Try and relate it to personal expriences if you can. Greet them with a smile and tell them that you are excited to see them. Get them involved in the class do a card and have the students write a question on it put all the cards in a box and hand them out. Then start with one of the students read the question and have the students awnser them to the best of there knowledge and continue with conversations with the questions. I believe this would be a good way to do this.
I try to greet every single student by name as they come in through the door and make their way to the desks every class period. It is quite simple but I think it helps my students settle in before class begins. I've noticed that this also will make the students feel more comfortable with me and usually they will respond with a quick greeting back or share a quick story.
Usually that story has nothing to do with things we are learning in class, but sometimes a student will bring in a current event news story and that will lay the groundwork for our class discussion that day.
Always acknowledge them by their name. Say hello to them when they enter the room or you are passing them in the building. Ask them how they are,how are classes and really mean it. They know if you are sincere.If they are not in class call them and let them know you missed having them in class. Another option is to email them if you do not have a valid number. They need to know that you care if they are there or not.
You should find out what each student's strengths are and find a way to incorporate each student into the class somehow. You could also put them into groups and give each student a job that you are sure that they would excel at. This could make them feel as a vital part of the course.
I provide a variety of ways for students to interact. I use group papers, TurningPoint, individual class presentations, and open-forum class discussions. This allows for even the most shy students to participate somehow.
I do quiz rounds. I go around the class and quiz them on the review slides I go through. They have an option to pass, but it gets them to be active.
Strategies for making students feel a part of the class are the following, asking questions to individuals, ask about personal stories for examples, role playing, speeches. It is so important to make sure your class feels like a part of the unit. It can bring confidence also.
Hi Andrew,
The changing of members of groups is a great way of helping students to develop their understanding of how different social setting require different responses. As you well know the ability to work with others is an essential skill that will help ones career progress.
Gary
As an instructor I like to personalize by asking how every ones weekend may have been and share a little about mine. I try to get my students to interact with one another by putting them into groups one day than a different group the next. I am a motorcycle instructor and I use a clean up schedule at the end of each day that rotates and everyday there is a different service manager and thier job is to make sure everyone elses job is completed.
You demonstrate to students that they are a part of class by encouraging their input and acknowledging their points of view.I try to get to know my students the best I can. The trouble is that those who speak least in class are the hardes to get to know. I can readily identify those students who speak up most. Since the only way I have to recognize students is by their voices, I have a harder jot to do with those who don't feel comfortable enough, or are just not aggressive enough, to discuss. We have a good discussion section, but I have just come up with additional strategies to more fully engage those who aren't as forthcoming. Certainly, dividing students into differing groups can help those who might not feel at ease in discussing in front of the entire class, and it also gives them a chance to bring forward their ideas.
If a student seems to be trying to take over the discussion, I use this as an opportunity to ask the more quiet ones to tell the class what they think about what they said. This helps redirect focus.
Great idea. I tend to talk a lot and will try to incorporate more active elements into the class.
Getting feedback is a constant reminder of how well we are doing as instructors. We need for students to let us know how they feel. We csn alter the course material to what they need, within reason, of course.
One of the first methods that I use is to ask questions of the students instead of just giving information. Any time I feel that the students will know part of what I am about to say I will ask them to explaine, this is especially true when I am doing a demo.
Studies have shown that students lose 90% of what they teach in the first four hours. Students retain 80% of what they teach. So two birds are taken care of with one stone if you let the students teach each other in groups. In this scenario, the student is able to both retain information and feel like a part of the class as they have to interact with one another to complete the requisite task.
Thanks. It always gets me excited about spending time together with this group of folks. They are bringing some amazing experience into the classroom. Its humbling, and I think it means a lot to them to see how truly impressed I am and the class is with what they've done in their lives. Real confidence boost.
I've done that one before! It is fun!
Hi James,
This is a great ice breaker for starting a new class. You are right about some of the stuff that is written down and ends up being true. Makes you wonder how the course is going to go with some of the experiences these students have had.
Gary
A fun ice-breaker in our class is to have each stucent write "one truth and two lies" about themselves. Some of the outragious material that comes out can really spark up the class
My class is a working restaurant; at the beginning of class we review the performance of the team and each student asseses their own performance.
Students quicly recognize how important individual performance is to the success of the team.
