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| By rikkis_refuge |
Be yourself.
You are going to get tons of advice on how to act with the kids or work with your colleagues. The best thing you can do is just go there and be who you are. You got hired because of who you are, so let the school see it. Kids can see right through the phony, so give them the original and go from there.
Once I decided to let me nerd flag fly, my classroom became an even more fun environment for my students and me. I love letting the geek out and sharing stories with students and it encourages them to be themselves as well. It's the best thing you can do for yourself and your students. It might even inspire some of your fellow teachers to come out from behind their cloud and shine bright with who they really are.
Take a moment between making your first set of copies and standing at the door to greet your new students to think about who you really are and how you are going to share that with your building this year.
Good luck and have fun!
- @TheNerdyTeacher
So right to encourage others to let their "Nerd Flags fly." My mantra for my students is "Embrace your inner dork; you'll be so much happier." Good luck to all the teachers and students starting today, and thanks for your steady flow of posts, Nick. When you post something new it urges me to do the same.
ReplyDeleteThat is fantastic advice...I'm the polar opposite of cool, but end up with students who love being in my class because I've embraced my love of Muppets and superheroes and LEGO and I'm upfront with it. They connect with me as a human, and even if they're not onboard with my particular manias, they're willing to give my class a shot. Great post.
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