Our Friday Tradition

My favorite activity as a teacher to watch is our Friday Appreciation Circle. Every Friday, students are given a popsicle stick with another student's name on it. They take turns sharing a statement of appreciation to that classmate. Ie. "I appreciate you because..."

We stress in our classroom that everyone has different likes, dislikes, hobbies, etc. The diversity is what makes us so special and unique. We embrace our differences and cherish the fact that we all bring something new and different to our classroom. One of our classroom rules is "Respect". Although we may not all be absolute best friends, we still treat each other with respect. Our appreciation circle is a fantastic way to do that. It takes 15 minutes of our day, but I know I leave our circle with a huge smile on my face, proud of each and every one of my incredible students.