In most of the classes that I teach, we have many training aids. I like to set several of these on the desks before beginning the first day of class. As students come in and I am meeting-and-greeting, taking roll and putting together my seating chart (I am lousy with names) they can pick up and touch and hold these in their hands and this will spark a curiosity in most of the students. I will then briefly discuss each part and let them know at which point in the class we will be going in-depth on each part. Another first day activity I stole from another teacher (we encourage ‘stealing’ ideas from other teachers here) is to write several key words or terms specific to the upcoming course and have the students write, on paper provided, what they think each word or term means. Even a wrong guess can become a powerful mnemonic for the student. Have fun John