Do you use Morning Greetings in your classroom?聽 If not, you may want to start!聽 Keep reading to check out some fun morning greeting ideas you can implement from day one.

Morning Greetings are simply fun ways for children to greet their teacher and their classmates when they arrive at school.聽 Some are simple and straightforward.聽 Others are quirky and silly.聽 No matter what morning greeting ideas you use, your students will relish this tradition.

Morning Greetings are a great way to deepen relationships and build a sense of community.聽 As students greet each other, they feel welcome and excited about the day ahead.

Morning greetings are also a great way for children to feel seen, acknowledged, and valued by their teacher.聽 When a child enters your room and you greet them warmly, they feel like they belong.

Morning greetings are a way to give children a fresh start.聽 Maybe they went home yesterday feeling defeated or frustrated, but being greeted warmly when they arrive back at school gives them a fresh perspective.聽 Or maybe they are tired and cranky and didn’t want to come to school.聽 However, when greeted lovingly by their teacher and classmates, children often become re-energized and eager to start their day.

Start by introducing one or two morning greeting choices during circle time the first week of school.聽 Let the children practice by walking around and greeting as many of their classmates as they can.

A traditional handshake is a great morning greeting to begin with because it’s something students are familiar with in society, and it’s a greeting they’ll use throughout their lives–even as adults!

Gradually add more morning greeting choices, and you’ll be amazed at how eager children are to greet each other–and you–when they arrive at school each day.

Create a “Morning Greetings” choice board to hang outside your classroom or on the wall by your morning meeting area.聽 As children arrive, they can review the morning greeting ideas and choose the one they want to do that morning.聽 You could also display the choices on your interactive whiteboard during morning meeting.

Switch out your greeting choices periodically to keep things fresh and exciting.聽 You could also consider making “Morning Greeter” one of your helper jobs.聽 This child could stand just inside the classroom door and be the official greeter when children enter the room.

Have a Morning Greeting of the Day.聽 As children arrive at school, surprise them with the morning greeting on a poster by the door.聽 They’ll be eager to arrive at school each morning so they can see what that day’s greeting will be.

This is also great for those reluctant students who always choose the same greeting day after day.聽 This will push them out of their comfort zone and encourage them to try new things!

Play Morning Greeting Match Up. Print 2 copies of each morning greeting and pass them out randomly during morning circle.聽 Have students wander around and find the child who has a matching greeting card and then those two children will greet each other in that way.聽 The kids love this, and it’s a great way to incorporate a quick movement break into your morning circle.

Have a whole class Morning Greeting Time during Circle. Hold up the daily morning greeting (or the morning greeting choices) during your large group circle meeting.聽 Then, have the children greet the children on their row or the child beside them with a greeting.

Unless they are directly taught this, children don’t realize the importance of eye contact.聽 Encourage children to make eye contact with the person they are greeting.

Show them how to give a firm, yet gentle, handshake.聽 Teach them how to speak up and speak clearly when greeting someone.

Teach them to stand up tall and proud.聽 These morning greeting manners are something they will carry with them for the rest of their lives.

No matter what type of display you choose to use, your students will be eager to greet each other and greet you in the mornings.聽 This fun tradition is perfect for Pre-K and K, but can even be used successfully with older children.

Beginning the tradition early on, teaching expectations, and practicing, will help make the morning greeting tradition one of the most successful and loved routines of your day.

If you’re ready to get started using Morning Greetings in your own classroom, check out this packet.聽 It includes 20 different greetings and three styles of signs to print and display.