The 5-Step Classroom Routine That Will Calm Dismissal Chaos
Inside: a 5-Step plan that will make afternoons in the classroom more manageable
Dismissal is B-A-N-A-N-A-S
What does dismissal feel like in your classroom? If your classroom is anything like mine was, dismissal is a tornado of over-tired, hyped-up kids waving around backpacks and lunchboxes. It looked like 18 tiny humans trying to stack their chairs (should I have really let 6-year-olds wield a metal object like that? Questionable) and rolling around on the carpet. My brain looked a little bit like this:
Everyone is tired (including you), but for some reason, the kids seem to get this insane second wind right about 2:45 pm. The phone is ringing off the hook with dismissal changes, the secretary is dropping off last-minute notes that need to go home today, and you’re trying to get kids packed up on time without leaving too much downtime for everyone to get themselves into trouble.
What If It Didn’t Have to Be Like This?
What if you could have time to clean up your desk and prep materials for the next day while your kids are packing up? What if you could handle passing out last-minute notes while your students get out their extra energy? What if you could transform student behavior and build classroom community without spending hours planning each week?
Enter the Afternoon Meeting
Implementing a structured afternoon routine was a complete game-changer in my classroom. Today I’m going to share the 5-step routine that will make afternoons more manageable. I’ll give you everything you need to plan your own afternoon meetings, but if you’d rather have them planned for you, just enter your email address below, and I’ll deliver a week of meetings straight to your inbox!
1. The Pack-Up Song
This may seem so simple it’s silly, but trust me on this one. I was so tired of breaking up drama by the cubbies while students packed up, and it seemed like it took forever for my kids to grab their papers, stick them in their folders, and zip their dang backpacks up. The pack-up song solved these problems - simply pull up a kid-friendly song on Youtube and challenge your students to be packed up and back to their spots before the song ends. It’s magic, I’m telling you.
2. Activity
What is it about the afternoon that turns teaching from “guiding young learners” into “herding feral kittens”? That 3 pm second wind is killer and if we don’t have a plan for channeling all of that pent-up energy, we can find ourselves dealing with behavior that has us thinking our children have lost ALL of their marbles.
That’s where an afternoon activity comes in:
Here’s how I structure our afternoon activities each week:
Mindful Monday
On Mondays, we do yoga or other mindfulness practice. Cosmic Kids Yoga and GoNoodle are great resources for guided meditation and yoga videos!
Tidy Up Tuesday
Tuesdays are for tidying! Each Tuesday, we clean a different area of our classroom. One week, we focus on cleaning out our backpacks, another week we clean our desks and cubbies, and another week we tidy our community spaces. This one day a week really makes a difference in the overall cleanliness of our classroom.
Whatcha Know? Wednesday
On Wednesdays, I like to ask students a question that gives them an opportunity to share their opinions or answer a “would you rather” type question.
Turn The Page Thursday
On Thursdays, we read! Some Thursdays, I will pull out the chapter book we’re reading as a class. On busier days, I will pull up a pre-recorded read-aloud on Youtube.
Feelin’ It Friday
Fridays are fun! We pull up a guided dance video on Youtube and dance along. The KidzBop channel is a great resource for guided dance videos.
3. Glow & Grow Reflection
If you only have time for one afternoon routine, let this be it! This reflection routine will change your classroom community. Each day, we take time to identify a glow and a grow. A glow is something that we did well as a team that day. A grow is something that we would like to change in order to be more efficient or happier as a team. Read more about this routine here.
4. Coming Soon…
Use this part of your afternoon meetings to share with students any reminders or special events that are coming up. This is also a good time to review expectations for assemblies and field trips, or remind students about spirit days.
5. Farewell, Friends!
We make time to say good morning to each of our students, but do we do the same with goodbyes? It doesn’t take long but it goes a long way in making our students feel like valued members of our classroom community. If you’re looking for a quick way to say goodbye, I love using this song and this song with my kids!
In my opinion, this routine is the perfect way to end the day in the classroom and I think you’ll find that it will resolve any afternoon woes you’re currently experiencing.
This Sounds Great, But…
Like the idea of afternoon meetings but overwhelmed by the planning involved? I’ve got you covered. I’ve created a comprehensive afternoon meeting for every single day of the school year.
Try a Week of Afternoon Meetings for Free
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