Don't Smile Til Christmas.

If you are a teacher then at some point, someone has told you to do this. Don't smile til Christmas. The idea being that you need to show the kids "who's boss" from Sept through December, then you can lighten up a little cuz by then, they'll respect you.

I was told to do this in my APT by my mentor teacher, a man I respected and admired (at the time anyways. He later ruined that, but that's another story.)

Don't smile til Christmas. Pretty much every "old school" teacher adheres to this adage and they pass it on to fresh faced teaching graduates hoping to help them.

Don't smile til Christmas.

FORGET THAT!!

I hate this saying. I hate it with everything in me. The first time I heard it I hated it, but then I was too insecure in my profession to question it.

My passion for children tells me its wrong. My love for children tells me its wrong. My love for learning tells me its wrong. My knowledge of healthy attachment tells me its wrong. My knowledge of how kids learn best tells me its wrong.

Just to clarify, I 100% believe in firm discipline, consequences and taking responsibility for one's actions. My students have always and will always know what to expect when they misbehave. Quick, firm correction, often followed by a consequence (natural if safe, reasonable if natural consequences are not safe). Then an immediate wiping of the slate and back to a happy equilibrium with myself and the classroom community.

Don't smile til Christmas?? You need to smile the most you ever will in the first day of school. How else will these kids know that school is a great place to be?

Although, if you're a teacher who doesn't believe in smiling, then school probably isn't a great place to be, so never mind then.