Starting the Day with a Morning Meeting
January 05, 2026
Author
”She wears short skirts, I wear T-shirts.
She’s Cheer Captain, and I’m on the bleachers…”
During my first 18 months as the Superintendent of Corbett School District, my mornings began hearing 150 middle school students singing (screaming) these, or other, song lyrics at the top of their lungs. At first, I wondered, “What in the world???” My office was located in the middle school building.
The middle school begins each day with a 30-minute Morning Meeting that includes announcements, singing, sports updates, birthday celebrations, and more. Teachers and students write creative parodies of popular songs announcing the lunch and snack options for the day that are performed by one of the teachers each day. Students and staff create and perform skits to portray an event on “This Day in History.” Weekly competitions, including air guitar, trivia, limbo, knowing your bestie, etc., provide students with an opportunity to win small prizes and get their picture on the Wall of Fame.
The Corbett Arts Program with Spanish (CAPS) is a small K-8 school in the Corbett School District that also uses a version of Morning Meeting to begin each day. Their morning meetings include a lot of singing and announcements as well, but students also get up to dance, tell jokes, make announcements, and, at lunch, the songs are sung in Spanish.
...imagine how well your team would work together if each morning began with bonding, team building, confidence building, and laughs.
Positively Impact on Students
One of the most powerful Morning Meeting traditions in both schools is the culminating showcase of the students in Grade 8. All Grade 8 students in the middle school complete a Cardinal Project, which are year-long passion projects that showcase a skill each student has developed throughout the year. Each student presents their skill learning journey to the entire school during Morning Meeting, including their goals, mentors, challenges, and accomplishments. Students in Grade 7 express how the Cardinal Projects inspire them to dream big and take ownership of their learning.
Students culminate their time at CAPS by writing a speech about one specific experience. When these first-person depictions of struggle and strength are presented to the entire school during Morning Meeting, many tears are shed. The speeches are so powerful and inspiring to younger students, showing them that even the 8th graders they look up to have overcome challenges — and that they, too, can overcome the challenges they will face.
During a recent School Board meeting, one of the Board members mentioned that their child was hanging with friends, all recent Corbett HS graduates, singing a song that they all knew all of the words to. The Board member asked how they knew that song, and they all responded in unison, “Morning Meeting,” and began to fondly reminisce about their experiences. This is not an isolated story. Former students, after leaving the middle school or CAPS, can often be heard discussing how much they miss Morning Meeting. Morning Meeting is more than a daily routine. It is a time for connection, laughter, and inspiration.
Morning Meeting is more than a daily routine. It is a time for connection, laughter, and inspiration.
One of the most prevalent parent feedback I receive about Corbett Middle School and CAPS is that students enter shy and afraid to speak in public, but after years of participating in Morning Meeting, they gain confidence. Many parents have expressed to me, "I was overwhelmed with pride watching my child speak in front of the entire school. I never thought that was possible."
Foundation of Schools
"Morning Meeting is a waste of time." If I had a dime for each time I have heard this during my years in Corbett from staff and administrators who are not in the middle school or CAPS, I could retire today. In small districts resources are shared, so the schedules in each building affect all of the other buildings. There have been many times when one building wanted to make a change to their schedule that would force Morning Meeting to move from the very beginning of the day. Understanding the positive impact of Morning Meeting on the students, I always said, “No, we are not touching Morning Meeting at either school.”
Morning Meeting is a pillar of Corbett Middle School and CAPS. It builds community and long-lasting relationships. Imagine how much more productive you would be if each day began with singing, dancing, jokes, games, and fun. More importantly, imagine how well your team would work together if each morning began with bonding, team building, confidence building, and laughs. Corbett Middle School and CAPS use Morning Meeting to build self-assured, team oriented, leaders who are able to confidently speak in front of their peers.
