First Day of Class

First Day of Class 

The first day of class may seem inconsequential— it’s likely you have heard it referred to as “syllabus day,” implying that it’s not important because instructors are merely reviewing the syllabus—but the first day of class offers several significant opportunities that can positively impact your teaching and your students’ learning experiences. 

The first day of class allows you to  

• present your unique vision of the class
• clearly define your expectations and goals for the course
• begin building rapport and community with your students
  • See this post in CTE's blog, Bloom's Sixth, on ways to create community in class from the first day
• model the classroom environment you intend to foster over the course of the semester
• Set the tone for the course
• Get a feel for your students and the class dynamic 

The first day of class is similarly important to students as it enables them to 

• understand the expectations and goals of the course
• decide whether the course meets their needs
• determine whether they feel they can reasonably meet course expectations
• identify the teaching and learning strategies that will be used over the course of the semester
• get a feel for the course’s content, how they will be assessed, and important dates and deadlines
• determine whether they find you, as the instructor, to be competent and fair 

Tips to make your first day as productive as possible:

Before the first day of class, consider doing the following: 

• Visit your classroom so that you will be able to find it easily the first time. Double check that the equipment is working.
• Pull up/print your class photo roster and read over your students’ names. Try to begin matching names with faces.
• Send an email to your students welcoming them to your class and asking them to answer a few questions (you should pose questions that when answered will offer you insight into who your students are)
• Identify your primary objectives/goals for the first day and how you plan to accomplish them
• Think about what you want to share about yourself and what sort of teaching persona you wish to communicate 

On the first day of class, consider doing some of the following: 

• If you feel comfortable, arrive at your classroom early and greet your students as they come in. Make sure that the equipment you intend to use is working properly.
• Alternatively, if you’re feeling anxious, arrive early but wait somewhere comfortable until right before class begins. Then walk into the classroom and go to the white/chalk board and slowly write your name and the class’s title. As you’re doing this, take three deep breaths before turning around and asking the class if everyone is in the right place. This should help you relax a little.
• Be sure to begin and end class on time and make use of the whole class period.
• If your class is reasonably sized, take attendance. Taking attendance gives you the opportunity to learn student names. It also communicates to your students that their presence in class matters and that you will be looking for them. If students are absent, make a note and follow up with them via email.
• Use some kind of no- or low-stakes activity or game to break the ice.  (Would You Rather and This or That work well.)
• Work with your students to co-create class and/or discussion norms
• Ask students to write out their expectations for the course, as well as what they hope to learn over the course of the semester.
• Assess the students’ previous knowledge by distributing a pre-test over the material you plan on covering that semester and provide feedback on their responses as soon as possible.
• Take time to review the syllabus but be sure you’re also allotting class time to building rapport and developing relationships with your students. Often it works better to do introductions and ice breakers before reviewing the syllabus.
• Do your best to learn your students’ names as quickly as possible. To that end, consider the following tips:
• Ask students to share their preferred name before they speak in class
• Have students make name plates on index cards. You can collect the name plates after class and hand them out at the beginning of each class.
• Use your students names each time you speak with them
• Give yourself grace. Be patient with yourself. Your students have to remember the names of only four or five teachers each semester, while you have to remember many more than that. If you call a student by the wrong name, simply apologize. The class will appreciate your efforts to acknowledge them on a personal level.