Hey there, teacher friends
Mornings can be a challenging time for students with special needs, who may need extra time and support to get ready for their day.
A well-structured morning routine can help students start their day off on the right foot, setting them up for success in the classroom. With a tailored classroom morning routine, students know what is expected of them, and develop skills for independence early in the day.
Come and join us on this blog post, where we will be looking at handy tips for tailoring your morning routine in meeting the needs for your special ed students.
Start with a visual schedule
Many special ed students benefit from having a clear visual schedule of what their morning routine will look like. This can help them understand what they need to do and in what order, reducing anxiety and confusion.
In my classroom, I adopted a method where we use pictures and symbols ????️ to represent each task per lesson and have a digital time of when that task will start and end.
This allows all students to visually see the morning – and if we need to make changes, we can easily do so with the magnetic whiteboard.
One student also helps me set this up in the morning each different day and writes the date at the top of the board. This promotes self-advocacy and independence within our classroom.
2️⃣ Build in time for sensory needs
Some students with special needs may have sensory needs that require extra time and attention in the morning.
This could include activities like deep pressure, movement, or sensory input.
It’s important to plan ahead for these needs and include them in the morning routine, such as by incorporating a sensory break or providing sensory items for your students.
These could include items like fidget toys, weighted blankets, or noise-cancelling headphones.
By addressing your students’ sensory needs, you can help them feel more comfortable and ready to learn.
3️⃣ Offer choices
Giving students with special needs choices can help them feel more in control and engaged in the morning routine.
Offer choices around tasks like what activity out of 1️⃣, 2️⃣ or 3️⃣ will you choose next? what activity to do during a sensory break?
Keep the choices simple and clear, and offer visual support if needed. We like to implement a choice board for students and have symbols and images next to each one.
In our brain breaks we only allow the choice of three things on our choice board. This is not to overwhelm our students with the change of choice. 1️⃣ Might be to create a drawing at your table, 2️⃣ Sit in the bean bag and read a short story or 3️⃣ Might be to get the sensory item trolley and use some kinetic sand between your fingers.
See the choices are various in ability – and the three allows not too much overwhelm with choice. Another great way to do this is simply write the choices on the board. 1️⃣,2️⃣,3️⃣ and give allocated time to each choice. ⏰
4️⃣ Use positive reinforcement
Positive reinforcement can be a powerful tool for encouraging desired behaviours in special ed students.
Consider using a token system or other reward system to reinforce positive behaviours during the morning routine, such as working independently or completing a task on time.
We like to use Class Dojo for our classroom points system. If you are wanting more information on this, please read our “5 x Simple Tips for Preparing Your Special Education Classroom for this Back to School Season” blog.
5️⃣ Incorporate a daily warm-up resource
Daily warm-up resources are a great way to get students with special needs engaged and focused at the start of the day.
We always use a daily warm-up resource in our classroom, it is a perfect time of day to use this with your students.
If you are looking for easy, and engaging morning work, you will love my done-for-you morning work for each day of the school year mega bundle!
It has Differentiated levelled activities across a range of curriculums and key learning areas.
Fantastic for special needs students warming up for the day and tailoring to their own specific needs. It also features a daily Emotional check-in to help identify student emotions in the morning. Helping the student in a visual method.
⭐️I bind these all together and use these structured Warm Ups in my High School Special Education class Daily, they would also be appropriate for early and adult learners.
Click the links to check them out!
By tailoring your morning routine to meet the needs of special ed students, you can help them start their day off on the right foot and set them up for success in the classroom.
With a visual schedule, sensory breaks, choices, positive reinforcement, and a daily warm-up resource, you can create a morning routine that supports the unique needs of each student.
So why not try our daily warm-up resource today and see the positive impact it can have on your students’ mornings.
Thank You! ❤️
Thanks for hanging out with us! We hope you found this post helpful to both you and your special students.
So, what are your favourite Morning routines to use in the classroom?
Let’s make successful morning routine for all of our special education students!
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