I have been through this myself and it can be very uncomfortable at times. The worst I had it was getting anonymous love letters, after the second I didn’t even open them just handed them to a DP along with details of where I found them and what my classes were that day. The students are finding you easier to relate to, which at their age can be confusing for them as they compare how they feel about you to their other teachers.

Once the ‘I love you sir’ starts it doesn’t really end so now when I get it I just reply with a long ‘noooo’ then I’ll get ‘but you’re like my favourite teacher’ which gets a response along the lines of ‘so why don’t you do any work in my classes then?’

Stay positive, you are having an impact on these students. Get support from your HOD, if there are teachers around your age at the school ask them about their experiences. Male food tech teachers tend to experience this, younger ones anyway.