fitting in By Sue

It was so interesting reading your first email and the replies you received. I am still in my twenties and although I have taught for six years, I just moved to a new state, where I don't know anyone. At first, I was tearfully regretting the move, just outside of a major U.S. city. I felt out of place because the veteran teachers treated me as if I were new to the profession instead of just new to their school and region. Sharing ideas was out of the question-- they seemed to have all of their routines down. Here's the kicker: my school is filled with people of all ages and I didn't feel as if they'd ever say anything more than small talk. What saved me was realizing that while colleges and in my case, grad school ed. faculty, teaches you about sharing and enthusiasm, sometimes teachers relate by connecting on a "venting" sort of relationship. Those older teachers were just trying to relate to you, knowing that you may be frustrated being new and all or may feel overwhelmed. They may have been trying to let you know, in their own way, that even the vets have tough times. I just listen to my teammembers' complaints about our principal, district policies and students' parents. I nod my head, relate with a few stories of my own and then look for more conversation the next day. Now that school is into is second month, I have been offered rides to seminars, out to dinner and even to the happy hour with the younger, city-living crowd. What you may also want to do is to connect with some of the other new teachers in your school system at meetings and see if there is a new teacher program. They help, and even if they're not in your school, could be friends that visit your classroom if you go to theirs, email...etc. By the way, my first year, the older teachers called me an "overachiever and an idealist." It seemed like yesterday I was getting my navel pierced and muttering to myself, "I'll never be negative like those old burn-outs!" Now, I'm a vet and although still a twenty-something, I have my own lessons, my own stories to tell and my own feelings about some brand new teachers who don't heed good advice from those award-winning vet teachers you may meet! They were once new too! Good luck. Once you've made it through the year, you may have bonded with these people more than you think right now.