Activity for first day of class: six-word memoir

Hello colleagues, The start of fall classes will soon be upon us. I've been reading up on various ways teachers start a new class. Some members might be interested in checking out  James P. Lang's article, "How to Teach a Good First Class: Advice Guide," in the Chronicle of Higher Education. Math teachers might be interested in checking out The Art of Mathematics site, which features several videos demonstrating some creative activities for the first day of class.

An activity I'm especially interested in is the Six-Word Memoir, which was highlighted by Rick Wormell in a recent blog post, "Getting to Know our Students." As Wormell explans, "The basic idea is to write the gist of a memoir ... in only six words as Ernest Hemingway reportedly did: 'For sale: baby shoes, never worn.'

"We can't use five or seven words; it has to be six. Other samples include,

• 'Need more friends or more hobbies,
• 'My entourage asleep in his crib,'
• 'Some shoes will take you anywhere,'
• 'My greatest ideas involve duct tape.'"

I think the Six-Word Memoir would be a great activity for getting to know students on the first day of class. I'm curious what other teachers think.

To see more examples of six-word memoirs, including the "memoir of the day" and memoirs written by celebrities check out the website. As Wormell adds, "The interesting part of six-word memoirs is not the memoir itself, as clever and insightful as it may be. It's the students' elaborations upon them, explaining them in writing or orally to others that is the most expressive element. Be sure to leave time, structure, and facilitation for that component."

I have never tried writing a six-word memoir, but I want to give it a go. You are invited to do so, too. Feel free to share your memoir here! 

Cheers, Susan Finn Miller

Moderator, Teaching & Learning CoP