What Should I Do to Set the Tone for the Semester? Stephanie L. Bradley Introduce myself – name, TA and teaching experience

Outline Class Preparation Setting the Tone with the Instructor Setting the Tone with the Students Final Thoughts and Q&A Ask about their roles this semester – In-person vs online; instructor of record, support TA with teaching responsibilities, TA exclusively with support responsibilities Tailor the information from this presentation to your specific situation

How would you like a conductor to prepare for a trip?

Class Preparation Gain access to technological resources Set up a TEC account https://condor.tecad.fsu.edu/inst_tools/account/acctid_form.aspx Request a Blackboard site*; ensure correct access Understand available technological resources Explore the Blackboard Support tab* Visit your classroom Prepare/understand the syllabus Check textbook orders Read “A Guide to Teaching & Learning at FSU”* Read the “TA Handbook” http://pie.fsu.edu/TA-Handbook *The location of these items is displayed on the next slide. Speaks to the importance of preparation, ensuring a logistically smooth start to the semester, and to being able to assist students TA Handbook: “since you are talking about the beginning of the semester & setting the tone, maybe you can mention material on page 16 about the attendance policy, and also the syllabus policy (see blurb on page 23-24). Also if you would like to quickly reference textbook adoption on p. 25 that would be fine as well (again, if you don’t cover this it is ok, we will tell them all they need to read these sections in detail). I think you were planning to speak  a little about this anyway, but please correct me if I am wrong. You need not cover these in minute detail---you can always refer them back to those pages of the TA handbook, and tell them they should be sure to read it in detail.”

Blackboard Support Tab

With and for whom do you set the tone?

Setting the Tone with the Instructor When to act alone; when to involve them Preferred method of communication Work load and office hours Your classroom attendance Other expectations Grade calibration Other suggestions?

Setting the Tone with the Students Making Your 1st Class Really "First Class” Write down: what these instructors say what these instructors do

Setting the Tone with the Students From Urban Dictionary

Setting the Tone with the Students Orchestrate positive first impressions Clarify learning objectives and expectations Help students learn about each other Set the tone for the course Whet students’ appetite for course content Inform students about logistics Learn about the students Other suggestions? NOTE TO OTHER PRESENTERS: If you’re interested, use this link to get a gist of what I plan to discuss - http://www.cmu.edu/teaching/designteach/teach/firstday.html.

Final Thoughts…