First Day/Week Jitters?

I feel weird.. I was just marking papers -- the first assignment of the year -- to write a letter to the teacher introducing themselves... and I noticed that a couple of my students had written down that they were born in 1988. All of a sudden I felt shivers running down my spine. Am I really only 5 years older than my students? ... isn't that ... odd? I guess I just didn't think of it like that before. I guess I was okay with the grade 2's in the summer because they were so little.. but in some ways I still feel like a high school student myself. I mean, did 4 years of university really go by so fast? Did they???

Sometimes I feel like I still need to leave my house early to catch the GO bus. But now I'm driviinnnnnnggggggggg.

One week ago I watched my sister plan what to wear on her first day back (for grade 12), all the while I planned what I was going to say on that fateful day. And then, surprisingly enough, on that day I wasn't nervous AT ALL. I couldn't believe it afterwards. Like why wasn't I nervous? I'm ALWAYS nervous for first day things! I still don't get it. I suppose I should be happy. Instead I feel as though I don't really know myself.

*Sigh*

Anyways, I walked in, wrote my name on the board, sat ON the teacher's desk, and then proceeded to lie to my students. I told them that I had been teaching for a couple of years. Hey, it just came out! I suppose I'll come clean with them at the end of the semester. I hadn't even planned on lying. But then I hadn't planned on telling the truth either. And then we played one of those getting-to-know-you games that teachers always like to play on the first day. My game* was based on lying. And telling the truth. I figured that would be interesting for high school students. But it got them too excited. I've decided that we shouldn't have games for awhile.

They're a great class. Sure, they're like that English class straight out of Dangerous Minds (seriously!) but a great class nonetheless.

I'm having a lot of fun.

I totally LOVE my job.

And the other classes I've taught so far aren't that bad either.

______________________________


*THE GAME: Each student had to think of two truthful things about themselves to tell the class and one lie. The class hears all three things and has to guess which one is the lie.

Nice eh? My sister gave me the idea. She told me that if I hand out one of those activity sheets where students have to go around asking people if they're born in March they'll hate me. Good advice I think.

Now you play it. In your comment, list three things about yourself in no particular order. Two should be true and one should be a lie. I'll guess which one is false. Be creative. But not too creative. Don't say something like "I'm a boy who wants to become a girl." Those kind of things make teachers wish they assigned textbook questions :D