Did you know that first thing every weekday morning the kids in the Fabulous 5s have a meeting to attend? Well, they do and they are super excited to be a part of it each day. This is often hard for me to hi-lite as I am typically the person taking the pictures but am also the one leading morning meeting. Today we had an extra set of hands in the classroom so she graciously captured some moments from the meeting for you to see. In a nutshell it is about 15 minutes of direct instruction coupled with participatory activities for all the children. One child a day is the "helper" and they get to make all the choices during the meeting and be the one to use the stylus and move around things on the Promethean board. This is also a great time for me to assess that student. All of the children help call out different answers throughout the meeting and participate in the different parts of the meeting but it really helps me focus on that particular child for the day and watch how they have changed from the last time they did that job and based on what new topics/vocabulary have been introduced most recently. Each summer, I look through the Individualized Educational Plans (IEPs) for each of my upcoming 10 students. I go through and tweak and add parts to my meeting to ensure I am touching on each child's particular goal areas. Then I go back and add things from the Preschool/Kindergarten standard curriculums as well. Finally, I go through each slide and make sure that there are modifications available so that all children can actively participate despite their physical or mental needs. It is hard to believe so much is crammed into a 15 minute time slot but the children are working on multiple things at one time all while laughing and playing along to the songs and activities. These pictures are just a few snapshots from Willow's day as the helper. Of course we are working on all the children's goals throughout the rest of the day as well for practice but this time of the day is the opportunity for each child to really show what they know and for me to see what things I need to go back and modify re-teach in order for every child to make progress. It has been said that "play is a child's work" and I absolutely agree!