Perhaps the most basic step toward relationship development is learning students names. Learning their names quickly demonstrates desire to know the students and that you see them as individuals rather than cogs in a wheel. Yet, with 150 new names to learn each year, learning the names quickly can be daunting. Furthermore, I teach in a very diverse district and many of the names are new to me, have unfamiliar origins and are difficult for me to pronounce.
This year during the first day of school (today), I took out my flip video camera and as the students filled out the first day information sheet (further demonstrating my desire to know them as individuals) I went around to each student and had them say their name into the camera. With all of my sections and all of my students, the resulting video is about 7 minutes long. I can watch the video several times over the next few days and be able to match names with faces rather than just names with locations on a seating chart. Additionally, I emailed the video to the other teachers on my team so we can all be able to recognize students in the hallway and in our classes sooner rather than later.
I hope you all work to know your students as individuals and know that the extra effort you make to develop relationships with your students will reap great rewards in the form of improved student learning, classroom management, and greater participation!
Please share further strategies you use to develop meaningful relationships with your students in the comments!
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I do a game where everyone gets in a circle and we toss a ball to each other. I say the name of the person then throw it to them and the next person does the same and so on. Later, add more balls or give a time limit or try to go without dropping. Talk about how the added rules made them focus and do better and explain how the activity wouldn't work without communication. Also, everyone's names are shouted frequently and by the end, everyone knows at least two people if not everyone in the class.
ReplyDeleteThe video is a great idea! I can't imagine how difficult it must be to memorize all those names. I always make knowing all student names by the second day my goal. I know it truly makes the students feel special when you call them by name!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great idea, Jerrid. I use a seating chart in my classes. As students fill out a questionnaire at the beginning of the first day, I walk around the room and make small talk with as many students as I can. Because their names are on their papers, it's a good excuse to call them by their names. Later in the class, we do a few activities that require students to do some thinking before talking. I use this "think time" to look at my seating chart and then call on students by their names. Just a few more little things to think about that have helped me remember students' names early on.
ReplyDeleteOur school database has student ID photos with each student name...so I can pull up a class and see the name and the student photo as well as grades, discipline and private info. Quite useful!
ReplyDeleteOur school has that too, but the pics are so small and from nearly a year ago. 8th graders don't very often look like their 7th grade selves. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks to everyone for the great ideas!
Low-tech: each student folds a sheet of notebook paper to make a name card to keep on his or her desk until I learn all the names—usually a week or so. When students work in class I walk around, answer questions, give help, and learn names. If I'm unsure about pronunciation, I ask. —Eric MacKnight http://www.EricMacKnight.com/
ReplyDeleteThe video is a great idea. I have been taking photos of the students each year, holding up a paper with their name. The upside is that I learn their names more quickly, but the downside is that they make "mugshot" jokes. A quick vid might help that.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I recommend you keep the vid. I recently found my pics from 3 years ago and it was a great little trip down memory lane.
The video is a great idea. My seating chart is head-shots of the students. For the first few weeks of school I carry it around and try to always call on students by name. It usually takes until the end of the first quarter to get them all down!
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