Cultivate Belonging and Connectedness in your Classroom Right From the Start!

Cultivating Belonging & Connectedness 
Many studies have demonstrated the tremendous value of getting to know your students and building rapport in the classroom.  Some of the benefits include increased student participation, enhanced student motivation, and it can even positively affect students' performance.  (e.g. Frisby & Martin, 2010; Wilson et al., 2010). 

Low Effort, High Impact Strategies
for Building Rapport In-Person and Online

Get to Know Your Students BY NAME 
Learning students' names is truly the foundation for building relationships and is considered an inclusive classroom practice. It is essential to also learn how to correctly pronounce and spell each student’s name.  

• Ask students the name they wish to be called, as it may be different in SIS or Canvas
• Have students create a Name Tent so you can call on them by name, during class
• Use their name when providing feedback verbally and in writing
• Take individual/team photos (with student consent)
• Have students complete their Canvas Profile

Get to Know Your Students BEYOND THEIR NAME 
How do you get to know your students? Ask questions! Start out by brainstorming what you WANT to know about your students. Understanding the career and personal interests of your students, their strengths, challenges, and aspirations will help you to provide them with higher-quality learning opportunities.  
Investing the time in getting to know your students, shows them you care about their learning needs. 

• Use note cards or Google Forms to collect student information
• Sample:  Student Information Google Form  ​- available to copy and customize
• Sample: How Are You Google Form - available to copy and customize
• Create an assignment where students introduce themselves via digital poster, google slide, or Animoto video on a discussion board or in class 
• Use a “Ticket Out” of class each week, or module as an ongoing way to check in with students

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For more strategies, check out: Applying the Community of Inquiry Framework

and Reviewing and Organizing the data you collect on the Student Info Form
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