In primary school, children need to build a relationship of trust with their teachers; they need to feel listened to and guided on a journey that will last five years. To establish this kind of bond, we need to get to know them, so we always dedicate the first part of the morning to a moment of personal storytelling. Usually, in the first 30 minutes we listen to what a partner has to say. The children are seated in a circle so everyone can see each other, and asked if they’d like to share something with their friends and teachers. They aren’t given a topic or input, but they should feel free to express what they feel. Children are expected to speak spontaneously, taking turns. The teacher tries to intervene as little as possible, leaving them the space to speak. This creates a learning but non-judgmental atmosphere, for both children and adults.
If you wanted to integrate this good practice, you could start the activity with the “sung roll call”. Sing together, using a simple song. Every kid knows the words. The teacher calls every student, one by one, as a role call, and the kid answers, singing in a rap style.
The students have embraced this activity as a routine, and it’s a pleasant time for them to chat and share with their classmates. The children enjoy sharing their family experiences and are happy to share them with their teachers.
This has allowed us teachers to identify vulnerable situations within some families and to better understand our students’ habits in their extracurricular context and how they experience them. We’ve noticed that this activity has fostered a positive connection among peers; they often reach out during breaks to continue the conversations they started in the morning, sometimes out of curiosity and other times to offer words of comfort.
At first a few children were shy, but after 3–4 days everyone joined enthusiastically. Teachers observed more smiles, smoother morning transitions and better group cohesion. Pupils began suggesting songs and movements themselves, boosting confidence, pronunciation and memory. The routine became the highlight of the day and created a shared identity across all primary classes.