Being confident in your program and making the students feel that this is their "home' environment while they are learning. Making them feel welcome and part of the campus culture helps a lot- Stephen
Stephen,
Building a real sense of community makes a huge difference in results.
Jeffrey Schillinger
I am always the first person in the classroom. I have soft music playing and I always greet my students with a smile and a welcome.
Make a strong first impression on the first day of school, the first moment you get to meet the students. I like greeting students at the door, handshakes, hellos, simple conversations. I like to welcome students into my classroom.
Clayton,
These are techniques that work and should be repeated every time students come to class.
Jeffrey Schillinger
Simle, greet every student as they enter the class acknowledge student that are showing up for class early.
first impressions are everything, if you look like you know what you are doing, everyone assumes you know what you are doing..
Be the aggressor. I don't mean aggressive but initiate the contact by saying hello and smiling. Let the student know you care immediately.
Jonathan,
Taking the first step is always the way to go!
Jeffrey Schillinger
I always greet a person with a smile and a good morning. The more you do this it will start to make a difference. I have some quite students and I started to do this with and now they will smile at me before I can. It is awesome.
First impressions are extremely important! Part of my job is to meet with the student the first time they visit to answers all questions from what a typical day will be like to financial issues. When my appointment/potential student walks in and says, "I have a appointment with ...", I always call them by name and greet them with a smile. People like to hear their own name, it makes them feel special. Body language and eye contact are key as well.
Marcia,
Thank you for this post. The "little things" you mention here are not little at all.
Jeffrey Schillinger
by smiling and acknowleging they as they come in to class it shows you are ready to get to know them and help them in their studies
Looking the student in the eye and engaging in conversation let's them know that you are interested in them as a person.
Say hello, smile, and share an encouraging word/personal experience.
Eye contact, friendly/open body language, and a smile.
I think that the best way to make a first impression is to exemplify what you expect from your students from the way you speak to the students to simply being on time.
So true a simple acknowledgement might be what it takes to change someone's day.
There are many pieces to this, some have already been mentioned by the others but smiling, eye contact, body language, enthusiasm are all important. When students come to my class I like to have the objectives on board, AV equipment set up, etc. so I can demonstrate that I am prepared and excited about the material I am about to deliver. Greeting each student by name is also extremely important.
Jay,
Being prepared is a good way to demonstrate to students that you value them and their time with you.
Jeffrey Schillinger
