Class Meeting

Last Friday, I was lucky enough to have my angel of a literacy coach come into my classroom. She taught my class and I how to run a "class meeting" and changed our class forever.

Class Meeting
1. Give a compliment
2. Get a compliment.
3. Apologize.
4. Pass.

Thats it. You can do one of the four. We sat around the perimeter of my gorgeous rug and passed a dried up purple sponge around the circle. (It was the only thing I could find in my room to use as a "talking object.") As each student held the sponge, they made a choice to do one of the above. Some passed, none asked for a compliment, many gave compliments. It was such a positive moment packed with second grade emotion. One girl broke down into tears, complimenting her two best friends for being "some of the best friends she's ever had," another one of my boys got all choked up talking about his best friend too, another said she was sorry that her mom's friend had cancer, and yet another said she was sad that a local teenager had recently died. I almost lost it. How quickly I forget, between cups of coffee and hours of planning, that these kids are 7. And 8. That having a friend to play with everyday at recess can make or break their day. In that moment, some felt so much genuine love for their friends that tears came rolling while just thinking about how happy these people in their lives make them. Wow.

In my dream classroom, I always knew that I wanted it to be positive and safe. A place where expectations are set high and kids try their best. It was at that moment that I realized that most of all, I want my kids to be kind to one another and know/appreciate the value of a compliment. The power of a postive attitude and how far you can get just on that alone. Class meeting. I'm pretty sure I can find 10 minutes in our day where everything stops and we think about the big picture. About life. About one another. Me and my 7 and 8 year olds....