What workarounds did people try for "Subtle ways to share they/them pronouns at a new school"?

Community members documented 9 workarounds: 1. Putting pronouns in the email signature 2. Adding pronouns to the school LMS profile 3. Displaying a name placard by the classroom door 4. Wearing fun shirts with example sentences containing pronouns 5. Using a pronoun pin 6. Using a gender-neutral prefix like Mx. 7. Going by last name only (e.g., 'Teacher [Name]') 8. Choosing a traditional title that aligns strictly with physical presentation 9. Moving to solidly blue areas or unionized districts

Subtle ways to share they/them pronouns at a new school

Finding subtle, professional ways to share pronouns helps avoid unwanted attention while still letting coworkers and students know how to address you. However, presenting with one gender presentation while using different pronouns can create a disconnect that invites questions from students and parents, making it difficult to keep your personal life private as a new teacher.

Overview

Last updated Sep 21, 2026

People affected3 accounts across 1 forum

Workarounds found9 items attempted

Community agreement18 total upvotes

What people tried

Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.

9 items+ Contribute

Found another way around this?

Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.

1
Putting pronouns in the email signature
Did this help you?
2
Adding pronouns to the school LMS profile
Did this help you?
3
Displaying a name placard by the classroom door
Did this help you?
4
Wearing fun shirts with example sentences containing pronouns
Did this help you?
5
Using a pronoun pin
Did this help you?
6
Using a gender-neutral prefix like Mx.
Did this help you?
7
Going by last name only (e.g., 'Teacher [Name]')
Did this help you?
8
Choosing a traditional title that aligns strictly with physical presentation
Did this help you?
9
Moving to solidly blue areas or unionized districts
Did this help you?

Tried another approach not listed above?+ Share your workaround ↑

In their words

Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.

r/Teachers3 people · September 2026

“Presenting femme and wanting to be referred to by masc pronouns is going to create a disconnect in your students minds (and in turn their parents minds…) and as a brand new teacher you want as few questions about you and your personal life as possible.”source ↗

nimble26 · r/Teachers · 18 upvotes

“I would love for my coworkers (and eventually students) to know that I use they/them pronouns.”source ↗

“What are some less “holding a sign and shouting” ways to show what I like to be called?”source ↗

bookish-99 · r/Teachers

“the question that’s been plaguing me is “what should my students call me?” I want to be a Mr. but will I be safe to do so?”source ↗

elphge · r/Teachers

Where this came up

r/Teachers career planning communication education teaching workplace