The First Day

The first week of school is always filled with an equal mix of anticipation, chaos, and just plain exhaustion.  In years past, I would find myself filling the time teaching students my classroom procedures, rules for conducting labs, rules for using laptops and so many other mundane things.  To be quite honest, I was bored with the day's activities before they even began.

Harry K. Wong mentions in his book "The First Days of School" that the first days of school are the most important days of the entire year:

"What effective teachers do on the very first day will determine the success of the school year"        

I teach freshmen.  They are the low end of the totem pole here.  They are energetic, outspoken, and sometimes difficult to manage.  I also teach them at the end of the day.  Recipe for disaster if you are not prepared.

So I started my first day with an energetic version of my rules and procedures filled with plenty of opportunities for my students to get to know their classmates and learn their way around the classroom.

 Here's an example of the first day in my classroom

What do you do on the first day?