I used to teach English to kids, and from what I've gathered, they think most teachers were usually just no nonsense busybodies who didn't have much time for stuff like hobbies.
It was always fun whenever we got the chance to put the books and pop quizzes away and just talk about their personal interests.
Pokémon and anime and videogames and animals and whatever- the usual youngling stuff, but I've also got real familiar with some kids and their more niche tastes.
One of those kids was REALLY into trains, specifically one specific model of train in my country, eventually he got the chance to actually RIDE his favourite line and he couldn't stop talking about it after he got back.
Also if you regularly work with kids/teens I cannot stress how important it is that you know someone who's like really into lame emo junk. There was a girl my dad was working with who just flat out refused to talk to adults or anyone at all and one day I was there and I saw her wearing a homemade bracelet that had beads that said YLDNDAHFHHACYCSYCDAYDKK and since I was also once a 14 year old making niche homemade mcr merch I was like "oh my god you like dnd Audrey Hepburn Fangoria Harry Houdini and croquet you cant swim you can't dance and you dont know karate!!!" and she looked at me like I'd said literal magic words and now we talk about music all the time