The power, potential, and fun of the first week

Consider for building your classroom community:      

Building community in our classroom is an on-going project for us. We are also committed to supporting identity safety and addressing stereotype threats in our schools. Given our support for equity  and the CCSS for Speaking and Listening,  many of us use equity or participation cards.

On the participation cards I often ask students to write their name in one corner, their birthday in a 2nd corner, and their specific goal in the 3rd corner, after spend a brief time clarifying the value of identifying a specific, task or activity and not simply choosing a grade as a goal.  I often wait to do this project until after my students have learned about our course and our classroom expectations.

Many of us have our students create some art on the the “blank” side.

Research by G. Cohen (Reducing the Racial Achievement Gap, Science, 2006, 2010 ) and applications in local schools have encouraged me to ask students to note another item about their core values or what they care most about on the 4th corner of their card. In studies and classrooms where students were asked to write about their own core values or “re-affirm their self integrity” the racial achievement gap was reduced by 30-40%.  

This reflecting, recording, and sharing of a student’s core values can be optional, connected to a classroom activity or expectation, or added into that first week’s letter to the teacher.  Participation or equity cards are not the only place for this activity.

Learning about our students’ values and goals goes a long way in adding to our ability to develop community, honor each student, and grow our own growth mindset as well as  diminish stereotypes.

For more ideas from our colleagues: Sophia Caramagno, Carla Gomez, Carson Rosenberg, and Alma Ruelas created a plentiful Resource Guide to Community Building Activities.  

Enjoy the start of the 2015-16 year,