Earlier this week I was talking with a friend and fellow high school teacher about the first day of the term that was quickly approaching. He told me that he never goes over the syllabus or the class procedures on the first day. “It can be kind of boring to talk through all of that – regardless of how engaging I try to make it. Instead, I like to get students moving around and talking to one another and having fun right off that bat.” I like his thinking.
Let me be the first to apologize to all former students of mine for such a boring start. And to future students, prepare to be guinea pigs in my first day experiments. Here’s what I’m trying tomorrow:
I’m going to show Google’s 2014 Year in Search Video to offer a quick look at what people have searched for in the past year. I’m then going to put students in groups of 2 or 3 and have them shoot interview-style videos of one another that are less than 30 seconds, and end with something interesting that you searched for in 2014.
In my example, I admit to searching for the cure for polio. We’ll see how it goes.
Mr. Zerwas Teaches Here 