C1

Climate C1: Knows students as individuals

Practices

• Every student brings their unique history, personality, and interests into the classroom. Knowing your students as individuals allows you to better connect with them both instructionally and personally.
• Instructors should tailor classroom activities to meet the needs and interests of students, which will never be identical between two groups of students.

Activities

• Check in: a ritual we have used in collaboration and class meetings is to start each meeting with a check in. This has a specific form and reason. We all have busy lives going from one thing to another. We sit down in a space with all that we have done and all that we have to do in our heads, yet we are still in this space together. As a way of turning our attention to the moment we practice listening. Each person shares what is distracting them from being together. There are two rules for check in: 1) you don’t have to check in and 2) we don’t comment on another’s check in. The reason we don’t comment is that this then will turn into a conversation and this is not the purpose of check in. We have found this practice to be life-giving and an excellent method of building trust and community.
• Partner Questionnaire Activity (Details and instructions are included after the questionnaire)
• Meet-and-Greet activity:
  • Part 1: Introduction slides. Instructions for use and an example are provided.
  • Part 2: Jamboard. Instructions can be found on the last slide here.

Observable Behaviors:

C1.1: Uses students’ names

C1.2: Talks with students informally before or after class 

C1.3: Shows knowledge of students’ interests beyond the class