First Week Practices
Every day, especially in the first week of class, we discuss in detail what is expected in the class and how the class went. What went very well and what could be improved the next day as far as work habits and execution of cooking techniques. I also stress that it's okay to make mistakes and that it is an important part of the learning process. I find students get down on themselves and can be self-discouraging.
I like to write these three things on the board as I am discussing classroom expectations, assignments, the syllabus, etc.
Everyone will grow up with a strength and a weakness. We are the biggest road block to success and fear is our biggest weakness. We have a fear of the future, fear of failure, and fear of success. As we grow up and learn that we can do the things we put effort into, we also take down the road blocks.
Michael--
This is great advice for students. We tend to be much harder on ourselves when we make mistakes than others are on us. An open mind is definitely the key to learning!
Susan
During the first week I try to let the students know the way to reach their full potential is to keep an open mind, and most of all don't be hard on themselves
