Favorite Thing Friday: Nerd Shirts

As a lifelong nerd, I’ve amassed a rather impressive collection of nerd shirts. My closet includes everything from Star Wars, Smurfs, Harry Potter, The Office, Sherlock, Spider-man, and more Twilight shirts than any normal person would own, (at last count I had 28).

This ridiculous collection of t-shirts is what allowed me to start the tradition of Nerd Shirt Friday in my classroom. Every Friday I wear one of my nerd shirts and invite my students to do the same. This one simple act allows me to connect to my students in unexpected ways. There’s always that one kid who never says a word until they realize someone loves whatever is on their shirt. It’s an instant conversation starter that opens up a kid who would otherwise prefer to sit alone.

Even though we all show up wearing different shirts, it brings us all together. Everyone is a nerd about something and it’s fun to see what makes everyone smile!  Or laugh, which is especially true when I show up in my Twilight shirts – it’s kinda “out” now, except for the Twihards who refuse to let go.

This week, I’ll be deciding between two new nerds shirts. Fresh from the mail, I received two Arrow related shirts that are sure to open up some fantastic conversations.

First, I got a “sinceriously” t-shirt. Casual Arrow fans probably have no clue what sinceriously is all about, but die hards who follow Stephen Amell (the guy who plays Arrow) on social media are all too aware of the word he accidentally said during an interview. The word took off from there and is now widely used among Arrow fans. This year, Amell announced he set a goal to try and get sinceriously in the Oxford dictionary.

Another campaign starts on Feb 25, 2015

Purchased as part of a charity campaign launched by Amell, the shirt offers a formal definition for sinceriously in the hopes it will get people to use this fabulous new word while also raising money for two great charities – Stand for the Silent and Paws and Stripes. When it’s all said and done you’ve got to love the perfect fusion of good works and nerdom.

My second new nerd shirt is also related to Arrow. After an exhaustive search I finally found an Arrow shirt that is not lame or ridiculously expensive. It’s a simple arrow design with one of the show’s catch phrases.

In trademark green, I’ll be proudly displaying my Arrow fandom. This is going to look great with my Arrow Bracelet!

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What’s your favorite thing this week?

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c.b.w. 2015

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Favorite Thing Friday: Posters

The walls in my classroom are anything but boring. One wall is dedicated to the Lennon Wall (and is covered in student created art), while two other walls are dedicated to subject matter visuals like posters, maps, flags, and other cool things to get my students interested in history. The last wall in my classroom, however, is dedicated to all nerdy things I love that have nothing to do with school.

Over the years, my nerd wall has become a student favorite. I don’t know if its because it makes them laugh or if they like the fact that I’m making an effort to be decorative. On a deeper level, I think it gives them a way to connect with me on a human level. I’m real, I have interests, (we might even share a few things in common), and I’m not just some stiff teacher that has no life.

Every year, the nerd wall gets a make-over. I never hang the same array of posters two years in a row because that would be boring. For the last few years, Twilight has been the main feature on the wall, but with the end of Twilight’s run in the theater the nerd wall is in need of a major overhaul.

After going through my box of posters, I realized I had some shopping to do. All my superhero posters are so two movies ago, while the rest are of TV shows that are no longer on the air.  Before I even hit the stores, I knew finding new posters would be a difficult task. I don’t know why, but its getting tough to find cool posters that go beyond Justin Bieber and Angry Birds.

It took two weeks, but I think I’ve finally tracked down some fun posters for my nerd wall. Between Target, Wal-Mart, amazon, Michaels, and a few oldies but goodies in my poster box, I’ve got a solid line up of superheroes, sci-fi, TV, and London love to grace the nerd wall.

Here are a few of the posters that will be on my nerd wall this year:

The almighty Yoda is here to tell my students, “Do or do not. There is no try.”

Target: $5.99

For the first time ever, Superman will be on the nerd wall. Henry Cavill is pretty hot, so he made the cut.

Wal-Mart $5.00

Sheldon of The Big Bang Theory will be around to keep everybody laughing.

Michael’s $6.99

The Avengers and Spider-man will be joining this flock, but I’m also adding a couple of posters that show some major London love.

amazon $3.99

amazon $2.44 + shipping

Last but not least, I’ve got a poster that goes with my life-size standee of Spock (the Nimoy version). Don’t worry Captain Kirk (the Shatner version) is also there to keep things under control.

amazon $5.59 + 3.99 shipping

Now I just have to figure out what pictures will go on the sides of my desk. Between Robert Pattinson’s beautiful face and Grimm (great show on NBC) I think that will round out the nerd corner quite nicely.

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What’s your favorite thing this week?

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c.b.w. 2013