Immediately use the opportunity to test their knowledge on some obscure topic you taught last year, retrieval is important, you never know when an exam might leap out at you in the wild š
If you had to wait around with them, Iād just say something like āhowās your day/weekend?ā Then be like ānice to see you!ā And run away ASAP š¤£
I live in catchment so see them all the time. I ignore unless they say hello to me first and then it's just usually a "Hello, hope you're having a nice day" or whatever back.
I don't mind it to be fair. It's not the "nicest" area (although I love it here) and I think it helps them to see me as an actual person that I live in the same streets as them.
I do avoid the park straight after school though. Dog is always walked late!!
I literally live 13 miles away from my school. It was only during lockdowns ādaily exercisesā I discovered one of my tutees lives round the bloody corner from me
Just be prepared for them to mention it on Monday. "Sir I saw you in KFC! Buying a chicken bucket!"
Yes, we are humans who require food too and sometimes we can't be bothered to cook.
I just say āthatās surprising. As I live in the cupboard at the back of the room there, and donāt come out unless Iām teaching. Must have been someone else.ā
I just smile and say hello. Normally they are so shocked to see that you exist outside of school and arenāt kept in a classroom cupboard & brought out each morning that they donāt say much anyway.
I bumped into a sixth former in a nightclub whilst very pissed. I just waved, they looked mortified and ran away... Was fun seeing them in school the week after. Again they were mortified, I just owned it.
They're honestly usually more embarrassed than us I feel.
While on the bus home yesterday, a student tapped me on the shoulder and said āmind checking my essay?ā She had it up on her phone. Theyāre just as awkward about it as we are!
I just say hello and then move on unless they want to chat. I always think of it as being a taster of what famous people experience. I live in the catchment area and I actually quite enjoy it because it makes me feel part of the community.
For me, itād just be a smile and a hello.
Any conversation outside of the classroom quickly highlights how much they donāt actually know you. Itās like seeing ex-studentsā¦ in a way itās lovely, but itās also awkward because beyond them asking you if youāre still working at the school, thereās not really anything else they can ask because, actually, they know almost nothing about you.
I can never remember the names of ex-students when I speak to them but will remember a few hours later.
Something I try to explain to Year 11s when they try the "I bet you'll miss us when we leave" conversation, there's 300 of them in a year group, I've probably taught 200 of them over the 5 school years, the chance of me having the brain space to even think about who they are is pretty small.
I ignore them entirely unless they initiate first and then I say hello or smile back depending on the circumstances.
If it is a situation where you are forced to be beside each other like a train for example. I politely chat about school related things and remove myself as soon as I can.
I try to keep moving, if they greet me, I greet back and keep walking. I went into KFC as well and there were about 12 kids from y10 and up, that was an raise of the eyebrows and an awkward 'here we all are then' then we all went back to our delicious chicken.
It could be worse. During my training year I once stepped outside my house to see one of my year 7 tutor group walking past the gate. He stopped and looked at me and simply said, "I didn't know you lived here sir".
To which I responded, "No, Student X, you wouldn't know."
We both walked 20 meters down the road at which point he looked up and me, pointed at the school and said, "I'm going this way."
"Very good", and said, and decided it was a good time to take the alternative route in.
Some of my year 9s saw me out and about and I had just really enthusiastically said hello to two dogs and I just heard a laugh and a "hiiii miss" and so I said hi back to him and then ran away. Usually I just say hello and then scarper
I live near my school and see students all the time. If I'm on my own they'll often say Hi as they walk by and that's it.
But if I have my kid with me, they all feel the need to become super sociable! I still only get a Hi, but my kid has random teenagers trying to start conversations with them. He hates it, but responds politely and then hides behind me.
I live in the catchment area.
I've always lived in the catchment area for the schools I've worked at and have only ever had 1 problem and certainly not one in the last decade.
There are children I teach who have siblings in my children's classes.
I see parents everywhere and pupils regularly. It can be pleasant. I even used to train with a number of their dads, uncles etc. And would see the kids in classes at the gym.
Most of the time the kids ignore you, give you a quick glance to see if you have seen them or just say hello. With the latter options I either just smile back and acknowledge them or if they speak I say hello back. They don't often want a conversation.
I will often see pupils I have taught years ago and they will want to let you know what they are up to now. Even if I don't really remember them I will listen and enquire. They just want to feel you remember them, and it's quite a close knit community in many ways where I work so word will get back to kids still at school or people with kids in the school so it helps to build relationships in the area.
Well I had to tell some of mine off the other day, I was walking to the train station and had my headphones on, right before I reached the main road, probably about 5 metres away a couple of my little ones ran over and tapped me on the arm to say hi. I work in primary so for the most part I donāt really mind seeing the kids, Iāll say a quick hello, ask how theyāre doing or just make a quick convo but considering how close we were to a very busy main road I said a quick hi, one of them gave me a hug but then I did half sternly say āI really appreciate you coming over to say hi to me but please donāt run this close to a busy road againā and walked them back to their house. I know some teachers that treat seeing the kids like a nightmare and I know others who will sit down and have a proper long chat, honestly, itās really down to how good your relationship is with the kids but no one is expecting you to be in full on conversation. Just be polite, cordial and brief and you move on with your life, and they move on with theirs.
Smile and hello, though I do sometime use my teacher voice if they're being silly. Half of the time they ignore you and look embarrassed, the other half of the time they act super amazed to see you outside of school. I live really close to school so see some literally every day and it's now normal - they will gossip about you if they see you doing anything 'interesting' though.
I've taught my classes that if I'm wearing headphones it means I don't want to talk to anyone, and they do seem to respect that - had a few say "I saw you in Tesco but you had your headphones on so didn't say anything!"
I bumped into a family from work at Busch Gardens in Tampa!
Usually I just smile and say hello and just get on with what I was doing. Now I work in alternative provision so Iām very unlikely to bump into anyone.
I drive a noticeable car so the kids constantly come and talk about it.
I find it endearing and have several noticeable "icebreaker" type things that the kids instantly latch on and talk about.
Let's. E have a set of standard responses and therefore can focus more on the reason of why they are talking to me.
Go on you've got to say what car it is now, I'm intrigued (if you're worried out it revealing your reddit identity then message it to me, I just really like cars!)
\*
If itās a kid I teach, or is in my form, I make a big deal out of saying hello. If theyāre with their parents, I talk to the parents too.
If itās kids I donāt teach, I usually ignore them completely.
I had a similar situation, but it was the opposite way round! I was working in a bar which wasnāt too far from my old secondary school as a summer job to help my pay my uni bills. The bar is very small, and we often have people hire it out for different events. I just so happen to be working with another girl who I went to school with, in the year above me, and we were told a local school had hired us out that day for an end-of-year do for the teachers. Thereās about 5 different schools within a 10 minute walk of the bar so itās a 50/50 chance it could be ours, but we joke around about what weāll do if our old teachers walk in! Low and behold 15 minutes later I have my old geography teacher ordering his first pint. I think it was probably more awkward for him then me, but we had a nice 5 minute catch up. Safe to say he didnāt come up to the bar and order from me again, but it was funny interaction!
I regularly see students on my way to/from the gym, and sometimes even at the gym. I just say hi, they say hi, and life goes on. If they look like they're embarrassed and desperate to avoid eye contact, I leave them alone.
Had some make up they've seen me with random women before to try and embarrass me when they see me at school and make out like I'm a playboy. Joke's on them - I'm gay š
I say hi back and then pretend they don't exist.
Immediately use the opportunity to test their knowledge on some obscure topic you taught last year, retrieval is important, you never know when an exam might leap out at you in the wild š
Bonus; if you do this you will never have these kids say hello again in public.
If you had to wait around with them, Iād just say something like āhowās your day/weekend?ā Then be like ānice to see you!ā And run away ASAP š¤£
I live in catchment so see them all the time. I ignore unless they say hello to me first and then it's just usually a "Hello, hope you're having a nice day" or whatever back.
I hate living in the catchment area - honestly I avoid hotspots at certain times.
I don't mind it to be fair. It's not the "nicest" area (although I love it here) and I think it helps them to see me as an actual person that I live in the same streets as them. I do avoid the park straight after school though. Dog is always walked late!!
I literally live 13 miles away from my school. It was only during lockdowns ādaily exercisesā I discovered one of my tutees lives round the bloody corner from me
Just be prepared for them to mention it on Monday. "Sir I saw you in KFC! Buying a chicken bucket!" Yes, we are humans who require food too and sometimes we can't be bothered to cook.
I often get: "Hey, Sir! I saw you in your car!" "Oh, did you? Where?" "Driving through the gate this morning!"
I get this but for driving home as I have to drive through the village a majority of the kids live in.
I just say āthatās surprising. As I live in the cupboard at the back of the room there, and donāt come out unless Iām teaching. Must have been someone else.ā
I just smile and say hello. Normally they are so shocked to see that you exist outside of school and arenāt kept in a classroom cupboard & brought out each morning that they donāt say much anyway.
I bumped into a sixth former in a nightclub whilst very pissed. I just waved, they looked mortified and ran away... Was fun seeing them in school the week after. Again they were mortified, I just owned it. They're honestly usually more embarrassed than us I feel.
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While on the bus home yesterday, a student tapped me on the shoulder and said āmind checking my essay?ā She had it up on her phone. Theyāre just as awkward about it as we are!
Thatās actually quite sweet. But also annoying
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
That sounds like something my mentor and I would do to be fair
Haha added to the bucket list
I just say hello and then move on unless they want to chat. I always think of it as being a taster of what famous people experience. I live in the catchment area and I actually quite enjoy it because it makes me feel part of the community.
For me, itād just be a smile and a hello. Any conversation outside of the classroom quickly highlights how much they donāt actually know you. Itās like seeing ex-studentsā¦ in a way itās lovely, but itās also awkward because beyond them asking you if youāre still working at the school, thereās not really anything else they can ask because, actually, they know almost nothing about you.
I can never remember the names of ex-students when I speak to them but will remember a few hours later. Something I try to explain to Year 11s when they try the "I bet you'll miss us when we leave" conversation, there's 300 of them in a year group, I've probably taught 200 of them over the 5 school years, the chance of me having the brain space to even think about who they are is pretty small.
Just say hi with a smile, and then upon walking past them to go say have a nice weekend/day, simple... no need to be embarrassed or anything.
I ignore them entirely unless they initiate first and then I say hello or smile back depending on the circumstances. If it is a situation where you are forced to be beside each other like a train for example. I politely chat about school related things and remove myself as soon as I can.
I see my students outside of school all the time - a few of them live in my village. One of my students has a part-time job at a cafƩ I frequent and often makes me my coffee! Just say hi. Engage in a bit of small talk if you like. We're all humans.
I try to keep moving, if they greet me, I greet back and keep walking. I went into KFC as well and there were about 12 kids from y10 and up, that was an raise of the eyebrows and an awkward 'here we all are then' then we all went back to our delicious chicken.
'You could have goneĀ ChickenĀ Cottage, proper halal, bargain bucket, Ā£6.99'
I always say hello and have quick chat. British school have such a weird awkward culture between students and teachers.
It could be worse. During my training year I once stepped outside my house to see one of my year 7 tutor group walking past the gate. He stopped and looked at me and simply said, "I didn't know you lived here sir". To which I responded, "No, Student X, you wouldn't know." We both walked 20 meters down the road at which point he looked up and me, pointed at the school and said, "I'm going this way." "Very good", and said, and decided it was a good time to take the alternative route in.
Some of my year 9s saw me out and about and I had just really enthusiastically said hello to two dogs and I just heard a laugh and a "hiiii miss" and so I said hi back to him and then ran away. Usually I just say hello and then scarper
I live near my school and see students all the time. If I'm on my own they'll often say Hi as they walk by and that's it. But if I have my kid with me, they all feel the need to become super sociable! I still only get a Hi, but my kid has random teenagers trying to start conversations with them. He hates it, but responds politely and then hides behind me.
I live in the catchment area. I've always lived in the catchment area for the schools I've worked at and have only ever had 1 problem and certainly not one in the last decade. There are children I teach who have siblings in my children's classes. I see parents everywhere and pupils regularly. It can be pleasant. I even used to train with a number of their dads, uncles etc. And would see the kids in classes at the gym. Most of the time the kids ignore you, give you a quick glance to see if you have seen them or just say hello. With the latter options I either just smile back and acknowledge them or if they speak I say hello back. They don't often want a conversation. I will often see pupils I have taught years ago and they will want to let you know what they are up to now. Even if I don't really remember them I will listen and enquire. They just want to feel you remember them, and it's quite a close knit community in many ways where I work so word will get back to kids still at school or people with kids in the school so it helps to build relationships in the area.
Well I had to tell some of mine off the other day, I was walking to the train station and had my headphones on, right before I reached the main road, probably about 5 metres away a couple of my little ones ran over and tapped me on the arm to say hi. I work in primary so for the most part I donāt really mind seeing the kids, Iāll say a quick hello, ask how theyāre doing or just make a quick convo but considering how close we were to a very busy main road I said a quick hi, one of them gave me a hug but then I did half sternly say āI really appreciate you coming over to say hi to me but please donāt run this close to a busy road againā and walked them back to their house. I know some teachers that treat seeing the kids like a nightmare and I know others who will sit down and have a proper long chat, honestly, itās really down to how good your relationship is with the kids but no one is expecting you to be in full on conversation. Just be polite, cordial and brief and you move on with your life, and they move on with theirs.
Make sure you act as cool as you can for street cred.
Smile and hello, though I do sometime use my teacher voice if they're being silly. Half of the time they ignore you and look embarrassed, the other half of the time they act super amazed to see you outside of school. I live really close to school so see some literally every day and it's now normal - they will gossip about you if they see you doing anything 'interesting' though. I've taught my classes that if I'm wearing headphones it means I don't want to talk to anyone, and they do seem to respect that - had a few say "I saw you in Tesco but you had your headphones on so didn't say anything!"
I bumped into a family from work at Busch Gardens in Tampa! Usually I just smile and say hello and just get on with what I was doing. Now I work in alternative provision so Iām very unlikely to bump into anyone.
One of my old year 10s from placement js my next door neighbour. Means I canāt have a cheeky smoke anymore š
I drive a noticeable car so the kids constantly come and talk about it. I find it endearing and have several noticeable "icebreaker" type things that the kids instantly latch on and talk about. Let's. E have a set of standard responses and therefore can focus more on the reason of why they are talking to me.
Go on you've got to say what car it is now, I'm intrigued (if you're worried out it revealing your reddit identity then message it to me, I just really like cars!) \*
A loud high revving, 90's/00's sports car with a big wing on the back. Generic enough to not identify myself too much on the interwebs
If itās a kid I teach, or is in my form, I make a big deal out of saying hello. If theyāre with their parents, I talk to the parents too. If itās kids I donāt teach, I usually ignore them completely.
I had a similar situation, but it was the opposite way round! I was working in a bar which wasnāt too far from my old secondary school as a summer job to help my pay my uni bills. The bar is very small, and we often have people hire it out for different events. I just so happen to be working with another girl who I went to school with, in the year above me, and we were told a local school had hired us out that day for an end-of-year do for the teachers. Thereās about 5 different schools within a 10 minute walk of the bar so itās a 50/50 chance it could be ours, but we joke around about what weāll do if our old teachers walk in! Low and behold 15 minutes later I have my old geography teacher ordering his first pint. I think it was probably more awkward for him then me, but we had a nice 5 minute catch up. Safe to say he didnāt come up to the bar and order from me again, but it was funny interaction!
I regularly see students on my way to/from the gym, and sometimes even at the gym. I just say hi, they say hi, and life goes on. If they look like they're embarrassed and desperate to avoid eye contact, I leave them alone. Had some make up they've seen me with random women before to try and embarrass me when they see me at school and make out like I'm a playboy. Joke's on them - I'm gay š
I interact with kids how I interact with everyone: pretend I donāt see them and frantically try to walk some where else.
Always awkward! Few month ago was trying to buy a vape (on the shop floor) got accosted 3 times in a row by kids so just left
I say hello