First Day of Class: Melting Anxiety and Stress with Fun and Comfort
By Daniel Dombrowski
EDI 550/551 Psychology of Adolescent Students
School of Education
Long Island University, C. W. Post
May 20, 2009
When I first came to the decision that I was going back to school, I was excited. As the days went by, I did not really think too much about it, but the days got closer. Finally, it was May 19th, and the first day of class came and then went by just as fast. My experiences with this class, just from the first day, were very different than what I expected.
As I was driving to school, I was feeling a little nervous, but also excited. I expected it to be one of those classes where the teacher lectures and it would be kind of boring. I also did not know what to expect since it was my first graduate level class. Once I sat down in class and started seeing everyone walk in and talking to friends, it made me feel isolated. It was not a problem because I was usually a "loner" when it came to class.
But once Professor Dengting started using some ice-breaker strategies, my anxiety settled once I started talking to people. The Name Game really helped turn the class around for me. By learning everyone's names, hearing the repetition, laughing with everyone when some made a mistake, and having fun made the classroom environment a much more intimate setting. Another note on how this ice-breaker surprisingly helped me was during our ten minute break, a couple of people I did not know before this class were calling me by name and being real friendly with me. This was a complete shock since I am used to students keeping to themselves while in class. I felt Professor Dengting used an incredibly smart technique by having us play the Name Game and by using a good portion of the first class to make a comfortable learning environment.
I feel that is very important for a teacher to lay down the foundation of a comfortable atmosphere so the students are more relaxed. Who knew all this could happen by just playing a couple of ice-breaker games? The best part of this game was that it made everyone in the class approachable. It made it very easy to go up to someone that I did not know and talk to them for the first time and establish friendly ties. It gave me the opportunity to make friends which I probably would not have if it was not for this game.
By playing this game, most of my stress and anxiety about the class faded away. I learned a valuable lesson about teaching from the very first class and that is to try and make the students' learning environment comfortable and have a positive atmosphere. This was all done by playing a couple of ice-breaker games, but the most effective one was the Name Game. This not only makes a positive learning atmosphere, but also opens the door for making friends. This can be a very effective educational tool to help students succeed in their learning experience by having fun and feeling comfortable.
In my experiences, students who are having fun learning want to learn more and do their best. If this is how class is going to be (in terms of fun, engagement, and learning), then it is a sign of good things to come and I cannot wait to learn more.
Long Island University, C. W. Post
May 20, 2009
When I first came to the decision that I was going back to school, I was excited. As the days went by, I did not really think too much about it, but the days got closer. Finally, it was May 19th, and the first day of class came and then went by just as fast. My experiences with this class, just from the first day, were very different than what I expected.
As I was driving to school, I was feeling a little nervous, but also excited. I expected it to be one of those classes where the teacher lectures and it would be kind of boring. I also did not know what to expect since it was my first graduate level class. Once I sat down in class and started seeing everyone walk in and talking to friends, it made me feel isolated. It was not a problem because I was usually a "loner" when it came to class.
But once Professor Dengting started using some ice-breaker strategies, my anxiety settled once I started talking to people. The Name Game really helped turn the class around for me. By learning everyone's names, hearing the repetition, laughing with everyone when some made a mistake, and having fun made the classroom environment a much more intimate setting. Another note on how this ice-breaker surprisingly helped me was during our ten minute break, a couple of people I did not know before this class were calling me by name and being real friendly with me. This was a complete shock since I am used to students keeping to themselves while in class. I felt Professor Dengting used an incredibly smart technique by having us play the Name Game and by using a good portion of the first class to make a comfortable learning environment.
I feel that is very important for a teacher to lay down the foundation of a comfortable atmosphere so the students are more relaxed. Who knew all this could happen by just playing a couple of ice-breaker games? The best part of this game was that it made everyone in the class approachable. It made it very easy to go up to someone that I did not know and talk to them for the first time and establish friendly ties. It gave me the opportunity to make friends which I probably would not have if it was not for this game.
By playing this game, most of my stress and anxiety about the class faded away. I learned a valuable lesson about teaching from the very first class and that is to try and make the students' learning environment comfortable and have a positive atmosphere. This was all done by playing a couple of ice-breaker games, but the most effective one was the Name Game. This not only makes a positive learning atmosphere, but also opens the door for making friends. This can be a very effective educational tool to help students succeed in their learning experience by having fun and feeling comfortable.
In my experiences, students who are having fun learning want to learn more and do their best. If this is how class is going to be (in terms of fun, engagement, and learning), then it is a sign of good things to come and I cannot wait to learn more.
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