The Responsive Classroom Approach

Image source: http://blogs.randolphschool.net/K12/2015/09/15/welcome-responsive-classroom/

Earlier this month I attended a presentation on the Responsive Classroom Approach. The presenters were Shannon Timlick and Megan Vankoughnett; both teachers in the Louis Riel School Division. I found the information they shared very valuable and will focus on one of the key concepts of this approach. All information presented is sourced from handouts and notes taken during the presentation given by these two teachers.

In a responsive classroom each school day begins with a morning meeting. These meetings are usually about 20 to 30 minutes in length and follow four components which are done in a specific order. These components include: a greeting, a time to share, an activity and a morning message.

Greetings are used to set a positive tone for the day, and allows students to practice friendliness and hospitality. This encourages the development of a classroom community that is positive and creates a sense of belonging for all students. Timlick and Vankoughnett suggest using the same greeting everyday for a week to create expectations of what will happen each day. A greeting could be as simple as each student wishing a good morning, smiling and making eye contact with each of their peers.

Sharing provides a time for students to get to know each other, and develop important social and emotional competencies. This also allows students to practice their thinking, listening and speaking skills, which will strengthen language development. An example of sharing time could be having each student take a turn telling the class their weekend news.

Activities are used to build a positive community by having fun together through singing songs, and playing games. Sometimes called “energizers” or “body breaks,” these activities are used to foster active and engaged participation, and heighten a sense of group togetherness.

The morning message is the last component. It is used to reinforce social and develop language, math and other skills in a meaningful and interactive way. The message could be used to introduce a new concept and allow students to transition seamlessly from the morning meeting to the rest of their day.

Timlick and Vankoughnett shared two resources, Doing Math in Morning Meeting (Dousis and Wilson, 2010) and Doing Science in Morning Meeting (Webb and Wilson, 2013) that could be used by teachers for the morning meeting. These resources include engaging activities for students from kindergarten to grade 5 and includes themed ideas for all 4 components of the morning meeting.

For more information on morning meetings or responsive classrooms please visit www.responsiveclassroom.org.