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First day of class

Last week I taught my very first ever class. I have a pretty large class 31 students and my original plan was to go over course documents with a Q & A period and then move right into course content. This plan was a little side tracked by missing textbooks for the entire class and I lost nearly an hour of lecture time.

I tried to remain positive and let my students know that by being flexible and creative we can as a collective group still get everything accomplished.

That almost happened but I still ended up with an entire chapter that did not get lectured on. I adjusted my course content schedule to the benefit of the students in this case but am now worried that they will always expect adjustments that give them more time to complete a task and not require some degree of self study. Should I have done this differently?

I think you handled the situation well. I would suggest preparation ahead of time not only of the material but assuring you have all the needed materieals and textbooks. This way you could adjust or plan accordingly, and the students would never know there was somethign missing. Easier said than done, but just a suggestion.

Hi Kellie,
No, you handled the situtation well. You are in control; you dictate what is to be done.

Patricia Scales

Not having course material on the first day happens all to often. I have found that if I have more than one lesson planned you can always move to the next lesson and most times the transition is not noticed by the students (as long as its still in the same subject or module)

Mke classroom lectures fun, engaged and if you don't get everything accomplished first day, schedule in on day two.

This I think happens to the majority of first class days. Not only books but as well as missing students ect. I think you did the appropriate actions to keep the students. Having a plan of action is a great idea to keep the focus.

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