Midterm Conferences

My school does midterm exams, Thursday through Wednesday.
I teach Composition, Brit Lit Survey I, and Shakespeare and don't give tests so I decided to do something different.
I cancelled classes and instead asked students to sign up for one on one conferences in 15 minute increments. I told them I was doing this because I understood they had classes that DID give midterms, and I wanted to give them a bit of a break, and a chance to focus on those classes.
These conferences were super low-key. In my office, I have my desk where my computer is off to the side, and a table where I conference with students. The conference table is the first thing you see when you walk in.

I bought snacks. I wanted to buy fruit- bananas, apples, grapes, but I was worried I'd end up with an office full of rotting fruit so I bought this. There were some student requests, which I fulfilled. Then, funnily enough, when I TOLD the students I wanted to get fruit, they said they would've eaten fruit, so yesterday I bought fruit for Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday's conferences.

My conferences are short and sweet.
I ask how they're feeling about the class.
I ask if there's anything they need help with.
I ask if there's anything I can do.
I ask how their midterms and other classes are going.
Before they leave I tell them good luck on their midterms, and that there are snacks if they want.

I learned a lot about my students in these two days. Some when asked about how they feel about the class answer by telling me how they feel they are doing in the class. Some answer by telling me how they feel I'm doing in the class. Some shared some very rough things. When you ask students how they are, and they know that you're asking because you genuinely care, they answer you.

There were some things that they mentioned, stood out that I thought I'd share.
Every student who comes in my office comments on how nice it smells. I always have an apple-cinnamon plug in. I learned from my years of teaching high school, that a welcoming smell can make a big difference. In fact, some students knew to find my office BECAUSE someone told you it smelled good.
My door is decorated, with notices, comics, pictures. When I was a 1st gen student, and knew nothing about college, door decorations were always interesting to me. How welcoming a professor might be. What they were liked. My students like that Nehi is on my door, both in a picture AND that my weekly schedule says that I go home at lunch to let Nehi out. They also liked my Calvin and Hobbes cartoon. They didn't know who they were, but they thought the cartoon was funny.

I also put out my game of Othello. I bought it just for my office. The tagline for the game is "a minute to learn, a lifetime to master." I used to play with my Mom, and man, she used to throw that tagline in my face! I swear, all the years we played, I think I only beat her a couple of times. I tell my students this story when they ask about the game. Several stayed to play with me. They said they liked it. I told them they were always welcome to come back and play.

I have a deck of cards too. I like playing gin rummy, but no one took  me up on it.

I did not have a lot of goals with doing this other than showing students I understood what was going on with them, giving them space to breathe, and offering support. I think these types of things are important.

One of the things I really love about where I am is that I am building something here. I see these types of things as laying a foundation. This midterm routine will become a regular thing. Students will learn they can depend on it. I hope it opens the door to them feeling more comfortable to come see me, use me as a resource, and for our English majors, an advisor.

These are small kindnesses. They don't cost much. But the impact, the effect, I hope, is big.