Teaching High School …
January 24th, 2006… is kind of like BEING in high school. I’m so over being one of the youngest-looking teachers there. People, I’m 30. I realize that’s young, but it’s not 16-young. You do not need to slink up beside me in the faculty copy room as I am sorting the papers I’m in the middle of cutting and lock the paper cutter for safety! As I turned to resume cutting, she said, “Oh, I just didn’t want anyone to get hurt.” Anyone who? It’s just me near the cutter, and I’m using it to cut things, not to attempt suicide on the school’s liability. She was just being nice, I don’t fault her for that. I think she might have thought I was a student. Maybe I’m paranoid. The way some of them talk to me, though, it’s like they think I’m a little intern. Some of the other teachers take every single opportunity to give me advice in teachy voices. It’s not that I don’t appreciate advice. I just don’t like getting the feeling everyone is thinking, “Isn’t it cute to have a kid around who wants to learn to be a teacher when she grows up?”
At least my students give me some respect. OK, “some” is a bit of an overstatement, but there IS a tiny amount of it there, and it’s early in the semester. They have mine, so if we can make that mutual, we’ll be in business. (Have I mentioned how SMART these teens are? They are totally our future playwrights, senators, and designer-drug chemists.)
January 24th, 2006 at 10:33 am
Ugh, that’s so annoying! It’s like older teachers don’t like you unless you have saggy boobs or wear wooden necklaces. There were a few women like that at the high school I worked at and they treated me like such a baby, I often wanted to scream something like, “I have hot sex with my husband!” just to shock them out of their stencily-teacher-world. Hang in there — and feel free to use that line if situations get dire. : )
January 24th, 2006 at 10:36 am
Ugh, that’s so frustrating. It’s like older teachers don’t think you’re up to the challenge unless you have saggy boobs or wear wooden necklaces. I often wanted to say something like, “Yeah, I had hot sex with my husband last night” just to shock them out of their stencily-teacher-world. Hang in there — and feel free to use that line if the situation gets dire. : )
January 25th, 2006 at 9:58 pm
WORK COMMENTS, WORK!
January 27th, 2006 at 6:47 am
Work, comments, work!
January 27th, 2006 at 6:47 am
Work, comments, work!
January 28th, 2006 at 12:53 am
You should carry samples of “age-reducing” skin cream in your bag and hand them out whenever someone treats you like a kid. Sometimes the passive-aggresive approach is both comforting and effective.
January 29th, 2006 at 6:35 am
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