Promote a climate of trust, academic growth, and positive behavior by launching each school day with a whole class gathering. This comprehensive, user-friendly book shows you how to hold Responsive ClassroomMorning Meetings, a powerful teaching tool used by hundreds of thousands of teachers in K-8 schools. In the new edition of this essential text, you'll find: Step-by-step, practical guidelines for planning and holding Responsive Classroom Morning Meetings in K-8 classroomsDescriptions of Morning Meeting in action in real classrooms100 ideas for greetings, sharing, activities, and messages: some tried-and-true and some newUpdated information on sharingGuidance on adapting meeting components for different ages and abilities, including upper grades and English Language Learners.Explanations of how Morning Meeting supports mastery of Common Core State Standards, 21st century skills, and core competencies enumerated by the Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL).

Transform the way you start and end the school day with the fun, interactive, and adaptable lessons, exercises, and activities in this easy-to-use classroom management resource designed with busy teachers in mind. Daily classroom routines are proven to engage students, build trust, and support learning on all levels. But finding fun and interesting ideas for every day is difficult, not to mention figuring out how to incorporate them into an already jam-packed schedule. Morning Meetings and Closing Circles is here to help. From establishing rules and expectations to time management techniques and helpful meeting props, this book will impart the ins and outs of starting and ending each day with an effective meeting. With 100 classroom-ready ideas, connecting with your students throughout the school day has never been easier. Plus, with suggestions for tailoring activities to your own unique classroom, you will be able to create more meaningful experiences for your students. Build a safe community that fosters positive attitudes and academic growth by bookending the day with a morning meeting and a closing circle.

Foster science learning with quick, fun, meaningful activities for kindergarten through 6th grade. Increase students' excitement about science, deepen content knowledge, and enhance science skills. The activities are easy to set up, require minimal materials, and are flexible enough to use at any time of day. Charts help you select activities by title, grade level, Morning Meeting component, science content, science standards addressed, and science discipline (physical sciences; life sciences; Earth and space sciences; and engineering, technology, and applications of science). For each of the 150 activities you will get: brief, easy-to-follow directions; open-ended questions to help students reflect on their learning; science content and standards covered; key scientific vocabulary to reinforce; ideas for variations and extensions (when applicable).

"Ruth Charney gives teachers help on things that really matter. She wants children to learn how to care for themselves, their fellow students, their environment, and their work. Her book is loaded with practical wisdom. Using Charney's positive approach to classroom management will make the whole school day go better." - Nel Noddings, Professor Emeritus, Stanford University, and author of Caring This definitive work about classroom management will show teachers how to turn their vision of respectful, friendly, academically rigorous classrooms into reality. The new edition includes: More information on teaching middle-school students Additional strategies for helping children with challenging behavior Updated stories and examples from real classrooms. "Teaching Children to Care offers educators a practical guide to one of the most effective social and emotional learning programs I know of. The Responsive Classroom approach creates an ideal environment for learning—a pioneering program every teacher should know about." - Daniel Goleman, Author of Emotional Intelligence "I spent one whole summer reading Teaching Children to Care. It was like a rebirth for me. This book helped direct my professional development. After reading it, I had a path to follow. I now look forward to rereading this book each August to refresh and reinforce my ability to effectively manage a social curriculum in my classroom." - Gail Zimmerman, second-grade teacher, Jackson Mann Elementary School, Boston, MA

Boost students' language arts skills and meet standards—without adding to your schedule! Do you start the day with Morning Meeting? If so, you can use some of that time to reinforce students' language arts learning. These fun, lively activities enable you to seamlessly integrate language arts into a daily Morning Meeting. You'll find language arts activities for each component of Morning Meeting—greeting, sharing, group activity, and morning message. From reading poetry with sound effects to pantomiming idioms to guessing which character someone's describing, these activities are varied, challenging, and confidence-building. Features that make them easy to use: Clear, step-by-step directionsCan be used with any curriculumFew or no materials requiredVariations and extensions for language arts lessonsActivities sorted by grade, but can be adapted for any grade This book helps you inspire students' interest in language arts and give them practice in key skills—all while enriching and enlivening your Morning Meetings.

An introduction to best practices in education for third, four, and fifth grades, offering clear, practical advice; plenty of real-life examples; and grade-specific strategies for developmentally responsive teaching, engaging academics, positive community, and effective classroom management.

Responsive Classroom practices have helped thousands of special area teachers for more than 30 years. Here you'll find practical suggestions, charts, planners, and examples from experienced special area teachers who use Responsive Classroom practices every day. You'll learn how to: Open and close each period in calm, orderly waysSet students up for success by modeling and practicing skills and routinesUse positive teacher languageEngage students more deeplyRefocus and recharge students with quick, fun, movement breaksRespond to misbehavior to get students back to learning