The Magic of Morning and Noon Parent Meetings
Part of the experience of being in a co-op is sitting in on the morning and noon debriefing meetings with the teachers to discuss the children at school that day, ongoing themes with the children, and ask questions about how to handle certain situations that happen with the kids. For those parents who are choosing a co-op in order to be involved in their child’s community and to also grow their own parenting skills, the morning and noon meetings that occur on a daily basis with the teachers are one of the opportunities to engage, share ideas, and ask questions about what’s happening at the school.
The morning meeting begins promptly at 8:45am (working parents and their children arrive at 8:30am) typically led by Teacher Jolie or whatever teacher is handling administration for that day. Jolie will generally give overall context to what has been happening at the school (“there have been on-going chase games happening,”) highlight what’s been great about them (“friends have been inviting other friends to play along in these games”) and talk about some points where the game could possibly get a little stuck (“some friends find themselves in only the role as being chased, and not the chasers”.) She’ll then give some feedback as to how parents can help the children become unstuck (“Pausing the game to clarify if everyone participating knows what the rules are [inclusivity] , wondering what would happen if friends switched roles [reciprocity], and checking that the chasers actually want to be chased [consent.}).
She also identifies children who might have external circumstances (i.e. a family had a new baby), or two or more children that have been seen playing well together recently. Two children are also identified as focus children, which means for parents to particularly be aware of what’s happening with those children that day. One parent might be asked to take ten minutes of factual notes on a child just so the teachers and parents have eyes on all of the children in turn.
After the end of the school day, working parents again meet with the teachers to share about their personal experience of the day - what went well, what parts were a struggle which gives opportunity to get help and feedback from the teachers, and reviewing observations on each of the focus children. There is also an opportunity at every meeting to discuss any issues that come up in relation to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. This particular usage of inclusion doesn’t speak to kids being left out generally, but could include one child being singled out because of a cultural, physical, or even difference in being neurodiverse. This is typically also the place to discuss noticing talk of gendered stereotypes in play (“we’ll clean up after the boys”) or any racial microaggressions.
The whole experience of participating at a preschool takes a considerable amount of time and energy but many parents have felt the personal growth experience and also ability to hear feedback on the growth of their child is priceless. Children are discussed in a respectful manner by all parents and teachers and extended compassion despite whatever behaviors come up at school. If a parent is having a particularly hard time with their child that day, it is so helpful to have other parents and teachers who also know and love your child to be able to support you (and it is common that children have different behaviors on their parents work day than other days at school!)
If you are considering a co-op and have any questions regarding morning meetings, please feel free to contact a current parent at vp@mcpckids.org.