What does your breakfast routine consist of? I asked my educator friends and heard the following:
“I never eat breakfast”
“I make a run for Dunkin; the employees know me by name and have my order memorized!”
“I eat with my kids and we go through what our day will look like. I enjoy the quality time together because we don’t get it in the evening”
“I eat a doughnut and rush to get to school on time”
“I have first morning prep, so I eat in the lounge and take care of my attendance at the same time!”
When I asked my students what their routine consists of, I heard the following:
“I don’t get time to eat”
“My big brother eats my breakfast”
“I give what I don’t eat to my younger sisters”
“I eat as many Pop Tarts as I can when mom isn’t looking”
“Grandma makes me pancakes and we eat them together”
Personally, I range from skipping breakfast to getting an iced coffee at a drive thru. I needed a new routine that would benefit myself and my students. As I was pondering this, The Breakfast Club was born. I wanted to build relationships with my students in a unique way. My goal was to have breakfast with a different student each day and learn about them. We would eat at my desk in the morning before announcements started, with the selected student sitting in a special chair. I would give them an invite the day before, placed on their desk during lunch. For 15 minutes, I would have one on one time with a student. There would also be days where I would bring a special treat, such as doughnuts, muffins or Pop Tarts. I would do this when I felt the student had gone above and beyond to meet a goal that was academic or behavioral.
When I shared the idea with the class, their response was overwhelmingly positive; they wanted to bring special things for when it was their turn, and dress up as well. “Absolutely!”, I said. I went over the procedures with the class, so they were aware of the why behind my idea. As class ended that day, I heard many of them chattering to one another about whom they thought would receive the first invite. When I shared my new idea with the parents of my class, I found messages echoing the responses their children had earlier in the day.
At 11:55 the next day, I placed a blue envelope on the desk of Nicholas, my first member of The Breakfast Club. He was going through some heavy losses in his life, and often came in late. His previous teachers had shared that he struggled in school academically. While most of my students laughed and talked throughout the day with one another, he often isolated himself. Smiling didn’t come easy to Nicholas. I felt that being our first member would be a much needed boost to his self esteem.
I could barely contain my own excitement the next afternoon as I walked the class to lunch; I could hear them whispering about the first invite. “I’ll see you after lunch!” I told them, before hurrying off to my room. I pulled out the envelope and put it on his desk.
As the students filtered in from lunch, I could see their eyes light up, and many began to make their way to Nicholas to congratulate him. His smile was bigger than I had ever seen it. Good things were ahead!
The next morning, he was my FIRST student to arrive. He was ready to eat! We sat at my desk and ate a meal of cereal and juice. I learned that his dog had just given birth to 6 puppies, and he was able to keep 4. His mother was due to give birth to his baby sister within the next month. He loved Pokemon and Pete the Cat books. He talked fondly of his father, whom he spent weekends playing soccer with. His demeanor was relaxed, and he sat back drinking his juice as I asked him questions. This was very different from the Nicholas that sat quietly in class and avoided work. My meal with him was time well spent. I could feel the eyes of my other students watching as they ate their breakfast and talked quietly. Later that day, I pulled out another invite and placed it on a new desk.
I saw many benefits as I went through my roster of students and they all had their turn to eat breakfast with me.
-Fewer tardies
-Increased positive behaviors
-Increased parent communication
-Stronger relationships with the students
Over time, I found that in room 37, I had……
A dreamer. A big sister. Future doctor. Soccer player. Avid reader. Youtuber. Gamer. Artist. Little brother. Pizza lover. Animal lover. Gem collector. Pokemon fanatic. Leader of a Minecraft club. Yearbook helper. Dog walker. Teacher. Traveler. Basketball star. Makeup queen. Gardener. Extrovert. Netflix junkie. Baker. Choir member.
Sincerely yours,
Ms. Brinkman
Who is in your breakfast club?
Rebecca Brinkman
Rebecca Brinkman is a third-grade teacher in Phoenix, Arizona. She has taught at the same school for her entire 15-year career. Her campus is a second home and it has a strong family feel to it. This is what draws her back every year. She is excited to begin her “Sweet 16th” year of teaching! She has taught 2nd grade for ten years and 3rd grade for five years. She has served as a team lead on her campus for six years. She earned a Masters in Education with a focus on Curriculum and Instruction from Arizona State University, as well as a Masters in Reading. She also earned her Bachelor of Arts in Education from Arizona State University. Rebecca achieved National Board Certification in the fall of 2019 in Early to Middle Childhood Literacy. She is passionate about building relationships and creating magic in the classroom for her scholars. She credits her former speech teacher as her reason for becoming an educator. She profoundly impacted her attitude towards school and self-esteem as a young student; Rebecca realized she wanted to make that same impact on children by helping them realize their strengths and pushing through personal challenges. Her second biggest passion is travel! She can often be found planning her next big adventure. She also enjoys hiking, reading, storytelling with The Moth, volunteering and bucket listing. The quote that resonates most with her is, “The dream is free, but the hustle is sold separately.”