When I first started teaching in 1999, one of my colleagues, a beloved veteran teacher, said, “Sully [my last name was Solley, but she had the kind of personality that was not to be corrected], you need to get that First Days of School book by the Wongs.” So I did (I still have it in my office). At the time, everything in it seemed to be common sense, and I guess it was–on paper. But once I was in the trenches, facing 32 high school seniors, with all their eyes locked on me, those “commonsense” strategies felt anything but simple.

Wong believes the first day of class is the most important day in a student’s education, and over the years, I’ve come to wholeheartedly agree with this. It blows my mind that some of my college professors would literally read the syllabus to us on the first day of class. Can you imagine such an offense? The first day of class for me now is about setting the tone of the class, having students do what I expect them to do for the rest of the semester, and of course, building community. I start with reading their names aloud and telling them to correct me if I say them incorrectly. Next, I have them sign-in as that is a procedure that happens every class meeting. From there, we do introductions, and I offer opportunities for them to “break the ice” before we dig into the content for the first week. Here are more activities I do to build community. Some are better suited for in-person classes, but they can all be modified for any modality.

1. M&M Ice Breaker (I learned this from teaching a learning community with the masterful Sherry Wangen): Students receive mini packets of M&M candies. On the overhead is a list of sentence starters that match individual M&M colors. Students need to finish the sentence of the first color M&M they draw. I go first, then students complete the exercise and share at their table teams. A couple examples of the sentence starters are: “I am here at GCC to…” and “A song I’m into right now is….”

2. Pear Deck: I use this Google extension because my students can interact in real time with the content, and it costs nothing. It is low stakes and works as a formative assessment throughout my class. Additionally, students can anonymously ask any question, and I’ll answer it. It also allows me to offer temperature checks (How are you feeling today?), positive mindset activities (What is one thing you like about yourself?), 3-2-1 entry/exit tickets, and cognitive breaks.

3. Introduction Discussion: Students can introduce themselves to the class. I offer a few prompts for them to respond to. For a bonus, they can add a study strategy they use or a motivational or inspirational song. 

4. Class Playlist: I take the songs students list in the intro discussion or vocabulary-building discussion and make a class playlist on Spotify. I embed it into an announcement in Canvas, and students can access it at their leisure. I may play it at the beginning of class, too, as I typically have some kind of music happening in class, from jazz guitar to Motown.

5. Sense of Belonging: At the top of every Canvas course home page, I have three sayings: You are not alone. You have potential. We are going to do this together. This emerged from the Cohen research I brought to the table at GCC a few years ago.

6. Setting Norms: The second class meeting, we discuss norms, and complete a norm setting activity for the class. These norms are posted at the top of the class homepage as reminders. 

7. Snacks: In my culture, we show we care through cooking and food. While I don’t have time to whip up a home-cooked feast for my students, I do show I care by bringing in a tray of snacks—usually Costco bars, maybe some fruit or candy. Students seem to really like them: “These are delicious!”, “Just like my mom gets!”, “Thank you!”

8. Vulnerability: I practice vulnerability with my students. When I’m writing with them, I share my personal experiences and keep it real by acknowledging that life has its ups and downs. It creates a warm and authentic atmosphere where we can all connect and support each other.

These are just a few of the ways I’ve evolved my practice to build community and create that Wong-inspired first day magic in my classroom.