I was chatting with a fellow teacher friend the other day, and she asked me what the best advice I had been given at the beginning of my career was. A flood of advice entered my mind…don’t stress out on the mountain of disappearing pencils, don’t be the last car in the parking lot every day, build rapport with your students from day one…the list goes on! But the one piece of advice that jumped out (and that I shared with my friend) was to have consistent morning routines for students so that from the moment they enter our classroom, they know what they need to do.
Having consistent morning routines in place for your students, no matter the age group, is a game changer for your classroom management and learning environment. Morning routines set the tone for the rest of the day! Let’s make sure we don’t “wake up on the wrong side of the bed” and inevitably start our school day that way too!
Why Should I Have Consistent Morning Routines?
Let’s travel back in time to when the morning drop-off time begins! In a perfect world, all of our students would arrive at the same time and would be waiting for us patiently. Realistically, that does not happen, which I’m completely OK with! We always have the group that is waiting to be let in as soon as the doors are unlocked. From there, a string of students trickles in before the last bell, signaling the start of the day. I go confidently into this chunk of time because I know I have the routines in place that set my students up for success.
How do we keep our students engaged before the actual school day begins?
Having morning work prepped and ready for your students each morning helps them in several ways. Morning work gets them on task after they unpack for the day. This gives our students a routine that is structured and consistent. They know the expectations every day. This morning routine creates a calm and welcoming atmosphere in our classrooms.
What is Morning Work?
Morning work includes independent activities that students can complete on their own. They are typically a review of previous concepts that were studied. Usually, morning work is a spiral review, meaning each morning work page builds on the week or month before. This allows students to be frequently using the information we have already covered in our lessons to avoid losing it. As a result, teachers can gauge where students are in their understanding.
How Can I Organize My Morning Work to Help with Consistent Morning Routines?
The beauty of consistent morning routines centered around morning work is that there is flexibility in organizing it. Each classroom will have a different way of organizing and setting up morning work. I will share a couple of different ways that I have incorporated morning work into my classroom’s routine. You know your students and the classroom community you have created the best, so feel free to take what you want and leave what might not work for you and your students.
Morning Work Seat Work
For my classroom, I usually have morning work at my students’ seats before they arrive each morning. This cuts down on them wandering around the room or coming to me asking what to do. For my younger students, I place the morning work directly at each seat. When I have taught older students, I just count out how many are at the pod of desks or tables and leave that many copies in the center for them to grab. Again, you know your students the best and their abilities.
Some years I have also created booklets of morning work in advance. This way, my students know to grab their morning work booklets from their cubbies after unpacking. You can also keep them on a shelf or in a special crate so that students know just where to grab their morning assignment.
I like to have directions written out on my board to help develop the morning routine. You can use projected morning slides or just write on the board. The goal is to help students know what to do to help them develop that routine.
Hands-On Morning Work
Morning work does not always have to be worksheets. Depending on how busy the week is with the curriculum, I will have a day or two of morning tubs. Each tub allows students to work with materials with their hands that keep their minds engaged and thinking.
I use plastic bins or tubs to hold different materials students can use. One tub will hold playdough with challenge cards to inspire them to build various creations. I have other tubs that include STEAM challenges with the needed materials.
Another tub holds art supplies and activities. One of my students’ favorites is half-drawn doodles, where they have to finish the doodle and write about what they drew. Other tubs include little hashtag blocks along with some building challenges. These are just a few ideas. Anything that gets students thinking and working with their hands is fair game for morning tubs. You can even include some of your favorite centers here too!
It’s essential to make sure that your students know the routine and expectations for morning tubs. Take time to teach students exactly what they do. Then remind them! It’s a key to having your morning time run smoothly.
If I Put in the Work, What Are the Benefits?
Morning work is another thing we, as teachers, need to prep. Depending on how we organize or set up our morning work, it can be time-consuming. I’m not perfect! There are mornings that I am quickly skedaddling from the copier back to my room, attempting to get the morning work down at seats before my students arrive. Don’t let those moments deter you from having consistent morning routines! There are great benefits to having morning work!
Benefits of Having Morning Work in Your Consistent Morning Routines
- Minimizes disruptive behavior.
- Helps students associate times when they need to learn and recognize times when they can let loose.
- Encourages them to be self-sufficient because the routines help them to know what to do, when, and how.
- Grows independence – So many of my friends are amazed when they hear what I have my littles doing. Consistent routines are the answers! It’s amazing to see the change in independence from August to May.
- Boosts self-esteem – When they know what to do and don’t have to worry about curveballs, they can complete tasks and make decisions with confidence. This confidence continues when you aren’t there or when they have been out sick.
- Offers stability – For some of our students, the 8-hour school day is their one safe place where they know what will happen, when it will happen, and how. Limited change occurs, cutting back on stress. If there is a change and I know about it, I try to give a heads-up to my students for this reason.
- Sets boundaries – Our students like to have control. Let them have a seat at the table by setting expectations as boundaries and allowing them to move within them.
How Do I Get Started?
Do you feel inspired to add morning work to help with consistency within your classroom routines? I have you covered for the whole year! In my 1st Grade Morning Work Bundle, you will find daily morning work pages that review 1st-grade math and ELA concepts. Your students will be challenged to review, practice, and reinforce skills with these differentiated pages.
This resource is a spiral review, so each month in the bundle builds on top of each other.
Not sure if you are ready to jump right in? I am a firm believer in trying something before committing, so I have created a FREE First Grade Morning Work sample to test out with your students to see if it will be a good fit for your classroom!
Save for Later!
Remember to save this post to your favorite classroom Pinterest board to return to when you are ready to bring more consistency to your classroom and set the tone for the day with morning work!
