Reply #14: You have a very valid point

[TallahasseeGrannie]

and yes, "walking on eggshells" is a very good metaphor. I have to be careful not to touch a child, to always leave the doors open, to watch my language, and to avoid discussing things like Harry Potter, witchcraft, the war, evolution, etc. I defy any parent to find one single thing they can "get" me on! I'm like that crab you hook when you're crabbing that is bigger and bluer than any crab out there, and he's covered in barnacles. But you somehow can never get him into your net! He scuttles away.

So do It.

The way I deal with these issues is ask questions. "Well, what do YOU think, Mary, about the war in Iraq?" And when they ask me what My opinion is, I tell them someday when they are 18 and out of school, we can have a soda together and I'll tell them all about it. Until them, my job is to ask questions, listen, and make sure they don't kill each other in my care.

I've kept contact with a lot of my older students and gotten together for that soda quite often. The community college is on our same campus and I go over there sometimes to walk and get a snack. I've also turned a few of them on to DU and they know who they are!