Do They Like Me?

I want to bebunk a myth that some teachers use to hide the fact that they really have little real interest in their kids. How many times have you heard a teacher say, "I'm not here to be liked. It doesn't matter if they like me or not."? I have news for you. Of course it matters. Just because they are young does not mean that kids are not perceptive. They know whether you have their true best interests at heart. They can feel if you truly care or are just marking time until the end of the day, week, term or even career. And if they truly know that caring and compassion are coming from you they will like you. It has nothing to do with how strict you are, because if you are tuned in to your students, and teach from a place of honesty and truth you will be liked. You may be firm in your expectations but when they know you care, they will be totally okay with that. And you can be easy going, but if there is no heart in it, they will not be okay with it. When your actions come from the heart, your students know it and feel it, and no matter what your teaching style is, they will like and respect you because they are sure you feel the same about them. By all means have your structure and expectations, but take time to find out where they come from, and if you know it comes from a good place you need not be concerned with whether they like you or not. You will see it how they act and what they do. If your methods come from ego, a need to control or anything that is less than honest, they will never learn anything meaningful. To boot, they will not like you and in this case it does matter.