Culturally Responsive Classrooms Start on Day One

As a young, inexperienced teacher I remember wondering what my first day of class should look and feel like.  In my first school district, the first day was only a half-day and veteran teachers advised,   “ Oh, you only have twenty minutes so just hand out your syllabus and lay down the law.  You don’t have time to do anything else.”  I tried that method and learned that I had missed a huge opportunity to build community and get to know my students on the first day.    After learning my lesson the hard way, I started to prioritize relationships from day one. 

Here are three of the best methods that I’ve observed or tried personally for getting to know students from the first minute of class on the first day: 

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Greet your students at the door and welcome them into your classroom. ​

I know Dan recommended this one too (see last week's blog post), and it's because you can’t go wrong with being a welcoming presence for your students as they enter your classroom.  Harry Wong, author of The First Day of School, writes that students biggest worry on the first day is, “Am I in the right place?”  Once they see you and you assure them they are in the right spot then they can relax and began to feel comfortable in the learning space. 

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Ask the students what you should know about them as a learner.

 I have had great success with using a four square inventory like the one shown here :  ​​

I share with students that I collect this information so that I can get to know them, their learning styles and their backgrounds better and that these won’t be shared with others in the class.  I also model my own responses before they answer so they have some time to reflect.  

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Give students an opportunity to get to know each other.

From day one I want my students to know that our classroom is built on mutual respect and valuing each other’s perspectives.  An easy and non-threatening way to begin the conversation with one another is the M&M game.  

This post brought to you by Heather Willman, POSA of Secondary Curriculum, Instructional Coaching, and Staff Development