Planning Your First Day of Class

The first day of class is your opportunity to present your vision of the class to prospective students. It is helpful if you can introduce yourself as a scholar and educator and provide insight into how you will teach the class and what you will expect them to contribute to the learning process.

Consider that several of your students may be “shopping” for a schedule the first week of classes (if it is an elective course such as a GenEd or a GAP course). They may be looking for a class that will fill a particular time slot, include a particular learning environment, or a class with a certain workload to balance the demands of their other courses and extra-curricular responsibilities.

Regardless of whether your course is an elective or a mandatory part of their program, students will appreciate a clear roadmap of what you will require of them over the course of the semester. You may also want to model, as specifically as possible, the classroom environment you intend to foster during the class. For example, if they will spend a good deal of time doing group work over the course of the semester, you may want to break them into groups on the first day.

• The Inviting Classroom
• Course Expectations and Requirements
• Additional Resources
• Summary Checklist

Welcoming: How to Create an Inviting Classroom

Introduce Yourself

The point of an introduction is to establish yourself as a unique individual sharing the classroom with other unique individuals. Other than providing your name and the name of the course you’re teaching, here is some information you may consider sharing:

• Personal biography: your place of birth, family history, educational history, hobbies, sports and recreational interests, how long you have been at the College, and what your plans are for the future.
• Educational biography: how you came to specialize in your chosen field, a description of your specific area of expertise, your current projects, and your future plans.
• Teaching biography: how long have you taught, how many subjects/classes have you taught, what level of class you normally teach, what you enjoy about being in the classroom, what do you learn from your students, and what you expect to teach in the future.

In making your decision about what information to share, consider how much you want them to know and how much you want to reveal about yourself. This is completely your own choice.

Allow the Students to Introduce Themselves

This is your opportunity to focus on students as unique and diverse individuals. Consider how introductions can lead to a productive and welcoming classroom environment. Instead of just asking general questions concerning their name, major, and years at Fanshawe, ask them questions that are pertinent to the subject and the atmosphere you want to build through the semester. Here are some examples:

• In a geography or history class, you may want to ask students to introduce themselves and explain where they are from. You could mark these places on a map of the world as they talk.
• In a math class, you may want to ask the students to introduce themselves and state one way mathematics enriches their lives every day.
• You may also want to have the students break into pairs, exchange information, and introduce one another to the class.
• In LLS, it is not uncommon to teach classes where students are all part of the same program, especially in our writing and professional communication classes. You should take this into consideration when designing orientation activities; your students may already be familiar with each other, may have already had a program orientation, or may be participating in a number of getting-to-know-you activities in their other classes. Trying something more unique and making connections between your class and their program of study can be helpful.  You can ask your program coordinator, academic planner, or SIS to designate what types of students you can expect in your class section.

This may also be a good time to give your students an exercise that enables teachers to assess the state of their students’ previous or current learning in the subject matter. These are called Classroom Assessment Techniques (CATs) and include the following:

• The Background Knowledge Probe is a short, simple questionnaire given to students at the start of a course, or before the introduction of a new unit, lesson or topic. It is designed to uncover students’ pre-conceptions about the area of study.

Refer to the Classroom Assessment Techniques (CATs) QRG of this guide for more information.

Discuss and Evaluate the Room Environment Together

There are many different room types at Fanshawe College. As your students are introducing themselves and you are talking to them, ask your students to comment on the acoustics and remain conscious of how well you can hear and see each of them. Consider, with their input or alone, how you would change and optimize the seating arrangement. At the end of the introductions, ask them to move to optimize communication and make note of unexpected needs for a microphone, lighting changes, seating arrangements or other environmental controls.

Truth in Advertising: Course Expectations and Requirements

The following is a series of topics to address in your first week of class:

• Course overview: Provide a map of where the class will start and end, and what you expect them to understand at the end of the semester.  This is a good opportunity to introduce the course outline and review your supplementary syllabus. See the Course Outlines, Plans, and Syllabi page for more information.
• Course Requirements/Expectations/Policies: If your course sets standards and requirements, you may want to establish that you are required to work within those parameters (For example, consider the specific requirements for WRIT that are common to all sections). You should also review the importance of Academic Integrity at the College and any course requirements you have set (including assignment deadlines, late policies, attendance expectations, or other classroom rules you intend to abide by). Check with your program coordinator if you are unsure about any departmental policies that may pertain to your curriculum.
• Presentation of material: Tell your students how you will provide them with the materials they need to be successful in class. Do you post Web-based materials on FanshaweOnline or rely on electronic course reserves through the Library? Will your students have to schedule evenings to watch films or attend performances? Will you lecture and expect them to take notes on your presentations? If you are teaching a blended course, explain how the blended hour(s) will work and what the student requirements will be for the online hour.
• Expectations for class time: How will the student feel confident and competent in your classroom? Is the class discussion-based? Do you follow your syllabus or do you improvise? Do they need to bring their books every day? Tell them what they can expect and how can they interact within those expectations to thrive in your classroom.
• Expectations outside of class: Provide them with an idea of what they will need to prepare for the course outside of class. Is their preparation primarily reading and writing individually, or will they be working in groups? Will they need to turn in assignments electronically outside of class hours? Give them enough information so they will be able to plan their schedules accordingly.
• Instructor responsibilities:
  • Establish what you will provide for your students to be successful in your class. This may include in-class material, study guides, meaningful and prompt feedback on assignments, facilitation of discussion, attention to students with special needs, and a positive and welcoming classroom environment.
  • Assert your boundaries: Let your students know how to contact you and when. For example, communicate or provide your office hours, office phone number, availability for instant messaging, email, and when you do not respond (evenings, weekends, and travelling for example). If you are travelling during the semester, you may want to explain the dates that you will not be available.
  • You may also want to alert your students to the events, habits, or situations that detract from your ability to fulfill your responsibility. For example, if late assignments, lack of participation, or sleeping during your lectures distracts you from timely and persuasive teaching, explain why you cannot tolerate these events and how you handle them when they occur.
• Student responsibilities: If attendance is required, participation is mandatory, or you want them to read the assignment before class, explain to your students that this is expected of them throughout the semester. Explain policies on absences, make-ups, emergencies, and accommodating special needs. You may also remind them that they are responsible for their success and for communicating with you when they have need assistance or have other concerns.
• Assessment: How will you assign the course grade at the end of the semester? How many assignments will you grade? Do you have grading policies and/or rubrics or criteria for grading?
• Cooperation/communication/resources: Finally, you may want to spend a few minutes discussing college, library, or other resources for students to use throughout the course of the semester.

Summary Checklist

• Introduce yourself
• Allow the students to introduce themselves
• Discuss and evaluate the room environment together
• Course overview
• Course requirements, expectations and policies
• Presentation of material
• Expectations for class time
• Expectations outside of class
• Instructor responsibilities
• Student responsibilities
• Assessment
• Cooperation/communication/resources

References

The following resource has been adapted and remixed from the following:

Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching (2020). First Day of Class. Retrieved [11.30.2023] from https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/first-day-of-class/. This teaching guide is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Some changes in wording and resource suggestions have been made or omitted to apply to the Fanshawe College context.

Change log: This version contains stylistic, organizational and branding changes that differ from the above source. In addition, changes in wording and references to other institutions and external resources have been either updated or removed. Fanshawe College-specific information has been added to reflect our teaching and technology ecosystem.