Warby parker – Page 3 – Teachers Have Lives Too!

10/09/201510/08/2015 Erika S. outfits

Mucking Around

The other day, a kid in my first period asked me what crawled up my ass and died. Yup. I had gotten tired of his and his friends mucking around (Aussie speak, thanks to B) during class and employed multiple non-verbal “100% engagement strategies” on them all at once. I stood right next their chairs. I tapped on the worksheets they were supposed to be paying attention to. I mimed putting a cell phone away and taking head phones out (teenagers are a cleaver bunch when it comes to illicit technology use in the classroom). I made eye contact and scanned their work area. Then finally, I crouched down to their level and asked if they needed help getting started. “Miss, what crawled up you ass and died today?” LOLZ. I chuckled and said something along the lines of “your lack of work”. Was that appropriate? Who cares? The kid who said it got started and got his work done eventually.

Today I wore a new linen button down from Madewell (super sale!). White shirts are basic, classic and creates an instant “professional” look. This one in particular is awesome because it’s long enough to cover my entire torso. Also, I can wear this shirt till I’m old and fabulous as it’s not too teenager-y like other things I have. Linen is pretty much permanently wrinkled, so it fits my non-ironing life style. When B’s mum was in town, she actually helped me iron a couple shirts (#winning). I’m saving those shirts for a special occasion now.

glasses: warby parker – shirt: madewell – belt: urban outfitters – jeans: j.brand via nordstrom rack – boots: steve madden

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!

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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.

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BTS night

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

09/08/2015 Erika S. outfits

Buttoned Up

4 years ago, I had a student named Aaron in my Anatomy/Physiology class that had mad swag. His wardrobe didn’t change all that often, but man, that kid had (probably still has) some serious style. He always looked mature, fly, and chic all at the same time. It took me all year, but I finally put my finger on why he had such swag: He always buttoned his shirts up to the top button. It looked great, in a slightly nerdy, chic kind of way. After that year, I started doing the same. I button it all the way up. I borrowed some of his swag, and I still like the look, 4 years later.

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glasses: warby parker – top: h&m (super old) – jeans: f21 – belt – gap – shoes: swedish hasbeens

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

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7th 1st day

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

01/08/201501/08/2015 Erika S. outfits

Black and Maybe Blue, but White?

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glasses: warby parker – top: madewell – jeans: uniqlo – boots: franco sarto via nordstrom rack – jewelry: family heirloom, some craft booth in brooklyn, fossil watch, fitbit

I wear black jeans to work on most days. Jeans for me generally means skinny jeans. I know this is tabboo for some teachers, but I personally don’t really see a problem with it. As long as they’re dark, they could just be plain old black pants. The only difference between my jeans and some other teacher’s pants are the material. At least, that’s how I rationalize it. Sometimes, I’ll even wear blue jeans. Not often, but occasionally. But what about white jeans? I asked B the other night if I should wear white jeans to school. I thought they’d look really cute with this blue silk top I bought at Madewell recently (on super sale – extra 40% off – and with my teacher discount). I knew I wouldn’t wear them anyways, because white jeans, to me, veer into the “probably shouldn’t” territory. But I thought I’d ask his opinion anyway. He said very bluntly, “white jeans are not appropriate for teachers”.

Is that true? Who says? Why? What do you guys think? Are white jeans taboo for teachers and why? Are jeans in general “not appropriate”? Be sure to answer this prompt with a claim, evidence and analysis. Just kidding!

12/01/201412/01/2014 Erika S. outfits, trips

Mustard Mondays

I have new clothes to talk about! Finally – I’ve been somewhat uninspired by the shops lately, so I haven’t been shopping much (for clothing anyway, I’ve been too spendy with the skincare and makeup). This weekend though, the sales sucked me in. I picked up these grey jeans (with a high waist that helps balance out my long torso/short legs combo) at Urban Outfitters to $15!! I love a great deal. The boots I got at H&M at the start of fall, and they’re really awesome. Whether or not they will last past one winter, we’ll see. The sweater is an oldie from my time in Brooklyn (last seen here and here). MustardMonday MustardMonday2 MustardMonday3 MustardMonday4

glasess: warby parker – infinity scarf: american apparel – sweater and jeans: urban outfitters – belt: jcrew – boots: h&m

As far as the whole having-a-life thing is going, we got a week off for Thanksgiving. I flew out to DC to spend time with my family and I got to hang with my little niece in between naps and fits. My mom and sister are speaking to her only in Mandarin, so I also got to brush up on my Chinese! Practically no one in Denver speaks Chinese, so it’s gotten rusty from disuse. My niece is just starting to talk, so she taught me that her favorite toy (which is a mother fox from IKEA) is called hu-li mama. My mom speaks 4 different Chinese dialects, so at dinner times, my niece will say “good eats” in 3 of them – Cantonese, Mandarin and Fujian. hou sic, hao chi, haw jia.

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Of course, we also had to take a pre TG dinner family portrait (minus my brother in law).

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11/04/2014 Erika S. outfits

Coffee and Cream

I found this note in my classroom today.

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It must have been left by a friend/colleague, or my students have googled me. Either way, it was a nice reminder to pay a bit more attention to things I love outside of my classroom. Coincidentally, I had packed my camera just for this purpose this morning!

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I call this my coffee and cream outfit. Pockets in the dress! I drink about 10 cups of coffee a day (black, no cream) – I’m sure many of you teachers can relate. i heard one time that “only a fool would get in between a teacher and their coffee”. Made me think back to that first morning out of a week camping with my 9th graders in New York. I got so frustrated when I couldn’t find the secret coffee location for teachers that I cried. Seriously. coffee and cream3

As an aside, things have been picking up a bit at work. Like my “partner-in-crime” bio teacher says, “you are like water flowing past the obstacles.”

glasses: warby parker – dress and boots: madewell – sweater: j.crew – tights: anthropologie – everything from seasons past

10/07/201410/07/2014 Erika S. outfits, teaching

The Face

I’m struggling, people. Struggling with classroom management AND with teaching physics content. I thought teaching for 5 years in 2 different inner city schools would have taught me something about how to manage my classroom, but nope. I’m dealing with a problem that is completely new to me – seniors who claim I can’t teach and therefore loudly blame me for their low grades during class. There is some truth to this – I’ve never taught physics before and I’m figuring it out as I go. I get most of my materials and curriculum from well established sites such as The Physics Classroom but I’ve had a hard time finding labs that work with the supplies I have at my school. This means I may invent labs and assignments that don’t work out (crazy acceleration calculations like -33.89 m/s/s for a free falling object!). The flip side? These seniors are not coming in for HW help, they’re not doing the assignments or test corrections or any of the many supports I offer inside and outside of class. They’re goofing off in class and fighting me on simple rules like cell phones, uniform and staying quiet during the entry routine.

I’m exhausted, mentally and physically. Do I still really like teaching? Honestly, I don’t really know anymore.

People say that if you are down, you should fake a smile because even faking a smile helps reduce stress. So here is my fake smile of the day. the face

This on the other hand, is what my face really looks like lately. I know that I typically have a “resting bitchy face” (it’s true – bartenders will actually pass over me because I look unfriendly and mean). But lately my RBF has been a bit more turned down.

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Nothing new on the outfit front – all old reliables.

glasses: warby parker – shirt and high-riser jeans: madewell – belt: gap – shoes: worishofer – necklaces: etsy and f21

10/03/201410/03/2014 Erika S. outfits

Zipping up

It’s been slow on the blog front, because you know…”students first” right? Students trump sleep, lunch, bathroom breaks, alone time, relationship time, sanity and your emotional stability. I got this sweater on super sale right before I left New York in the dead of summer. Denver is getting properly cold finally. I wore the boots I’ve dubbed my alien boots because they remind me of something Sigourney Weaver would have worn in the movie Aliens. They make me feel bad ass. Up until I get an angry mis-informed voicemail forwarded to me by my principal from the mom of one of my mean girls who have been tormenting me. FUN. Sorry for the negativity guys, I’m just not feeling it today. Since I really have nothing good to say about teaching in Denver so far, I’m just going to zip my trap before it gets out of hand.

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