fashion – Page 5 – Teachers Have Lives Too!

10/13/2015 Erika S. outfits

Rossin Fuzzies

Rossin had on a collar today that I just couldn’t stop staring at during our grade team meeting today. I just wanted to reach out and stroke it. So I did just that on our way out and asked, “Is that real?!?!” She was the perfect image of fall – a hint of summer and a hint of winter. I felt envious as I looked down at my boring outfit for the day, but made some mental notes of how to start my transition into autumn (berry lipstick!).

As I hurriedly snapped some pictures of Rossin at the end of the school day, a few of our students just couldn’t help themselves and jumped in the shot with her. Sorry for the bad photoshopping, but my skillz are limited.

furries4

furries3

furries2

furries

09/30/201509/30/2015 Erika S. outfits

Peek a Boo

Summer is winding down and we’re just starting to get some autumn like weather here in Denver. I figured the time was right to take out this summer dress I picked up at Madewell (on super sale as always) while in New York. It’s a bit risque for work, with cut outs on the sides. So I kept my cardigan on all day while at school to cover up all the torso bits. I even kept it on through the “I’m now sweating profusely because all of a sudden my admin/evaluator just walked in to hang out” moments of the day. Bonus: the dress has huge pockets!

peek a boo5

peek a boo

peek a boo2

peek a boo3

peek a boo4

glasses: warby parker – cardigan: uniqlo – dress: madewell – shoes: saltwater sandals

09/14/2015 Erika S. outfits, teaching

Back to School Night

We had back to school night the second week of school and I’m only now getting around to posting about it. I’ve always struggled with BTS nights. I always end the night feeling like I put my foot in my mouth a couple times. Meeting parents for the first time always shakes my confidence a bit. I’m a bit socially awkward around adults anyway, so meeting a bunch all at once is hard. I always feel like I’m under scrutiny and that I’m being sized up. Of course, this all stems from my own insecurities – I can hardly blame parents for wanting the best teachers for their kids. I also shot myself in the foot this year by not taking the extra time needed to prepare a “Hi, I’m your kid’s Bio teacher this year, here’s some info about my background!” type presentation. If I had, I probably would have had a more successful night.

Anyways, I chose to wear heels for BTS night this year. It was a 13 hour day, and my feet were 100% comfortable as I walked my tired body and mind to my car at 8pm. Midi skirts just always look better with some extra leg length.

BTS night4

BTS night3

BTS night

BTS night2

glasses: warby parker – top: uniqlo – belt: jcrew – skirt: anthropologie – shoes: sweedish hasbeens for h&m

09/01/201509/02/2015 Erika S. outfits

Varsity

I went shopping over the weekend and treated myself to some much needed retail therapy. It’s been a while (for me at least) since I’ve updated my wardrobe. B shops maybe once a year, but I’m not that disciplined. So I went and made the rounds at the local mall and picked up a few things. First up, this t-shirt which I now call my varsity shirt. I never played sports in high school, unless you count sailing in the Sea Scouts. I did try girl’s soccer a couple times, but I was just pathetically bad at it.

Funny story, I ended up matching a little bit with a kid in my class today. She had on the same shirt, but in maroon. I pointed it out and she just half-smiled at me. I guess she didn’t think it was as cool to match as I thought. Lolz. It happens. varsity3

varsity2

varsity4

varsity

top: f21 – skirt: jcrew – shoes: worishofer – necklace: my mom’s

On the beauty side, I picked up a new lip tint from Sephora. It’a a Korean brand called Chosungah 22 and it’s pretty awesome. The stain lasts a while, even with my habit of constantly licking my lips. I like it more than Benetint and the Face Shop brand tint. The gloss half though is gloopy and sticky – I’m not a fan.

08/27/2015 Erika S. outfits

The Second First Day

I wore just about this same outfit just about a year ago. It’s a pretty reliable go to outfit – pencil skirts solve all sorts of morning wardrobe emergencies. On Tuesday morning, I wasted about 10 minutes in the morning staring at my closet with a blank head. I was stuck in one of those “I have nothing to wear!” panics. I did not have those 10 minutes to waste. If I’m not in the building at least 30 minutes before first period starts, the whole day will feel off.

About these sandals: I’ve had them for about 5 years now. I have a black pair and a tan pair, so they go with everything imaginable. I wear the crap out of them every summer and they’ve been with me every time I travel. It’s almost time to retire them, but they’re still holding up. Maybe next sumer I’ll switch it up a bit and try out something else. If you don’t already own a pair of Saltwater Sandals, I highly recommend you check them out. The best summer sandal ever.

Day two3

Day two2

Day two

top: madewell – skirt: jcrew – shoes: saltwater sandals

08/24/2015 Erika S. outfits

the Seventh Annual First Day of School

Oh hai guys! It’s been months since I’ve been around updating this blog. The last spring and summer have been good to me. Things went fairly smoothly in the spring and I ended the school year on a high note. Change was on the way! I decided to give it another year at my school with hopes (and determination) that this second year teaching in Denver would be 100 times better.

It’s fall again, and today was the first of two first days of school. My school has 9th graders only for Monday, then the rest of the grades start on Tuesday. This year, I’m teaching Honors Bio and regular Bio. Also, I’m co-leading a team for the first time ever. Exciting stuff for sure. Also, we had a bit of an administration shake up and with that comes an opportunity to re-set the school/staff culture. Everything is on the up and up this year, I can feel the positive vibes!

On a sentimental note, I’ve been thinking about the first batch of kids I ever had back in SF. Some of them are now juniors in university and I sometimes like to stalk them on FB. I read about where they are traveling/studying/interested in and I breath a huge sigh of relief that I didn’t mess them up too much my first year of teaching. I was so clueless and disorganized. I’m starting my 7th year of teaching this year, and I’ve learned something new and better each year!

On to the first of two first day of school outfits! I picked up this cardigan/shirt/dress thing at F21 last spring. It’s perfect to keep the chill off and add some interest. I brought it with me to DC this past summer and my sister thought it was weird, but came around to it. She ended up buying the same thing for herself near the end of my trip 😉 7th 1st day3

7th 1st day2

7th 1st day

glasses: warby parker – cardigan: F21 similar – tank – uniqlo – skirt: jcrew – shoes: sweedish hasbeens

08/29/2014 Erika S. outfits

One Two

First day of school with students was this past Monday and Tuesday. Both days – 9th graders only on Monday and all the rest on Tuesday. So I had in effect 2 first days of school. This is what I wore on day one and day two of the first day(s) of school. For me teaching is like childbirth (or so I hear). It’s agony sometimes, but then your mind seems to block all that stuff away after a break from the agony. The summer must have given my brain time to block a lot of the agony away, because I. Am. Exhausted. It’s been 11-13 hour days all this week and lots of mental strain trying to get organized and learn 110 names and faces. Much of it has to do with the fact that I’m starting a new school and teaching one (physics) and a half new courses. The half is because 2 of my 4 sections are Honors Biology, and I’ve only ever taught at non-tracking schools in the past. I’m generally not a fan of tracking students, but I’ll admit it’s going to challenge me more as I now have to up the bio game.

onetwo4

onetwo3

onetwo2

onetwo

day one – dress: thrift store find – belt: h&m – shoes: madewell – glasses: warby parker – day two – tshirt and belt: jcrew – skirt: anthropologie – sweater: uniqlo – shoes: sweedish hasbeens

08/28/2014 Erika S. outfits

The chop

I chopped my hair for my birthday this past month – more than 6 inches off. It felt great, though I still just tie it up in a bun most days. This day though, I wore it down. It felt weird. Also, it was back to school night, so that meant I was at school actively teaching/planning/talking to parents from 7am to 8pm. In addition, my outfit turned out really matchy-matchy. fun.

thechop2 thechop thechop3

shirt: anthropologie – belt: urban outfitters (old) – jeans: uniqlo – boots: madewell (old)

08/20/2014 Erika S. outfits

Performance

It’s funny how much translates from one district to another. So far, NYCDOE’s “rigor” is just about the same as DPS’s “rigor”. Today I spent the bulk of my day working on year long “Student Learning Objectives” and creating a “performance based task” for the end of the first unit (no more expeditions). It’s been a long day. I am lucky this year though – I am working closely with a super thoughtful teacher who is also teaching bio. The catch is, my schedule is still not set yet and the first day of school with students is this Monday. At first I was told I would be teaching Physics (2 sections), Bio, and a credit recovery course. Now I may be teaching one Physics, Honors Bio, Bio and the credit recovery. My eyes went buggy a first, but I’m determined not to stress over having 4 different preps (courses to teach) till everything is set with the master schedule.

Today on the clothing front I went a bit nicer than the usual t-shirt and jeans of summer. I’ve also been sporting these amazingly sassy sunglasses all summer. My friends Sara and Pedro gave them to me before I left Brooklyn and they are seriously the best ever. They’re Valentino and probably the nicest thing I own. Performance1

Performance2

sunnies: valentino – shirt: madewell – skirt: super old dkny – shoes: saltwater sandals – tracker: fitbit

08/18/2014 Erika S. basics, outfits

Don’t be a jerk

*jazz hands* New classroom!! *jazz hands*

Today was day three of seven “school launch” days for staff at my new high school here in Denver. It’s been meeting after meeting, training, team building activities and orientation. I barely had time to snap some photos in my new classroom. I still have to find the optimal place with the best non-yellow lighting in the classroom, but as you can see, my new room is really stinkin nice. Talk about an awesome science classroom – there is a dedicated instruction section and separate lab benches in the back. It’s the nicest classroom I’ve ever seen AND, the students get ROCKING CHAIRS. That’s right, rocking chairs. Today’s training was on classroom management, aka 100% engagement (buzz word alert). It was actually a nice refresher on methods I’d forgotten about such as various non-verbal cues, anonymous whole class corrections and private corrections. It made me think about my classroom management style, which has evolved into a very stern, strict, I’m-not-playing-around-so-you-better-check-yourself type of management that some students find a bit rough around the edges and if I’m honest with myself, a bit jerky. I don’t usually loosen up until second semester when the kids know the routine and know not to test me anymore (for the most part). So my focus this year in terms of classroom management is, don’t be a jerk. I need to breathe more, control my frustrations, stay calm, and utilize private corrections more. One of the first things I taped up on my wall by my desk is my post card of a Barbara Kruger piece, “Don’t be a jerk”. I love that little postcard – I picked it up at the Hirshhorn in Washington DC in 2012 and it’s been a classroom staple of mine. This year, it has new meaning. I used to point to it occasionally when kids were mean to each other, but this year, it’s for me.

On the clothing end, it’s really nothing exciting. I’m still on a basics kick and I’m in love with my summer sandals: the oh so trendy right now Birkenstocks. B calls them “Jesus Sandals” or “big black boats” and I can’t really disagree with him. I just got so obsessed with how cute I found then all of a sudden (just last summer I called them the ugliest things ever) when they started popping up all over my Feedly feed of fashion bloggers. I’ve also retired my trusty Freitag bag for a while. The plastic smell never really dissipates, and I was getting pretty tired of it. So I dug out the old J.Crew purse from my SF teaching days. Still holding up ok for now. I do have my eye on the also uber trendy Fjallraven Kanken backpack though. I’m such a sucker for hipster trends. Sigh.