Planning Ahead #1

In the 30 Rock episode "Shower Principle" Jack tells Liz that the best time to solve problems is when you are focusing on simple tasks. Today, while I was getting my hair cut I solved one of my classroom problems that has been frustrating me for a year.

My students don't know each other in my beginning classes. By the end of the year, they still didn't know people's names. It made me sad; a drama class shouldn't function like that. They had all worked together but still didn't know each other. So I want to put a focus on getting to know each other. One way I'll do this is by giving them a test at the end of the 1st semester on everyone's names. They will know about it from day one, and every time I change the seating chart or put them in groups I will set aside some time for them to get to know the people around them. I assumed they would do this naturally, but it doesn't seem to have happened last year.

I will get started on this on the first day of school. They will be put into groups of three or four and told to introduce themselves. Each group will then come up with two or three classroom rules they feel are important. As a group they will introduce each other and the rules they created. This kills two birds with one stone: starts them getting to know each other and it
gets them involved in setting classroom procedures. I wanted more student input on class rules last year but was too intimidated to make it work. But now I have a plan and can put it into action instead of trying to make something up on the spot.