Yesterday was my first day of class with new students. As drivers ed teachers, we get to do this far more often than regular school teachers, who only have first days once or twice per year if they have half-year classes. I get one about every two months. Would you believe that even after 18 years of doing this, I still get nervous? Really nervous. I want so badly to get off on the right foot with new kids. Set the right tone, say all things I want to say, get through all the information. It’s difficult to get across the idea that this is a very serious class, with a very serious topic, but that it should also be fun. Driving is fun! Driving is scary enough, my student’s shouldn’t also be afraid of me.
I invite parents to come to some of my first day as well, which adds to the nerves. I want them to get to know who they are entrusting their kiddos in the car with. I want them to see how much I care about their kids, and how seriously I take their safety. I want them to know we are in this together and we need to communicate and practice as much as possible in order to get the most out of our limited time together.
You never know what personalities you will get in a new class. By the end of a class, my students and I know each other so well after ten hours of driving with lots of one-on-one time, and having survived something together. It’s hard to let them go. I walk back into the same room, expecting the same smiling faces, ready to hear about their day, their latest driving adventures, or whatever they want to share, and instead I have a sea of anxious faces not knowing where to sit, what to expect, or who I am.
Luckily for me, yesterday as I walked in, several of my old students came running in, shouting my name, waiting to tell me about their DMV stories and how they got their license, or still have to wait. Their big smiles, inside jokes and victories totally made my day. My hope is that the new kids see that and know that old kids still stop by happily, means to me, I am doing something right. So to my most recent former students, “clouds and cammo,” will forever remind me of you. To me new students, I can’t wait to see what our adventures will bring. We got through the first day, and now we can get down to work. Driving begins today, and I hope you are excited too.