Last week, I was part of a First Year Learning Communities discussion about how we foster community in our courses, specifically how we use the first day to begin creating community. There were some great ideas exchanged, and now I’m trying something new to help us get to know each other better in the course I’m teaching this semester.
I’ve also been gathering ideas by looking around the OpenLab. Loved the idea from First Year Writing to change “Syllabus” to “Our Syllabus” on the course site.
What are some ways that you use the first day to bring students together, to create a welcoming space for learning?
What are other goals in that first week of the semester, beyond creating community?
We’d love to have some input from our community, so share your thoughts on either or both of these questions in a comment below.
