November is a challenging month for #1Ls. Exam prep, class, job search.
I wish I could make it less stressful. But since I can’t let me offer this: make a schedule
Don’t just do what feels urgent. Make a plan down to day/hour. Intentionally assigns tasks & breaks to slots.
New #1Ls: You are probably taking a course called #LegalWriting or Legal Practice (full disclosure I teach it @GeorgetownLaw).
You may think "I know how to write & so I can sneak by this one."
As a starting student I thought that too.
That is a mistake. Here is why:
As we move into the mid-September the adrenaline and excitement of new #1Ls may be giving way to the feeling of “oh man, I don’t know how to do this.”
And that is JUST FINE. If you knew how to do it you wouldn’t go to law school. It takes time. It takes reps. It takes practice.
My #1Ls are doing peer review on briefs this week. Peer review is HARD--esp. when the reviewer is still a novice.
But what impressed me is how (1) sincere and kind the reviews are & (2) that its easier to diagnose issues in someone else's writing that you can't see in your own.
🚨Must Read Alert 👇
As always I am impressed by the ✍️ of my thoughtful @GeorgetownLaw colleague @erinccarroll13 who asks is persuasion dead?
I esp. look forward to sharing this with my #1Ls after our study of MLK’s Letter from a Birmingham Jail....
Every year at this time I share this article with my students. It tells the story of Justice Kagan’s grades in the first semester of law school.
For #1Ls: The curve is hard. And remember your 1st semester is just one tiny moment in a long career....
#1Ls: Do not (I repeat DO NOT) spend break stressing about exams.
I remember spending my 1L winter break stressing about how bad I thought I had done. This is your 1st exams and so you have NO sense of how well or poorly you did. Enjoy the much needed recharge. You deserve it.
Dear New #1Ls,
You are probably taking a course called #LegalWriting, Legal Practice, or Legal Analysis.
You may be thinking "I know how to write" or "I can sneak by this one" or "I'll just focus on other classes."
On day 1, I was like you.
Pro Tip: Don't be me.
🧵👇👇👇
Said goodbye to my #1Ls during the last lecture of the year on Zoom. Always a bittersweet moment—happy for their success, sad to see them go. Felt that no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t convey how proud I am and how excited I am for their future . . . through a screen...
Still on a high from my @georgetownlaw #1Ls oral arguments last night. They were AMAZING!
And, in the “prepare for anything” category,” the lights and power went out in the middle of the first argument and they just kept arguing. Be prepared for anything!
For #1Ls: if you didn’t understand of review. You should now.
One of my favorite days of the semester! #1Ls are doing supervisor presentations with PowerPoint. Digital presentations are increasingly a part of the practice of law and yet law students are too rarely taught how to prepare these presentations or what to include. /1
One more metaphor: my Nationals clinched a playoff spot after starting 19-33. A good reminder for #1Ls who struggle in the first few weeks. You are not judged on how you start, but on the whole body of work. Don't let a tough start derail the whole semester. Get better every day.
There is a lot of pre-law school advice about what #1Ls should do to succeed. Now, a few weeks in, I'll add something modest: a semester is a marathon not a sprint. Use these weeks to experiment and build a sustainable process. After each week ask what prep helped, what didn't.
Just for the record, this isn't about today's #ELGC case study moots - no 1Ls were abused :) Prof. Matthews' #1Ls at @OsgoodeNews were absolutely beyond impressive today. We definitely tested them, but every single student had so much more poise than I remember having in #1L!
Excited to welcome my Law Fellows (TAs) back to school this week to learn more about #legalwriting and to prepare for the new class of @GeorgetownLaw #1Ls! I learned so much as a Law Fellow during my time as a student at GULC. Looking forward to working with them as a Prof.
