Build Community · Share Ideas · Welcome & Belong
Our Class Recipe
Turn students’ ideas about a great classroom into a playful recipe the class can actually use.
Time25–35 minutes
Group size8–35 people
FormatTable groups, Whole group
MaterialsChart paper or whiteboard, Markers, Optional sticky notes
What this accomplishes
Small groups create a recipe for a classroom where people can learn, ask for help, and belong. They choose the ingredients, decide what should be added generously or used with care, and combine their best thinking into one class recipe.
- Name conditions that help students learn and belong
- Co-create memorable classroom expectations
Before you begin
Materials
- Chart paper or whiteboard
- Markers
- Optional sticky notes
Preparation
- Draw a simple recipe card with spaces for ingredients, directions, and a recipe name
- Prepare a few concrete examples such as curiosity, patience, quiet time, laughter, and asking for help
What to say
“We are going to invent a recipe for a classroom where people can learn and feel like they belong. There is no single correct recipe, and you may suggest an idea without explaining anything personal.”
How to run it
- 1
Ask students to quietly think of one thing that helps a classroom feel safe, useful, or welcoming.
- 2
In groups of three or four, have students choose four to six ingredients for their classroom recipe.
- 3
Ask groups to decide how much of each ingredient is needed: a scoop, a sprinkle, a steady supply, or another playful amount.
- 4
Have each group add two directions that describe what the class would actually do.
- 5
Groups share one ingredient and one direction; students may appoint a reader or let the teacher read for them.
- 6
Combine repeated ideas into one class recipe and ask for a quick thumbs-sideways check before displaying it.
- 7
Revisit the recipe after the first week and adjust one ingredient together.
Prompts to use
What helps people feel ready to learn?
What should we add generously?
What can ruin the recipe if we use too much?
What would this ingredient look or sound like during a real school day?
Adapt it to the room
Small group
Build one shared recipe together and let each student illustrate an ingredient.
Large group
Collect ideas on sticky notes first, then let tables combine similar ingredients before reporting out.
Virtual
Use a shared slide or board with one recipe card per breakout room.
Accessibility & inclusion
- Accept drawing, dictation, selecting from prepared words, or original writing.
- Read all suggested ingredients aloud and pair icons with key words.
- Do not ask students to disclose fears, diagnoses, family information, or difficult experiences.
Debrief, if useful
Which ingredient will be easiest for us to notice?
How can we remind one another about the recipe without embarrassing anyone?
What might we need to change after we try it?
Why it works—and what can go wrong
Why it works
The metaphor makes abstract expectations concrete while preserving student choice. Turning values into observable directions also helps the class move from a poster to shared practice.
Watch out for
- Do not promise that every suggestion will become a class rule; explain what is flexible and what is not.
- Translate vague words like respect into actions students can recognize.