Pillar Spotlight #7: HEART in action @ CMA's 2nd grade morning circles!

Read all about how second graders at Caliber: ChangeMakers Academy are leading their own morning circles and exercising HEART! 
After several months of modeling circle expectations, students are now leading one of the most important parts of our day. Having students lead circle represents our HEART pillar because they are essentially the ones setting the tone for our day. It is inspiring seeing them take this leadership role so seriously and grow right in front of their classmates. As long as they continue to want to lead, I love having them do so.
- Destiny Tambouris, 2nd grade teacher @ ChangeMakers Academy

A recent interview with two 2nd graders that led morning circle in their classroom: 
Tell me why you think morning circles are important?
"They are important because we have to do our greetings to know each other better and our temperature checks so teachers know how you feel and how they can help. We also go over our toolbox and our rights and responsibilities, so you know what to do through the rest of the day and what tools you can use if you have a problem." 
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How did you plan morning circle? 
"We picked numbers for our temperature check because I really like math! For our greeting, we used the classroom Popsicle sticks with all of our names on them because this makes picking someone else a surprise. We usually pick our friends or the person sitting next to us, but with the sticks we pick someone else." 

Why is it important for students to lead morning circles?
Adrian: "I felt happy because I got to be the teacher and because I got to do all the greetings and temperature checks. You learn if your classmates are feeling happy about something they did over the weekend or if they are feeling sad."
Adam: "I felt excited because I have never been a teacher doing circle time, so it was really cool that I got to do this. Ms. Tambouris has to do these every morning, but not today!"

If you could connect this to one of our pillars, which would it be?
Adrian: "I think it would be HEART because it’s about how you feel and how others feel. When students share their feelings, we can help them. If they are feeling sad, we can help them feel better."

If you could share one piece of wisdom or insight related to this pillar with our community, what would it be?
Adrian: "It’s important to keep your feelings if you don't want to share, but it’s also important to express how you feel."
Adam: "It’s okay to not feel happy, but you have to tell the truth about how you feel even if you don’t share during circle."