Welcoming Routines

Use welcoming routines at the beginning of class to help students feel comfortable and connected to their classroom community. Regular participation in welcome routines increases students’ sense of belonging. This increase in belonging is important, since there is a direct, positive correlation between students’ sense of belonging and school on-track rates: the higher the percentage of students that feel a strong sense of belonging, the higher the percentage of students “on-track” to graduate high school college and career ready.

Check out the resources below to learn more about how you can implement different kinds of welcoming routines and the research behind this practice. CARE Network Belonging Bundle, CARE Network Welcoming Routines Research 1-pager.

What surprised you in this process? How many students indicate they don’t have any adult in your school they’d go to with a problem? Or just one adult?

How well did the adult perspectives align with the student perspectives?

How can we ensure that every student receives adequate adult support? How will you assess the efficacy of your approach?

Check out the following resources to dig deeper:

The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL)