank] makes me happy.” Or “[blank] makes me happy because [blank].”

The teacher says, “Grateful is another word for thankful. What are you grateful for?” Call on students around the circle to share. 

Sentence Stem: “I’m grateful for [blank].”

Choose 3-5 emojis and display them for students to see. The teacher says, “What emoji describes how you’re feeling today?” Students can also show their emoji, point, or use words to share. 

Sentence Stem: “Today, I feel [blank].”

Display a “Mood Wheel" for the class to see. The teacher says, “Stand up if you are feeling [blank] today.” (choose a color/emotion from the wheel) Then ask the students who are standing “Would anyone like to share what is making them feel that way?”. Repeat this for the other colors/emotions on the wheel. 

Sentence Stem: “I feel [blank].”

The teacher says, “A strength is something that you are good at or can do well. What are some of your strengths?” Have students share with a partner or group first, then ask students to share with the whole class. Students can give strengths inside and outside of school.

Sentence Stem: “My strength is [blank].”

Divide students into groups of 5-6 and have them stand in a circle. Each group needs an item to toss to each other such as a small ball or stress ball. In their group, students are going to complete the sentence stem “[blank] makes me happy.”. Students will toss the ball around until they can name 10 things, as a group, that makes them happy. 

Sentence Stem: “[blank] makes me happy.”

Teacher says, “Every member of our class is good at something.” Have a short conversation about what qualities make a class or team strong (listening, sharing, working together, trying their best, etc.).  Students will share one thing that they are good at, as they say good morning. 

Sentence Stem: “Good Morning, I am good at [blank].”

Class responds: “Good Morning, [blank]!”

Suggestion for Success:
If a student doesn’t have something to share, ask the class to share something they’re good at.

Teacher says, “Have you ever felt like someone isn’t listening to you? How did that make you feel?” Allow students to share with a partner or small group first, then call on a few volunteers to share with the whole class. Then, ask the students “What could you do if you noticed someone wasn’t listening to you?” Call on a few students for suggestions. 

Teacher says, “What do you want to be when you grow up? When I was your age, I wanted to be a [blank]” 

The teacher says, “Why is it important to be kind?”

Sentence Stem: “Being kind is important because [blank].”

The teacher says, “A goal is something you want to accomplish. Let’s set a personal goal for today. My goal is [blank]. What is your goal for today?”

The teacher says, “What is something you want to get better at?”

Sentence Stem: “I want to get better at [blank].”

Sentence Stem: “My goal for today is [blank].”

Hold up a feeling card with a face demonstrating a certain emotion and ask the students “What is this person feeling?” Call on a few students to share. Then, ask for examples of when they experienced that emotion.

Sentence Stem: “This person is feeling [blank].” I’ve felt [blank] when [blank].”

Say to students, “Today, we are going to draw about feeling excited. You will finish the sentence I feel excited when [blank]. You can draw and finish the sentence to show a time when you were excited.”

Give students a paper with “I feel excited when [blank]”. Provide a visual 3-5 minute timer for students. After the timer goes off, students can then partner share or the teacher can call on a few students to share out.

Suggestions for Success:
Swap out different emotions as needed with your class. This also allows for the activity to be used again. 

Show the class a Name that Feeling poster. Say to the class, “I need your help today. I have this emotion poster, but the words are missing! Can you help me label all of the emotions on the poster?” Students can discuss the name of each emotion with a partner or small group. After students have had time to discuss, call on student(s) to name the different emotions until they’re all labeled. Other students can give a thumbs up or thumbs down to show if they agree or disagree.

Sentence Stem: “This emotion is [blank].” 

Tell students, “Today, you will be acting out different emotions.” Students can choose their own emotion, or can choose an emotion from the Emoji Choice Board. The class will guess the emotion.

Sentence Stem: “You are [blank].”

Tell the students, “A strength is something that you’re good at. Everyone has strengths and everyone has more than one strength! Today, we are going to draw 5 of our strengths.” Students can draw their strengths on a single piece of paper or put one strength per sticky note. When finished, students can share their strengths with a partner or have a few share with the whole group.

Suggestions for Success: 
During the share out portion, students can find a partner with whom they share a strength. 

Self-control is the ability to control your behavior or feelings. Tell the students, “Today we will be deciding when to use self control in different situations. Self-control is when you can control your behavior or feelings. I notice that [blank] is showing self control by [blank]. “ Call on students who are showing self control. Give the students the scenarios below and have them give you a stop sign (hand out) or a go sign (thumbs up).

• Someone falls down in a funny way and is crying
• You know that the teacher said something wrong and you want to correct them
• Your friend makes you so mad because they won’t play with you at recess.

Students will get to know themselves through making choices about their preferences. Display the This or That slides. Read each one and have students move the corresponding side of the room. Call on a few students to choose why they shared This or That.

Sentence Stem: “I chose [blank] because [blank].”

Suggestion for Success: 
This activity can be printed and students can place stickers on their choice. 

The teacher says, “Today, we are going to do some mindful breathing. We are going to focus on the now and focus on our breath coming in and out of our bodies.” Have students sit at their seat or in a spot around the room where they won’t be disturbed. As they sit, make sure to sit up straight and focus on the now. 

The teacher says, “Now, we are going to focus on our breathing. So close your eyes and breath in and out with me. Notice the air moving in and out of your body. Notice your belly rising and falling. Notice how you are feeling and name that emotion in your mind. If you’re feeling like you’re distracted, focus back on your breathing.”

Allow students to focus on their breathing for a minute. After the mindful breathing is over, the teacher says, “How do you feel after breathing?”

Suggestions for Success:
Build up stamina for students to breathe for longer periods of time. Also, Go Noodle has a lot of mindfulness videos for your class to work through during the school year. 

Good morning [blank]!
Today is [blank]. It is important to know your feelings and name your emotions. As you go through today, share with a classmate or teacher how you’re feeling.
Feel your way through the day,
Love, [blank]

Good morning [blank]!Happy
blank]. If you feel your emotions getting out of control today, practice some mindful breathing to help get yourself back on track!
Have a lovely day,
Love, [blank]

Good morning [blank]!
Today is [blank] and we have [blank] for specials. We all have different values or things we think are important. Sharing things that are important to you with your friends is also great. Today, think of something important to share with a friend. 
You are important!
Love, [blank]

Good morning!
Today is going to be a lovely day in [blank] grade. We are going to check in with our feelings throughout the day.
Love, [blank]

Good morning!
It is important to check in with ourselves to see how we’re feeling. Turn to a neighbor and tell them how you’re feeling.
Let’s have a great day,
[blank]

Happy [blank] students!
We’ve had a great week together. What are you looking forward to on your weekend?
Let’s have a fantastic day!

Good morning class!
Today we will read a book called [blank]. As we read the story today, think about if you can make a connection to the main character. I hope you enjoy the book!
Love, [blank]

Gooooooooood morning!
Today is [blank] and we have [blank] for specials. Let’s do a heart check by closing our eyes and placing our hand over our heart.

Rise and shine!
Today we have art for specials. What do you want to do in art this year? I’ll write your answers on chart paper and share them with (art teacher).
Have an artistic day!
[blank]

For this greeting, students are often sitting in a circle. The first student turns to their left and says “Hi (name of classmate), what’s the news?”  

The classmate responds “Hi (name of the person that spoke to them). The news is (and shares something from their life or something from school.)” Students can also respond “No news today.”

This process is repeated until everyone has been greeted.

Suggestions for Success: Consider modeling this greeting for students first.

Have students stand in a circle. Say “Today we are going to greet the person to our left and to our right with some encouraging words.”  Have students take turns with the people on either side of them and say good morning and then share some encouraging words.  

For example, I would say to the person next to me “Good morning [blank].  Let’s do great work today!” and then they would greet me by saying “Good morning (teacher name). You can do hard things!”  Then you’d turn to the person on the other side of you and repeat the greeting with your own encouraging words.

Suggestions for Success: Consider modeling this greeting for students and providing a few examples of encouraging words and phrases that they can use. Use positive reinforcement when students greet each other appropriately and use eye contact.

Two students face each other and say “Good morning, (student’s name)”. One student says “I feel happy when (student says something that makes them happy).  How about you, (next student’s name in circle)?”  

Encourage students to express what makes them happy, give examples if a student needs encouragement. Neighbor greets neighbor around the circle. 

Suggestions for Success: This greeting can be easily adapted to focus on other emotions, such as excited, proud, loved, friendly, etc.

Invite students to sit in a circle. Teacher says “For today’s greeting, we will show appreciation for our classmates by cheering them on during our greeting!” Say cheer aloud for students to hear, then invite them to join in and practice saying the cheer a few times.

Whole class in unison: “2 - 4 - 6 - 8! Who do we appreciate? (Name of student.)”

Student named: “Good Morning!”

Repeat until every classmate has been greeted.

Suggestions for success: Consider writing the cheer on chart paper for students to reference as needed. If more movement is needed, teacher could have students either stand or sit when their name is called.

Write out the greeting below on chart paper or a PowerPoint slide. Read the steps aloud and model the accompanying motions which are described in parentheses below the phrase they go with. All students should begin the chant seated. Then have the class say the chant and do the motions as a whole group. When you get to the phrase ‘Just stand up and boogie,’ the named person or group stands up and dances in place. Repeat the chant several times plugging in a different name/group each time.

Teacher: “Hey there [blank]” (point to student or group of students)

Class: 

• “You’re a real cool cat!” (thumbs up)
• “You’ve got a lot of this” (point right)
• “And a lot of that” (point left)
• “So don’t be afraid to dance and jam” (shake finger no)
• “Just stand up and boogie” (student or group stands up)
• “As fast as you can” (student or group dances in place)

Suggestions for success: Teachers can choose to pick groups of students or individuals to stand up and dance in place based on the needs of their class. For example, groupings could include kids in boots, 6-year olds, Ms./Mr./Mx. So-and-so’s class, etc.

Teacher says “We can share how we are feeling in many different ways! For example, we can use our words, body language, and actions we take to show how we feel. Today, let’s greet each other using only body language! Take a moment to think about which feeling you are having today and how you might share that feeling with a classmate only using body language. You might give a facial expression or even move your body in a way that is safe and appropriate.”

Have students stand in a circle. Students will turn to the student to their right, wave, and then choose to greet their classmate with any appropriate body language that conveys how they are feeling. The student to their right will wave back, then using their body language they will share how they are feeling with the student to their right. Repeat until each student in the circle has greeted their classmates.

Suggestions for Success: Consider modeling a few different feelings for students or inviting students to share what they think different emotions may look like prior to starting the greeting.

Invite students to write their name on a piece of paper. Then, ask them to scrunch it into a ball and bring it with them to the Morning Meeting circle.

When all of the students have joined the circle ask them to gently toss their paper snowballs into the center. Then, allow each student to have a turn to choose one “snowball” from the middle. They should open the snowball and greet the person whose name they see by saying “Good morning (student name.)”

Suggestions for success: Be sure to have paper and pencils ready for students to use. Some students may need additional support writing their names or reading others names.

Invite students to circle up. Teacher says “Today we will greet each other with an adjective that starts with the same letter as your name.” For example: “Good morning class, my name is Caring Cara.” Remind students that the adjective should be a positive word that describes themselves. If they need help thinking of an adjective they can ask for help when it is their turn.

To begin, the teacher should model what the greeting would look like by saying “Good morning class, my name is (adjective)  (their name).” Then, allow each student to greet the class using this greeting.

Suggestions for success: If needed, as a class students could brainstorm positive adjectives and the teacher could write them down on chart paper for students to reference during the greeting.

Invite all students to circle up. Tell students that the class will say a chant to greet everyone today and when their name is called, they can do a dance move if they’d like. Begin by saying the chant, then invite students to join in. 

Class says, “We are here. We are here. It’s an AMAZING day because student’s name is here!” 

Start the chant over again with the next student’s name. Continue until everyone has been greeted, including the teacher.

Teacher says “A “glow” is something you are proud of, just like a light bulb shining bright.  A “grow” is something you are hoping to get better at, learn, or do, just like how plants grow when they are given light and water. Turn and talk with a partner and share one “glow” that you have and one “grow” that you have.”

Suggestions for Success: Consider sharing an example of a glow and a grow with your students. If time allows, you may ask if any students would like to share their glows or grows with the class after they have shared with their partner.

Teacher says “Gratitude means being thankful for something or someone in your life. When people show gratitude, they usually feel kind, friendly, and loved. Noticing what we are grateful for each day can help us feel happier in our everyday lives. For today’s share, think of one person, place, or thing that you are grateful for.” Allow students to share with the class something they are grateful for.

Teacher says “Today, we are going to be talking a lot about different sizes of feelings.  Feelings can be small and sometimes they can be BIG. A big feeling fills your body with energy like feeling really mad, frustrated, or even really excited.  For example, you might feel a little excited when you are about to watch your favorite show or a LOT of excitement when your friend is coming to visit.  To get us started, can you share an example of a small feeling and a BIG feeling?

Example: “Yesterday, I felt [blank] and I [blank].”

Suggestions for Success: Teachers may want to model what this may look like using a few different emotions.

Teacher says “Today we are focusing on setting goals for ourselves and our learning. Take a minute to think of one thing you would like to focus on today. Setting goals helps us to work on areas that may be hard for us to do right now. You might think of something that you would like to work to get better at. We all have different strengths and different things we are hoping to get better at, so our goals will probably all be different.”

Teacher shares examples below with the class.

Examples:

• “I would like to focus on being a good listener.”
• “I would like to focus on being a kind classmate.”
• “I would like to work on trying my best today.”

Once students have had time to think, allow them to share their goal with the class.

Teacher says “While we are learning all kinds of ways to express how we feel in a safe way, there may be times that you want to talk to an adult for some help or even just to share how you are feeling. For today’s sharing, we will have a chance to share two trusted adults in your life that you can go to when you want to share how you are feeling or if you need help.”

Invite students to share two trusted adults that they can go to for help. Allow students to pass if they do not care to share.

Suggestions for Success: Teachers may want to share a few examples of trusted adults first. Teaches may write down student responses on the board or chart paper so that students can see how wide of a support network they have.

Teacher says “Today we will be sharing how we are feeling at this moment in the form of a weather report. First, let’s brainstorm some different types of weather.” Allow students to brainstorm all types of weather and discuss how weather can be similar to our emotions - ever changing, temporary, and different around the country and world just like everyone’s emotions are different.  

Sentence Stem: “Today’s weather is [blank]. What’s the weather (student name)?”

Let students know that if they would like to pass, they can say “No weather to report today. What’s the weather (student name)?”

Suggestions for Success: To extend this activity, ask students what they do to get back to “sunny skies.” What helps them feel better? You may choose to write down examples on chart paper or on the board for students to reference.

Invite students to get into groups of 4 or 5. Teacher says “Oftentimes, successful people come up with creative ideas to solve problems or make things easier in their everyday lives.

If there was one thing at school that you would change, what would it be and why? How do you think you would go about changing it?”

Allow students to discuss with their group and then give each group a chance to share out to the class.

Teacher says “Being resilient means that when big or small challenges come your way, you are able to bounce back. Bouncing back might look like being flexible and willing to compromise, taking a break, thinking positive thoughts, asking for help, or being willing to problem-solve. Today, think of a time that you were able to bounce back from a setback. Think about what you did or who helped you. Share with a partner.”

Example: I thought it was pajama day and wore my pajamas and slippers to school but pajama day was actually tomorrow! I changed my mindset and even though I felt embarrassed, I decided to focus on how comfortable I was at school in my pajamas!

Teacher says “There are so many different feelings we might have in one school day! All feelings are temporary, which means they come and go just like the weather. Take a moment to think about one feeling you hope to have today.” Give each student a chance to share by saying “I hope to feel [blank] today.” 

Suggestions for Success: Teachers may brainstorm feelings that students would want to have before allowing students to share. Some examples may include curious, happy, excited, friendly, proud, loved, brave, hopeful, optimistic, joyful, content, etc.

Students will work in teams to make a plan to finish these tasks. Divide students into 5 groups and give each group a task. Tell students that they need to find a way to complete/achieve the task and be able to share with the class different steps they would take to do so.

Task ideas:

• Learning how to ride a bike.
• Making a sandwich.
• Getting ready for school.
• Learning how to play an instrument.
• Teaching someone else how to play a card game.

Suggestions for Success: Consider giving an example and providing steps to complete it, such as: 

If I want to learn how to ride a bike here are some steps I’d take. Here’s some steps I would take:

1. Make sure I have my bike and safety gear like my helmet on so that I am safe.
2. Practice riding a bike with training wheels to get comfortable.
3. I might ask an adult to help me take the training wheels off.
4. I would ask an adult to help me get started riding my bike with two wheels. This might take some time to feel comfortable!
5. Once I have the hang of it, I might try and ride my bike on my own!

Teacher says “As we go through life, we realize that there are some situations that we can control and change and other things that are outside of our power to control. For example, let’s say you are on a beach vacation and want to go play in the sand and water but there is a huge storm and it’s raining all day. The weather is outside of your control, but what you choose to do instead is within your control. By noticing what is inside vs. outside of our control, we can help ourselves by focusing on what we can control and letting go of things outside of our control.  For today’s activity, we will play a game where we decide which examples are in our control or out of our control.”

Invite students to stand in a circle with about an arms length between each student. You will read a situation, and they will take a step into the circle if it is within their control or take a step back if it is out of their control.

• They are serving something you don’t like for lunch in the cafeteria.
• Your friend says they like someone else’s drawing better than yours.
• You missed the bus to school because you woke up late.
• You broke something on the teacher’s desk by accident and she asks you if you were the one that broke it.
• There’s something you need help with and are deciding whether or not to raise your hand to ask the teacher for help.
• You see someone in your class is left out of a game and has no one to play with. You think they look lonely and you have an extra spot on your soccer team.

Suggestions for success: If time permits, you may call on a few students and ask how they might respond to each situation. Teachers may also consider displaying a visual of the circle of control with pictures of examples to support student engagement. 

Teacher says “We are going to play a feelings game. I am going to say a feeling word and you are going to hold a pose showing that feeling. Use your face and body to show the feeling. I will say “freeze” and you will hold the pose and look at your partner. Then I will say “unfreeze” and you will have a minute to talk about what was the same and what was different between your pose and your partner’s pose.” 

Suggestions for Success: Consider modeling this for students before having them try it out on their own. You may also utilize the VDOE feelings wheel as a visual for students.

Teacher says “Today we are going to play a self control game. Think of a stoplight and how it has red, yellow, and green lights.” Discuss what each color light means on a stoplight.  Teacher says “For today’s game, I will hold up a colored sheet of paper (red, yellow, or green) to show which light I am turning on in our stoplight. Based on which color you see, you will do the following:

• Red - freeze in place
• Yellow - move in slow motion
• Green - walk, dance, move around freely

Teacher will hold up different colored paper and students will respond accordingly. Once students get the hang of the activity, the teacher may consider changing the rules so that green means freeze and red means move freely so that students can focus on their self control skills.

Suggestions for success: Print out or project a picture of a stoplight for students to reference. Have yellow, red, and green papers ready to hold up for the class.  Teachers may want to remind students how to participate in this activity in a fun and safe way, as a lot of movement is involved.

Teacher says “There are many different ways to be strong - your body can be physically strong, your mind can help you get through tough times by thinking positive thoughts, and you can also be emotionally strong by showing others you care about them.  Take a moment to think about which area you have the greatest strength in - physical (your body), mental (your mind), or emotional (your heart.)”

Invite students to circle up and share their greatest strength via a hand motion. Model each hand motion for students.

Physical: Flex arm muscles

Mental: Point index finger to head

Emotional: Place both hands over heart

Teacher will model their strength, then allow each student to have a turn to share their greatest strength via the hand motions above.

Teacher says “One way to calm down our bodies and our minds when we have big feelings is taking deep breaths. Today we will practice taking deep breaths while growing a flower garden!”

Have students sit in a circle. Invite them to sit comfortably and take a deep breath. Ask them to picture their favorite flower in their mind. Then, ask them to cup their hands out in front of them, connecting their thumbs and pinky fingers to create a bloom. Invite students to breathe in and separate their fingers to grow their flower as their arms raise up, then close their fingers and lower their arms as they exhale. Repeat a few times.

Then, ask students to create a bloom with the classmates on either side of them by putting each arm out to the side and cupping each hand with their classmate’s hands. As they breathe in, all students raise their arms up and open their fingers to let their flowers bloom.  Repeat a few times.

Ask students to share one word to describe how they felt about the activity.

The teacher is encouraged to have students practice this skill during the day such as after a transition or preparing for work.

Suggestions for success: If health and safety protocols do not permit students to touch one another’s hands, omit this portion of the activity. 

Teacher will write these sentences on paper, then cut up each word individually. Working on one sentence at a time, pass out a word to a group of students. The students holding words will stand in front of the class. The rest of the class will direct them to move in the unscrambled order. 

Examples:

• I can run fast. 
• I am excited to learn today!
• Playing with my friends at recess is fun.
• I will try my best today!
• There are X students in my class.

Suggestions for Success: Consider the academic needs of your class when deciding which time of year this activity may fit into your schedule best.

Teacher says “We each have our own talents, things we are good at, or things we find naturally easy to do. Every person has different strengths, so it is important to notice areas that you have strengths in as well as areas that those around you have strengths in. Today we will do just that by creating a strengths chain to celebrate all of the strengths in our class!”

Provide paper strips and writing utensils to the class and allow each student to write down what they feel their strength is. Teacher may want to further brainstorm or provide examples, such as:

• I am a good listener.
• I am good at helping friends feel better when they are hurt/sad.
• I keep working, even if something is hard for me.
• I love to learn new things.
• I am a responsible classmate.
• I am funny and like to make others laugh.

Once each student has written their strength, have students return to the circle. Give each student a chance to share their strength while connecting their paper strip to create a chain.

Suggestions for Success: Consider writing a sentence stem on a sentence strip so students can “fill in the blank”.

Teacher says “One way that we can stay in control when we have big feelings is by bringing our attention to what is going on in the present moment around us. Today we will do a partner activity that will allow you to use your five senses to notice what is going on around you.”

Ask if students know the five senses.  Then, let them know that you will guide them through the 5-4-3-2-1 method first, then they will have a chance to try it out with a partner.

Invite students to find a partner (or assign partners if needed.) Then, ask them to find a comfortable seat and take a deep breath. Guide them through the following senses and share your noticings, pausing to let them reflect on what they notice.

• 5 things you can see.
• 4 things you can feel. 
• 3 things you can hear. 
• 2 things you can smell. 
• 1 thing you can taste. 

Once you have guided them through the 5-4-3-2-1 method, allow them to practice on their own with a partner.  At the end of the activity, take a moment to reflect and as a class, ask students to share one word to describe how they felt after completing the activity.

Suggestions for Success: Consider using a visual to help students remember the different steps. Teachers are encouraged to have students practice this activity throughout the day, especially after a transition when students could benefit from a grounding exercise.

Teacher says “Today we are going to play a game called Still as a Rock. At school, there are times when we can move around and be silly and other times that we need to be still and focus so that we can be successful. This game gives us a chance to practice doing both and transitioning from being silly to focusing.

Invite students to spread apart so they have room to move around the classroom. Remind students what it looks like to move safely around the classroom. Appropriate movements may include running in place, jumping, and dancing.

Teacher says “When I say ‘Go’ you will start moving, but when I say ‘Still as a Rock’ you will stop and stay still until I say ‘Go’ again. Let’s begin!”

Print out the following statements and cut them up so that each statement is its own piece of paper. Then mix up the pieces of paper and have students sort them into either the Growth Mindset or Fixed Mindset category.

Statements:

• “I’m not good at this.”
• “I will try doing this a different way.”
• “I can’t fix this mistake.”
• “I’ll never be that smart.”
• “I’m going to try again.”
• “I can’t do this YET.”
• “Mistakes help me grow.”
• “I give up!”

Suggestions for Success: You may want to pre-teach about what a growth mindset and fixed mindset mean before having students complete this activity.

Begin with all students seated in a circle. Teacher says “Today we will play Popcorn! Today’s pop up number is X (choose a number between 1-10). We will go around the circle and count from 1 to X and if the pop up number is called when it’s your turn, you will say “pop” and stand up! Everyone else will stay seated and continue counting from 1 to X until everyone has popped up.”

Greetings goal setters,
We set goals to help us achieve new things! As a class, our goal for today will be [blank]. Let’s see if we can achieve it by the end of the day. What are some things you think we may need to do so we can achieve our class goal?

Suggestions for Success: Choose a goal for your class that they should be able to achieve in one day. You may consider creating a SMART goal.

Good morning resilient students,
Being resilient means that you don’t give up when things get hard! You might have to try something a few times or ask for help if you need it. Think about how you can be a resilient learner today.

Good morning feeling friends,
Today we talked all about BIG feelings and brainstormed some ways we can stay in control when we have a BIG feeling! Today, let’s try and notice when we have a BIG feeling. Think of a way you can express your feelings in a safe, kind, and helpful way!

Good morning stellar students,
It’s important to remember that we ALL make mistakes. We learn a lot from making mistakes, especially if we have to try something a few times before getting it right. Let’s cheer each other on as we try new things, make mistakes, and learn new things this year!

Good morning strong students,
Today let’s focus on our strengths - whether it is how you use your mind, body, or heart. Think about how you can use your strength today to be successful while learning and also how you can use your strength to help lift those around you up!

Good morning emotions experts,
There are so many emotions that we can have in one day! We may wake up feeling happy and excited, then feel frustrated if something doesn’t go our way or proud of something that we accomplish during the day. Today, focus on how you are feeling throughout the day. Notice if your feelings change and see how many different feelings you may have today. Remember, all feelings are okay to have!

Good morning self control superstars,
Self control is like a muscle - the more you practice using it, the stronger it will be! Think about one way that you can practice self control today.

Good morning resilient students,
As challenges come your way today, think about how you can bounce back from them! Remember, bouncing back might look like being flexible and willing to compromise, taking a break, thinking positive thoughts, asking for help, or being willing to problem-solve. Think about which strategy you might be most likely to try today and remember, you can always ask for help!

Good morning best buddies,
Feelings come and go just like the weather! What is the weather outside today? Think about what the sky looks like and if it is hot or cold. Do you think the weather will stay the same as it is now until the rest of the school day? Mark your answer below!

Is there a classmate who stayed on task during work time? How?

[blank]___ stayed on task during work time by [blank].

Is there a classmate who didn’t give up when something got hard? When?

[blank] didn’t give up when [blank].

Is there a classmate who tried to understand how someone else was thinking and feeling ? How?

[blank] tried to understand how [blank] was thinking and feeling when they [blank].

Let’s take a moment to reflect on our day. Think about if there was anything that you did very well or anything you would like to accomplish or do differently tomorrow. Thinking about what we want to accomplish is another way of sharing a goal.

My goal for tomorrow is [blank].

Is there something that you did today that you are proud of?

I am proud that I [blank].

Did you have any BIG feelings today?

What feeling did you have? What did you do to stay in control?

Today I felt [blank] when [blank].  I stayed in control by [blank].

Today we learned about self control. Were there any times today that you practiced using self control?

Today I practiced self control when I [blank].

What did you do today to show a growth mindset?  

Today I showed a growth mindset by [blank].

Teacher says, “What did it look like and sound like?”

Today we learned about all kinds of emotions!  We learned that we can use words to describe feelings but we can also show feelings with our bodies!  As we end our day, let's go around the circle and say a feeling word or show a feeling word by making a face or moving your body. If you would like to pass, just say “pass.”

Have students stand in a circle. Teacher says “Let’s celebrate all of the effort and great work you all put in today with a class chant!” Model one time and then do it as a group 1-2 times.

We’re gonna give this group a hand.” (Clap twice)

“We’re gonna give this group a hand.” (Clap twice)

“So raise your hands up in the air,” (Raise hands)

“And wave to your neighbor right there.” (Turns and waves to neighbors’ shoulders)

Teacher says “Is there an area of strength you used the most today - physical (body), mental (mind), or emotional (heart)?”

Students respond: “I used my [blank] strength when I [blank].”

Optional Extension:

Teacher says “Did you notice any classmates using their physical strengths?”

Students respond: “I noticed that (classmate) used their [blank] strength when they [blank].”

Were there any emotions you hoped to have today? If so, which ones? Did you have them at any time today?

Today I hoped to feel [blank]. I felt [blank] when [blank].

If not, what might you try tomorrow to create positive feelings in your day? Think about things that you like to do or that make you happy.

I didn’t feel [blank] today, but tomorrow I hope to [blank] to feel [blank].

Thinking about being a resilient student, were there any challenges that came your way today? If so, how were you able to show resilience and bounce back from them?

We learned about how some things are in your control and some things are out of your control. Letting go of things that are out of our control helps us stay successful and happy.  

Was there anything today that was out of your control that you chose to let go of?

Today I chose to let go of [blank].

In one day, you can feel so many different emotions. I will list some feeling words and you give a thumbs up if you felt that way today or a thumbs down if you did not have that feeling today.

• Happy
• Sad
• Lonely
• Bored
• Excited
• Friendly
• Proud

First greeter turns to their neighbor and chooses to either give them an elbow bump or wave. Greeter says, “Hello [neighbor].” Neighbor replies, “Hello, [greeter],” and continues greeting around the circle until all have been greeted.

First greeter holds up a magnifying glass, looking at their neighbor. If a magnifying glass is unavailable, students may make circles with their hands to symbolize glasses. Greeter says, “Good morning, [neighbor]. I’m happy to see you.” Neighbor responds, “Good morning, [greeter].” The greeter passes the magnifying glass to their neighbor and the greeting continues around the circle.

Suggestions for Success:
Consider modeling a safe and friendly distance to hold the magnifying glass as to respect your neighbor’s space.

First greeter turns to their neighbor and says, “Good morning, [neighbor],”  in a voice of their choice (silly, robot, whisper, singing). Neighbor returns the greeting, “Hello, [greeter],” mimicking the silly voice of the greeter. The student then turns to the next student and continues the greeting around the circle until all students are greeted.

Suggestions for Success: 
Teachers may dictate silly voice themes or leave open ended for students to choose. If teacher-chosen, consider silly themes to match your curriculum, seasons, or student interests.

First greeter stands up in their spot. The group chants: 
2, 4, 6, 8
Who do we appreciate?!
[child’s name], [child’s name], YES, [child’s name]!

Greeter walks around the circle and waves or gives high fives to all students. Students return to sit in their spot. Choose the next student and continue steps 2-3 until all students have been greeted.

Suggestions for Success:

• Consider modeling how to move through the circle respectfully (safely, giving all students a high five/wave, returning immediately to seat).
• To build a collective sense of community, reinforce students who continue to cheer who have already had a chance to be greeter.

First greeter says, “Good morning, [child’s name]” to someone across from them. The receiver then makes eye contact and greets back, “Good morning, [greeter].” The greeter rolls the ball to the receiver who then continues the greeting. Continue until all students have been the greeter and rolled the ball, with the first greeter receiving last. 

Suggestions for Success:

• If there are concerns that rolling the ball across the circle would be too challenging, consider starting with a ball pass instead.
• Consider modeling a safe ball roll across the circle.
•  
• Through the activity, reinforce students who are engaged/watching and may be able to identify students who have yet to have a turn.

First greeter turns to their neighbor, smiles, and performs one brief gesture or dance move. While facing the greeter, the neighbor copies the greeter’s motion. Then the neighboring student turns to the next student, smiles, and performs their own brief gesture or dance move. Continue around the circle until all students have been greeted.

Suggestions for Success:
Model at least three moves a student may choose from (i.e. shooting a basketball, twisting, or putting their hands in the air).

With students sitting in a circle, instruct them to close their eyes. Say, “In a moment, I am going to count to 3 for you to open your eyes. When you do, you are going to silently look around until you make eye contact with someone else. Once you make eye contact, give me a thumbs up… Ready…1, 2, 3, open!” As the students open their eyes and make eye contact, monitor for thumbs up. Once all students give a thumbs up and have identified another student, instruct the students to stand and greet their partner with a, “Hello, [student].” Once all students greet their partner, prompt them to return to their circle spots.

Suggestions for Success:

• Discuss and model what strong-eye contact is before this greeting.
• Pre-teach the rules to students, such as in the Morning Message or thorough repeated play, so that students become more familiar with the rules.

Instruct students to stand in their circle spots. The first greeter walks around the inside of the circle and chooses a student to greet by standing in front of them and raising their hand for a high five. The receiving student raises their hand to meet the high five. Once students high five, the greeter and receiver switch places, and the original greeter sits down. Then the new greeter continues the greeting until all students have received a high five and are sitting.

Suggestions for Success:

• With repeated practice of this greeting, consider adding in elements such as a verbal greeting, replay (at the end, students repeat the entire sequence from memory), and speed (timing for accuracy). 
• Although student choice is encouraged, if the teacher feels it necessary to facilitate new connections, instruct the student to walk clockwise until they hear the chime (which the teacher will ring).

First greeter turns to their neighbor and says, “Good morning, [neighbor],” to their neighbor using their face and voice to show an emotion of their choice (happy, shy, scared, frustrated, angry). Neighbor returns the greeting, “Hello, [greeter],” then turns to the next student and continues the greeting around the circle until all students are greeted.

Suggestions for success:

• Consider establishing one emotion for all to practice, such as one a story character recently experienced (i.e. a brave voice after reading Jabari Jumps or a grumpy voice after reading Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Day.)
• Establish voice-level parameters before the greeting. For example, even if greeting in an angry voice, students do not need to use a yelling voice. Reinforce and remind throughout the activity.
• If allowing students to pick their own emotion to greet with, consider if it is appropriate for your students to guess/identify the emotions. It may not be necessary, or time permitted, to identify every performed emotion every time this greeting is utilized.

Have students finish the sentence, “My favorite thing about me [blank].”

If think-pair-share is familiar to your students, have them share their partner’s favorite thing about themselves.

Pose the question, “Would you rather be super strong or incredibly fast? Why? When you are ready, show me a thumbs up.” Allow time to think. 

As most students have a thumbs up, prompt individual students to share their reasoning. If students have a similar thinking, they can give a connection symbol, if established.

Additional Would You Rather questions can be found online.

Identify the 3-4 students who will be in the hot seat for this Morning Meeting. The first student will be identified to the class and ask, “Does anyone have any questions for me?” Once the student sees hands raise, they can call on up to three students to ask them questions. 

Once the sharer answers three questions, thank them and identify the next sharer.

Suggestions for success: Before the activity, ask the class for examples of questions they think other students would feel comfortable asking. Remind them that the goal is to get to know their classmate in a respectful manner. Share that the student in the hot-seat can pass on any question they’d like to. 

With repeated play, teachable opportunities include answering with a full sentence, thoughtful/creative questioning, and follow up questions.

Have students turn to their partners and finish the sentence, “Someone important to me is [blank], because [blank].”  

Suggestions for Success:
Model filling in the sentence stem and examples of people they could answer with: teacher, aunt/uncle, grandparent, guardian, sibling, friend, etc.

Model finishing the sentence, “If I were a [blank], I would be [blank].” You choose the first blank with a category such as animal, food, sport, weather, feeling, etc. Then pass the share around the circle until all students share. 

Identify the students who will be in the sharers that day, approximately 3-4. The first student will be identified to the class and share something that they are happy or excited about. Then they will ask the class, “Who can be happy with me?”

Then the sharer can call on up to three students who share encouraging, empathic statements (such as, “I would want to go there too!” or “I have not been, but I bet you will have a good time.”) At first, these empathic statements will need to be modeled or even offered from a bank (such as, “That’s cool!”, “Sounds fun!”, “Cool!”) until students can build their own.

While students offer empathetic statements, the sharer can give a thumbs up back, smile, or “Thank you.” Once three students have offered empathy statements, instruct the next student to share.

Randomly choose one student to be the sharer of the day. This student will get to share with the class for up to a minute a topic of their choice. As the student shares, students who have connections can give the silent connection symbol. Ensure this gesture is established before using this share.

Once the sharer finishes, ask students for new things they learned from the sharer. 

Suggestions for Success:
If possible and time permitting, identify the sharing student ahead of time or create a schedule to allow students to prepare. This will allow students to practice with family, bring an artifact, and/or decide on a topic. If establishing a schedule and sharing with families, set parameters so that families understand the task.

Ask students to come up with their own ideas for the share. Provide an example sentence frame or two to guide their thinking (such as, “What is our favorite [blank]?” or “Which do you like better [blank] or [blank]?”). Explain that their ideas will be recorded (electronically or on chart paper), so that the classroom community can go through the ideas in future morning meetings.

Provide silent think time, then allow students to turn to their partner and brainstorm for 2-3 minutes. Once students appear ready to share, ask for pairs to volunteer to share their ideas of future shares. 

Suggestions for Success:
Be sure to reference these shared ideas and check them off as shared. Students will feel a sense of investment and involvement in the community as they had a choice in the morning meeting. 

Identify the students who will be in the sharers that day, approximately 3-4. The first student will be identified to the class and you will ask the class, “Who has encouragement or a compliment for [student]?”

The student can then call on 3 students with their hands raised. 

While students offer compliments, the sharer can give a thumbs up back, smile, or “Thank you.” Once three students have offered compliments, instruct the next student to share.

As this share is practiced, remind students that compliments should be specific to the receiver and encourage non-appearance based compliments.

Pair students into groups of two, three, or four. Instruct students to work with their teammate(s) to come up with a secret handshake which they will perform once the circle returns. Allow up to 5 minutes before returning students to the circle to stand next to their teammates. Call on the groups one at a time, allowing them to step into the center of the circle and perform their secret handshake.

Suggestions for Success:
Circulate as the students create/practice their secret handshakes and model/support all students’ ideas being heard.

Teachers will instruct students to find a friend based on different criteria. Criteria can be open ended such as groups of two/three/four. Criteria can also be specific such as, “Find a friend who…

• is wearing the same color as you.”
• likes to play the same game during recess.”
• speaks the same/different language.”
• sits at the same table as you.”
• likes the same pizza topping.”

Instruct students to regroup 3-4 times before returning to the circle. 

Identify one student as the guesser and have them step out of the room (or go to a part of the room where they cannot see the circle). Once the guesser is unable to see the circle, choose one student to hide. This student will go to a predetermined place in the classroom that cannot be seen from the circle (such as behind a bookshelf or in the bathroom). Once the hider is hidden, the guesser returns to the circle. The guesser has three guesses to determine who is missing from the circle. 

Note: Before this activity, you will need to gather three facts about the student who will be featured. Discuss with them to keep it a secret.

Once you have the three facts, share with the circle that there is a featured student the class is going to learn about and guess who it is. Share the facts one at a time. You can share all the facts, provide think time, then prompt for guesses. Alternatively, you can reveal the facts one at a time and then prompt for guesses, allowing the students to narrow down their guesses. Once revealed, prompt for a silent cheer (hands in the air shaking back and forth) for the featured student.

“Divide” the room or rug in half. Prompt for students to move to a particular half depending on preferences, such as, 

“Move to this side if you prefer soccer. Move to this side if you prefer basketball.”

“Move to this side if you’d rather watch TV. Move to this side if you’d rather play video games.”

Suggestion for Success:

• Reinforce and remind students to wait until the entire statement is said before moving. Consider adding a hand signal or “Go” after the statements to prompt students they may move. 
• Visuals displayed on the smart board or anchor chart can also help students determine their side before moving.

Distribute food cards to students. Instruct them to find their “pair” and sit with their partner on the rug. 

Allow students to pair in ways they can justify (color, same food family, etc.). If students are left with drastically different foods or cannot find their partners, pair them and still facilitate the discussion of similarities/differences. 

Once all partners are identified, instruct the students to discuss one thing that is the same about their foods and one thing that is different. Instruct students to give a thumbs up when their pair is ready. Once all thumbs up are shown, have students share with the whole class their foods. This can be done individually or by prompting all students to turn their cards around in unison and silently view each others’.

Suggestion for Success:
If played repeatedly, variations can be made by instructing students to share with their partners if they like their food/their partner’s food or if they have eaten that food before and when.

Identify one student as the guesser and have them step into the middle of the circle. Guesser is asked to close eyes.  Have the guesser slowly spin/turn themselves three times. Once finished, whoever they are facing in the circle will say, “Hello, [guesser],” in a disguised voice (silly, robot, deep, high, whisper). With eyes closed, the guesser attempts to identify the speaker. Allow them three guesses before revealing.

Suggestion for success:
If you would like to vary this activity from the greeting more, instruct the students to make an animal noise or sound effect.

Have a bell, chime, or singing bowl to make a ringing noise. Instruct students to close their eyes or quietly rest at their seat,  and gently give a thumbs up when they hear the chime stop. Ring/strike the bell gently and monitor as their thumbs come up (some students may hear the bell end sooner than others). Repeat with different instruments and/or strength of hits.

Identify one student as the guesser and have them step out of the room (or go to a part of the room where they cannot see the circle). Decide on the beat maker who can clap, snap, stomp, etc. while sitting in the circle. The rest of the students in the circle follow the beat maker’s lead. Once the beat begins, the guesser comes to the middle of the circle and attempts to guess who is leading the beat. Allow them three guesses before revealing.

The first student to begin will make a face (happy, excited, mad, grumpy) and show their neighbor. Their neighbor then imitates and shows their neighbor, continuing the face around the circle. Once the face returns to the first greeter, they may share what emotion they were imitating on their face.

Discuss with the students people in their lives who help our class. It can be a specific person or type of person such as, at school (custodians, cafeteria workers, prior year’s teachers, instructional assistants, office workers, bus drivers, etc.). Write a letter as a class community, thanking that person for how they help[ed] your class. Make a plan for how and when your community can deliver it. 

Suggestions for Success:
This can be a relevant activity to follow a guest speaker.

Instruct students to close their eyes and take a deep breath that is familiar to your class. Then, instruct students to notice:

• 5 things you can see.
• 4 things you can feel.
• 3 things you can hear.
• 2 things you can smell.
• 1 thing you can taste.

Suggestions for Success:

• Can be presented as one long activity or paused for students to give answers as to what they saw/felt/heard/smelled/tasted. 
• Reinforce the sense they are focusing on by giving examples as to what they might feel, smell, etc.

Good morning feeling friends,
Today is [day of the week]. All feelings are important feelings! How are you feeling today? Grab a post-it note and draw how you feel. Put it here:

Good morning seeing students,
Today is [day of the week]. Look around you. Draw or write one thing you see in our classroom as you finish breakfast.

Happy [day of the week],
It is the first day of September. Today we will practice each other’s names. Write your name here:

Today is [date].
Yesterday we read My Friend is Sad. How can you help friends in our class like Piggie helped Gerald? 
[record ideas after reading message]

Dear friends,
Today we have a new friend joining our class! Their name is [blank]. Think of one friendly way you will welcome them into our class today. 
[record ideas after reading message]

Happy Friday,
Today is [date]. We will go to PE today. Draw or write how your body will be safe in PE here:
We will share this with [PE teacher’s name]. 

Good morning colorful artists,
Today is [day of the week]. We are going to art during specials. Look at the colors below and put a tally next to one that you are wearing:

• Black
• White
• Blue
• Brown
• Green
• Pink
• Orange
• Red

Today is [date]. 
We will have a guest reader after lunch. What greeting would you like to do during Morning Meeting? Write your name on a post-it note and put it under your vote.

• High-Five
• Hand Shake
• Closed Eye
• Elbow Bump

Good morning pizza lovers,
Today we are going to practice having a safe body in the cafeteria. What ideas do you have to help us stay safe in the cafeteria?
[record ideas after reading message]

Within the closing circle, instruct students to silently reflect on their day for a moment and come up with one safe, silent gesture to share with the class. The gesture can represent something the student did or felt. Once ready, have the students go around the circle and silently share their gesture. 

Suggestion for Success: 
Provide a model, such as a smile (something happy that happened) or fake laughing (something funny happened).

Within the circle, prompt students to identify who or what made them happy during the day. Students are encouraged to share but are also able to pass if they choose. Have students each share, “[blank] made me happy.”

Suggestions for Success:

Can vary sentence stems:

• “[blank] made me laugh.”
• “[blank] made me smile.”

Instruct students to think of another student who showed a positive behavior or worked hard that day.

Option to either go around the circle or call on students who are ready to give a specific compliment. If students are not ready to give a specific compliment, they can finish the sentence, “[Name], worked hard today.”

Standing in a circle, ask for volunteers to share  something new they learned today. The leader steps in, shares, “Today I learned [blank].” If others learned that as well, they step in the circle and say, “Me too!” Students return to the circle edge, and prompt for additional sharers. 

Print a copy of your calendar visuals/words to place in a bag or cup. Have students pass the bag around the circle and pull one part of the day out. Have them share a memory or noticing, with “I noticed [blank]” and “I remember [blank].”

Examples:

• Math: “I remember that I got to use the computer during stations.”
• Lunch: “I noticed that we kept the floor clean today.”

Similar to the 5-4-3-2-1 mindfulness activity, instruct students to close their eyes and recall from the day:

• 5 things they saw.
• 4 things they felt.
• 3 things they heard.
• 2 things they smelled.
• 1 thing they tasted.

Suggestions for Success:

• Can be presented as one long activity or paused for students to give answers as to what they saw/felt/heard/smelled/tasted. 
• Reinforce the sense they are focusing on by giving examples as to what they might have felt, smell, etc. (“I remember we used new counters today… how did those feel when you sorted them… bumpy? Hard? round?”)

At their seats, instruct each student to draw a quick drawing of something they learned today. Then, collect the drawings and have the students come to the circle. Pass out the drawings randomly, giving each student someone else’s drawing. Have them study the drawing and try to guess what that person learned. After providing time to study their new drawing, allow students to share one at a time what they believe that person learned and why. Students can say, “This friend learned about [blank], because today we [blank].” Or, “This friend drew a [blank], and they learned about [blank].”

Option: Have the artist reveal themselves and share what they learned. 

Sitting in a circle, have the students turn to a partner and share: two stars (things they did well today) and one wish (something they want to do better tomorrow).

Share with students that all emotions are ok, and that it is normal to feel many emotions over the course of one school day. Invite friends to share any emotions they felt today, “Today I felt [blank], when [blank].” and invite others to make a connection or “Me too!” symbol.

Suggestions for Success:
You can limit the options by providing the emotions, such as: “Did anyone feel nervous today? When?” Student answers, “I felt nervous when [blank].” Students make the connection sign.

Students will go around the circle playing rock-paper-scissors. The first student begins by turning to the peer next to them and initiating rock-paper scissors. Whoever won the game, waves at their partner. Whoever loses the game, gives a thumbs up to their partner. 

Suggestions for success:
Consider modeling rock-paper-scissors and the win/lose responses. 

Offer three options to students: wave, salute, or thumbs up. Model options before the greeting begins. Allow students to choose one of the gestures to greet their neighbor. The neighbor can return the greeting with a gesture of their choice (wave, salute, or thumbs up). 

Suggestions for success:
Consider discussing when and why a no-touch greeting (versus a high-five or hand shake) might be appropriate. Sample answers include, in the hallway or lunch or if that person does not want to be touched.

Have your class stand in a circle. Their goal is to safely pass the ball to someone else in the circle without speaking. The passer cannot pass to their right or speak. One student begins by making eye contact with another student, passing them the ball, then sitting. Once the receiver receives the ball, they pass it to a new student, and sit down. Continue until all students are sitting.

Suggestions for success:
Model a safe ball toss and how to make eye-contact with the person to whom you’d like to pass.

Today, students will greet each other by saying “Good morning [blank]. Make responsible choices today!”. The other student will respond by saying “Good morning [blank], you too!”

Suggestions for Success: Consider adding a hand motion such as pointing to your brain as you say “make smart choices today.”

Today, students will greet each other by saying “Good morning [blank]. Have a safe day!”. The other student will respond by saying “Good morning [blank], you too!”

Today we will each choose our favorite way to greet a friend.  I will set a timer and you can walk around greeting your friends with a “hello”, high five, or another preferred way. 

Today we will have a chance to greet different classmates! Have students number off 1-3.

• Student 1’s will be graham crackers (hands flat and vertical to be the outside graham crackers of the s’more.
• Student 2’s will be the chocolate and will place their palms flat together.
• Student 3’s will be the marshmallow and ball up both hands together.

Be sure that all students know their number and corresponding hand shape. Tell students that they will need to find their counterparts to create a s’more with one person from each category (graham cracker, chocolate, and marshmallow.) Once they are grouped together, they can greet each other by saying good morning to each person in the group by name.

Class: “(Student 1), (Student 1), Who do you see?
Student 1: “I see (Student 2) looking at me.”
Class: “Good morning (Student 2), who do you see?
Student 2: “I see (Student 3) looking at me.”
Repeat until all students are greeted.

Suggestions for Success: If you are allowing students to choose who to greet randomly, having students sit down once they have been greeted may help to identify who is left.

Class sets a goal for how fast they can all greet one another in a certain order (seat order, in a circle, etc.) 

Each student says “Good morning, everyone” when it is their turn. The timer starts when the first person begins and ends when the last person greets the class. This is a great one to repeat to try to beat your personal best!

Yesterday we read, “{Insert Book}.” If this character were in our class, how would you help him be successful? Students reply, “I would help the character by [blank].” 

Have students finish the sentence frame, “Today I will be responsible in [place], by [blank].” 

Suggestion for Success:
Consider having picture options of school places to fill in the sentence frame.

Share an example of real-life problems at school with students: sharing a toy, broken materials, extra slice of pizza, raining during recess, etc. Have students brainstorm possible solutions to these problems. Allow students think time and encourage multiple solutions. 

What if it was raining you couldn’t go out and play during recess?  How disappointing!  What are some indoor activities you could choose to do instead? 

Have students think about what would happen if…

• Students could run in the school
• You didn’t have to throw away your trash

After sharing, think about the importance of WHY we have these rules.

Ask the students, “Your friend lied to an adult about who broke the pencil sharpener because they were nervous to get in trouble. What advice would you give this friend?”

Consequences can be positive or negative. Any choice we make can have positive or negative consequences - or even both sometimes!  

For example, let’s imagine that your mom tells you to put your toys away because it’s time for dinner and you choose not to because you are really hungry. 

Suggestions for Success: The teacher can write down students ideas on chart paper.

If you had a time machine and could travel in time to the future or the past, which would you choose?  What people would you see, places would you go, or things would you do?

Think of a problem that you had to solve recently. How did you solve it? If you could go back, would you do it over again the same way or try something else?

Give the students a category: animals, people, classroom materials, etc. Teacher chooses a mystery item within that category. Students ask questions to determine what the mystery item is. Teacher discretion to limit questions to be open ended or yes/no. Model for students how to narrow down decision making based on answers.

Choose one student as Simon. That student leads a game of Simon says. Before the game, discuss possible responsible “commands” that Simon could give: jump up and down, tap your head, rub your stomach, wiggle ears, wave, etc.

One student leaves the circle and stands where they cannot see the class; this student will be the guesser. Choose a leader who does a movement, such as tapping their nose or stomping feed. Other students imitate this motion. The guesser returns to the circle. 

The leader changes their movement regularly and the other students imitate. Have the guesser try to find the leader. Allow them up to three guesses.

For today’s activity, we will work on deciding what size different problems are.  The problem sizes we will use are:

• Small problem - you can solve it on your own!
• Medium problem - you need an adult to help you.
• Big problem - it’s an EMERGENCY and you need an adult to help right now!

Show students which problem size is in which corner. Teacher says “I will read a few scenarios and you will go to the corner with the problem size that matches that problem.”

Example scenarios:

• Someone hurt their head while playing on the playground.
• Someone cut you in line.
• Someone pushed you in line by accident.
• Someone said something mean to you in line.
• You don’t understand what the teacher just said when she was giving directions.
• Your pencil broke.

Suggestions for Success: Teachers may want to label each corner with the problem size and review expectations of how students should move from corner to corner.

Sometimes, when we are trying to make a difficult decision or think through consequences, making a pros and cons list can help us. When you create a pros and cons list, that means you think of all of the positive outcomes of a decision (“pros”) and all of the possible negative outcomes of a decision (“cons”). Pick one of the following scenarios to create a pros and cons list as a class. 

Decisions/situations to consider:

• You don’t do your homework so that you can get to soccer practice on time.
• You stay up late the night before a test playing video games.
• Should you be allowed to eat in class whenever you want?
• Should we have school rules?
• Should we have year long school?

Suggestions for Success: Teacher can record students’ ideas using anchor chart paper.

What does it mean to be responsible? Create a class list of attributes of what a responsible student looks like and sounds like in the classroom. As time permits, encourage students to brainstorm ideas of what a responsible student looks like and sounds like in different settings like, specials, recess, lunch or home. Leave the chart posted and revisit/add to it throughout the week. 

As a class, discuss the students’ hopes and needs for the school year. As a teacher, include your expectations. After ideas are shared, come to a common consensus and have everyone sign.

Suggestions for Success: Students can draw on sticky notes or share out. It may be helpful to read books about building classroom community first. Books such as Our Class is a Family, I Promise, or All are Welcome.  

Say to the class, “Safety is important because it helps…. What are ways we can be safe in school?” After getting a few ideas, have students draw one way they can be safe in school.

Suggestions for Success: Pose the questions for specific parts of the school. Students could also act in ways to be safe.

For today’s activity, students will look at pictures and sort them between “smart choices and not smart choices”. As students are sorting, ask questions about how to turn the Not Smart into Smart choices!

Invite students to turn and share with a partner something that was challenging for them today. 

If the language of “problem solver”, “solution” and/or “persevere” is appropriate and has been introduced to the students, invite them to share with their partner how they solved for persevered through the challenge. 

Reflect and share:

1. Triangle: three things learned today.
2. Square: ideas that squared with students’ thinking or that they connected with.
3. Circle: Questions circling their mind.

This can be done as a whole group, partner share, or individually.

Suggestions for success: 
Consider using a visual of shapes for students to reference and record their thinking.

Have students go around the circle and complete the sentence, “After school, I am going to [blank].” 

Teacher says “One way to make responsible decisions is learning how to get things done that you need to do before moving onto things that you would like to do. What is one thing that you accomplished today?”

Today we learned about thinking through the “pros” and “cons” before making a decision. As you were making decisions throughout the day today, did you think of any pros or cons today?

When we make a mistake, we should take responsibility for it. That might look like admitting if we do something wrong and apologizing or making it right. Were there any times today that you showed responsibility for your actions when you made a mistake?

Pose the question, “What responsible decisions and choices do you want to make tomorrow?”  Call on a few students to share

Suggestions for Success: Consider making a class goal as well.

Invite students to reflect on ways they were safe or they saw a classmate being safe. Call on a few students to share.

Suggestion for Success: Make this your closing circle the same day as the Safety First! Activity to tie the day together.

Say to the students, “In Morning Meeting, we sorted pictures that were smart choices. What smart choice did you make or see a classmate make?”

Sitting in a circle, select the first student to begin. They turn to their neighbor and say, “Hi, my name is [blank]. What is your name.” Neighbor says, “Hi. My name is [blank].”

Neighbor then turns and repeats the activity around the circle.

Sitting in a circle, the teacher will call out a category, such as “students wearing glasses,” “students who play soccer,” “students with an older brother,” etc. 

If students fit into that category, they will move into the circle and greet each other then sit back down. 

Repeat up to three times until all students have been greeted.

For this greeting, allow students to circulate. Teacher will call out topics, such as, find one student who….

• Is wearing the same color as you
• Likes the same food as you
• Is the same age as you
• Sits at your table
• Does not sit at your table
• Etc.

Once they find that student who meets the criteria, have them greet them with a “Hello!” and provide a new category.

Have students stand in a circle or stand facing one another.

Teacher says “Good morning!  Today for our greeting we will be striking a pose!  For our greeting, you will say good morning to the student to your right and strike a pose.  Then, they will respond by saying good morning back to you and copying your pose. They will then say good morning to the student to their right and do their own pose. Let’s brainstorm some poses before we begin.”

Some examples may be standing tall with hands on hips, giving a peace sign, giving jazz hands, etc.

Say:  “I’ll start us off.  Good morning, [blank]” (strike pose)

Teacher says “There are so many different ways that we communicate! We can use our words, write a message, or use body language. Often, we use more than one way of communicating with others. Today, let’s do a silent greeting where we can only use our body language to greet one another.”

Have students stand in a circle facing one another. Model for students what a greeting may look like without using words (example - waving, smiling, giving a thumbs up, etc.) Each student will have a turn to greet the students on either side of them.

Teacher says “For today’s greeting, we will get a chance to share a hobby of ours. A hobby is an activity that you like to do for fun, such as playing a sport, participating in a club, cooking, reading, doing arts and crafts, or playing video games. There are so many different hobbies to choose from!  Take a minute now to think of one hobby of yours that you would like to share today.  Now, think of a motion you could do to show the hobby.  We will greet our classmates by saying “Good morning! I am (your name) and I like to[blank] (motion for hobby.)”

Each student will have a chance to greet the class, share their hobby, and do a motion for the hobby.  

Suggestion for Success: Model the greeting for students. For example: “Good morning! I am (teacher name) and I like to play basketball (pretends to dribble a ball.)

Students will find 5 different people to greet and ask a question. Questions examples include “What do you like to play at recess?”, “Who is your favorite superhero?”, or “What is your favorite subject at school?”

The student will say “My name is [blank] and I can do this!” while performing a simple action. The class will say “Their name is [blank] and they can do this!”.  Go around the circle for everyone to take a turn. Model for the students and then have another student demonstrate.

Students sit in a circle. They will roll a ball across the circle to a classmate and greet them by name, “Good morning[blank]!”. The students will take turns until all students have been greeted.

Suggestions for Success: Have students start with legs straight, then sit criss-cross when they’ve been greeted. 

Teacher says, “To collaborate means to work together. When might we need to collaborate, or work together, in our classroom?” Allow students to think-pair-share.

Teacher asks, when is a time you worked on/as a team? Students share, “I was a team player when [blank].”

Allow two to three students to be the spotlight sharers today. Ask them to share two to three sentences about when they are a leader (such as cleaning up after stations, with a sibling, being a role model for others, etc.).

“I am a leader when I….”

Allow 2-3 questions or comments.

Teacher says, “What does a good team member look and sound like?” Create an anchor chart to record answers.

Teacher says “Do you know what empathy is?”

Allow students to share their responses. Teacher says “Empathy is when you notice how someone else is feeling and you show them that you care. How can we use our words, body language, and facial expressions to show empathy? What might it look and sound like?”

Teachers says, “What are some qualities that you look for in a good friend?” Allow students to share with a partner and then have students share out to the class.

Teacher says, “A friend wants you to go to the bathroom with them so you can run and play.” What would you do?

Suggestion for Success: Pose similar scenarios that would fit your classroom.

Teacher says, “Who is someone that helps you make good choices?”

Suggestion for Success: Brainstorm a list of people at school and at home.

Each student will share based on a question of the teacher’s choice. Remind the students to listen carefully as they will be asked “Who remembers [blank]?” After everyone shares, recall a few answers and ask “Who remembers [blank]?”.

Invite students to sit in a circle. Teacher says “Today we will play a game where we will have a leader and a detective. The detective will turn their back or close their eyes and I will choose a leader.  The leader will choose different motions to do and the class will follow along. It’s important for everyone to pay attention to the leader but not make it obvious so that the detective doesn’t know who the leader is. The detective will have 3 guesses as to who the leader is.”

Suggestions for Success: Before assigning a detective, model what being the leader should look like and show some motions that the leader could use.

Invite students to stand in a circle a little closer than arms-width apart. Teacher says “Today we will grow tall like a tree and then see how our friends can help us create a forest. First, ground your feet into the Earth like the roots of a tree. Then, lift one foot to touch your ankle or calf. Your palms can touch and when you are ready, you can grow your tree branches tall by lifting your arms up and spreading your fingers wide!  Take a few deep breaths here and notice how you feel. Maybe your branches are blowing in the wind if you are a little wobbly! Now let’s connect all of our trees by bringing our arms back behind the person next to us on either side. Take a few deep breaths here. Notice how you feel now - is it easier to balance with the help of your classmates?”

Suggestions for Success: Possible reflection questions:

• How did it feel to practice tree pose on your own?
• How did having your friends support you change your experience?
• What’s one thing that you can do to help your friends in class in other ways throughout the school day?

Teacher says “Today we are going to continue to get to know each other by sharing our favorite animal! When you share today, you will pop by standing up and saying “Pop.” Just like with real popcorn, once a kernel is popped, it changes from a seed to a fluffy piece of popcorn. So, once you “pop” up to share your favorite animal, stay standing. Only one person can share at a time, so if two stand up to share, they both sit again. If only one person stands, they share their favorite animal and remain standing. At that time, anyone else who has the same favorite animal stands up, says, “Pop, pop,” and stays standing (multiple people can “pop pop”). See who shares a favorite animal with you!”

Continue until everyone is standing.

Teacher chooses a student to be the leader/Simon. That student will lead the class in a game of Simon Says. The students will follow along with the command if the leader says, “Simon says…” Students who do not follow Simon (do a command that is not prefaced with “Simon says…'' will sit until the next round.

Suggestion for success: Brainstorm safe movements and commands before playing.

Students will be standing in a circle, with the teacher in the center. The teacher will say, “a warm wind blows for anyone who is wearing (a color the teacher is wearing).” All students wearing that color will move into the circle and find a new spot, including the original caller (the teacher). 

The student then standing in the middle of the circle, without a spot will be the new leader. They will say, “A warm wind blows for anyone who (an attribute that applies to them).” The game continues for several rounds.

Suggestions for success: 
Before and as the game is played, offer suggestions of attributes for students to name:

• Clothing color
• Shoe type
• Hair/eye color
• Letter in their name
• Likes to play [blank]

Teacher will call out groupings such as, “Get into groups…

• Of three/four/five
• Where everyone's the same age
• Of the same color shirt
• Of the same bus number”

Students will quickly form and reform groups.

Suggestion for success: Discuss safe ways to move through the room as this activity will require movement.

Students sit in a circle, the student speaking stands and says “I like [blank].” Students who also like this stand up and say “Just like me!” and then sit down.” 

Suggestions for Success: Ask students to make connections with people who liked similar things.

Students must line up in number order silently. They can use their hands to communicate and should not speak.

Suggestions for Success: Do this activity over multiple days and time students to see if they can beat their time.

You will need index cards and dot stickers (or something similar). Students must work in small groups to create the tallest towers using the two materials.

Pair students up. With their partner, come up with one word that describes both of their days. Once pairs are ready, share with the group.

Teacher says, “Today I saw many students being leaders in our class. Think of one way you were a leader today.”

Sentence frame: I was a leader when I [blank].

Teacher says, “I noticed students filling up each others’ buckets today (or showing kindness). How did someone fill up your bucket today?”

Sentence frame:[blank] filled my bucket when they [blank]__.

Today we learned about how to be a good teammate. Did you notice anyone in class that used good teammate skills today?

Sample sentence starter: I noticed that [blank] was a good teammate when they [blank].

Have students stand in a circle and complete the chant - 1-2 times.  

Teacher says “Let’s form a circle for our closing activity.  We have done an amazing job, thinking about others and showing empathy!  Let's celebrate our progress as we end our day. We are going to do a class chant.” (Model one time and then do it as a group 1-2 times.) 

 “We’re gonna give . . . this . . . group a hand.
We’re gonna give this group a hand. (Clap twice)
We’re gonna give . . . this . . . group a hand.
We’re gonna give this group a hand. (Clap twice)
So raise your hands up in the air, (Raise hands)
And wave to your neighbor . . . right there. (Turns and waves to neighbors’ shoulders)

Teacher says “Earlier today we talked about empathy. We learned that empathy is when you notice how someone else is feeling and you show them that you care. You can use your words or body language to show that you care. Did you notice anyone that used empathy today?”

Sample sentence starter: I noticed that [blank] showed empathy when they [blank].

Teacher says, “How did you stand up for a friend today?”

Teachers says, “Did anyone have a problem today, and a friend helped them solve it?”

Teacher says, “Let’s give some shoutouts to people who helped us today. Who helped you and what did they help you with?”