NUTSHELL NOTES "Teaching tips in a nutshell" - The University of Colorado at Denver's One-page Newsletter for Teaching Excellence

That time of year again— we are in a room full of new students who want to feel they are recognized and valued as individuals—how can we learn their names? Knowing students helps to improve the classroom climate, and at UCD, a place without a student directory, the introductions we provide may indeed be the main method of building a learning community. Yet, it is a tough task, especially when students move from seat to seat on different days in a large class. Here are some helpful tools.

1. Tell students you want to learn their names, but it is difficult to do so when they change seats or sit way in the back. Ask the class to fill empty spots in the front of the room and retain their seat in order to help you.

2. Have students give their name each time before they speak, and use students' names as often as possible.

3. Have students make name cards on the first days of class. Index cards work well for this. On the card students can write the name they prefer to be called in class. Below their name they can write one sentence which will make them memorable. Collect the cards at the end of the class. Hand out the cards at the beginning of the next few classes, while reading the traits out loud to the class. As note cards are handed out, learn the face of the student associated with the name. Pass just a few cards back each period and become familiar gradually with your class.

4. Strive to just learn a row of students' names each session. Realize that you can best learn just a few names at a time.

5. Have students pair up and introduce themselves to a partner. Tell the pairs that their "test" will be to introduce their partner with "a trait that none of us can forget." At times stop the introductions, point to each introduced student, and ask the class to recall the names of all the students thus far introduced.

6. Have students sit in a circle. Each student must say his/her name and give one identifiable characteristic. The next person has to give his/her name and characteristic, repeat what the person before him/her said, and recall preceding names. The person "unfortunate" enough to be last (perhaps the instructor) must recall all of those before him/her.

7. My favorite - A ball of kite string. Take the end of a ball of kite string and introduce yourself in a manner exemplary of how you would like students to introduce themselves. Toss the ball to a student while holding the end. The student who catches the ball does a self-introduction, then tosses the ball to another student at random. This process continues, with periodic reviews until the whole class is quite literally tied together! For review, the class members can pass the ball back, untangle themselves and talk about the person immediately before them. For instance, "I'm tossing the ball back to Allen. Remember that Allen cuts his own hair." The pattern continues until everyone in the class is disconnected.

8. Make up a sheet of off-the-wall traits (as many as there are people in the class) with blank lines beside them. Examples: "Is wearing shoes that don't require laces," "Likes spaghetti with clam sauce," or "Was born west of the Mississippi." This sheet is handed to every student. You and the students wander around the room, finding individuals with each trait, meet them and record their name. The one rule is that a student can use a person only once to complete his/her sheet.

9. Put students in groups of four. Then challenge the group to come up with five things they all have in common. Five is a number that will require some discussion to achieve. (If you require four things in common, each member may just choose one and present it on behalf of the group.) The one restriction is that the students can't use school- or work-related items. Personal items such as favorite music, books they've read, where they've traveled to, etc. work best. Walk to each group to learn a few names at each.

10. Extreme measure—If all else fails, take snapshots of all of your students (a student could take the photos). Place names on the back and learn name-face pairs as you would from flash cards. A collage of the class pictures can make nice office door decor too--very inviting for students.

Don't worry if you make a mistake (walking on water is not required in this life). Let students know that you may have trouble remembering their names. Most students will appreciate your efforts and will accommodate you.

YUMPs YUMPs!!

YUMPs (Young Upwardly Mobile Professors) activities for the next couple of months include:

The RTP Process Revealed-- Departments, Primary Units, Colleges, etc.
Monday, October 5 and Tuesday, October 6
Noon-1:30 on both days
299 CU-Building (14th & Larimer)

The RTP Process --As Viewed by Recently Tenured Faculty
Tuesday, November 10 and Wednesday, Nov. 11
12:30- 2 on Tuesday and Noon-1:30 on Wednesday
299 CU-Building (14th & Larimer)

Our e-mailing list is incomplete, particularly for newly hired faculty. Also, your having an e-mail account and regularly accessing your e-mail is very important on this campus. Untenured faculty and new faculty who did not receive Bob Damrauer's e-mail should be sure to send us their e-mail address. Send to both Bob Damrauer and Ed Nuhfer at

rdamrauer@castle.cudenver.edu

and

enuhfer@carbon.cudenver.edu

Your Future Use of Computing at UCD

A Strategic Vision for Academic and Administrative Computing at CU-Denver has been developed by a very hard working Information Technology Policy Council. Three open forums will be held to invite comment on the vision and ways to implement it through specific projects and activities. The forums are held on

Wednesday, September 16
1:00-3:00 in Room 299,
CU-Denver Building

Tuesday, September 29
10:00 - noon in GSPA Conference Room "C"
5th floor, Lawrence Street Center

Thursday, October 8
1-3 in Room 5018
North Classroom Building

Please phone Nancy at 6-3339 by Friday, September 11 and let us know which session you plan to attend.

The vision document can be found on the WEB at www.cudenver.edu/public/ITI/council.html.

Hard copies are also available in the Chancellor's office.

Past issues of Nutshell Notes are available at www.cudenver.edu/public/OTE/nn/index.htm