Trouble with Greetings at Work

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I'm a substitute teacher's aide, so I don't work on a daily basis, which makes me feel even more unfamiliar and uneasy around the people I work with than I normally would. Anyway, each morning that I do work, at least 3-4 people say "good morning" to me almost immediately when I walk in the door, yet all I can ever seem to say back is a simple "hi" as I look at the ground walking past. Does anybody have any suggestions as to how I can respond to them with the same enthusiasm they give me?
Also, when I'm not actively engaging in work, I tend to sit with my arms crossed away from my co-workers and kind of just observe others' conversations(as creepy as that may sound) hoping that I can eventually jump in. I feel like my co-workers feel like I'm unfriendly. It's not necessarily that I don't want to interact, it's just that I don't know how(though sometimes there are just so many conversations going on at once, that I can't keep up and my mind kind of just shuts down). Does anyone have any advice on socializing or small talk?
Another thing I have trouble with is taking criticism or direction from my co-workers, or at least what I perceive as being such. For example, today when I worked, it was a very hectic day and I got caught up in doing things I was supposed to be doing and by the time we got all of the students on the buses and I got back to the classroom, I noticed that I had left some colored pencils and stuff out and just when I was about to pick it up, the teacher in the room I was working in said, "we pick our things up when we're done with them." I now know she probably didn't mean anything negative by this statement, but it about sent me through the roof. I just replied by saying, "yeah, I was about to pick that up" and then I picked it up and left work quietly. I think I handled the situation well, but if it had been anyone else, such as a family member, I would have exploded at them. So, my question is, how do I keep from getting so upset during situations like these?
I know this is a long post, but I'd really like to learn how to better function at work, so if anyone has any answers, I would appreciate it.

I'm not sure, I only used to say hello back to people if people said 'hello DC' instead of just hello to an office where it could be to anyone.

I have not tried this, but I just thought of a possibility for greeting people enthusiastically without the greeting feeling totally wrong to oneself. What if you pretend that you and your co-workers are all acting in a play? They greet you enthusiastically, and you greet them enthusiastically, as the script dictates. This is not the same as faking NT, because we are trying to imitate NTs when we are faking NT, but what if we pretend that NTs are faking too, that everyone is acting in a play? I am imagining myself greeting people enthusiastically, and I can imagine myself doing it while pretending that I and others are all acting in a play, but not while trying to imitate others.

My problem is that I say hello to people too many times. I know that I have to do it only once, but I forget sometimes.

I like to make greeting cute when I can. Yes, it's kind of like acting, like playing a repeated joke that happens every episode. Using a stylized or improperly formalized greeting makes it feel more like acting, and absurdly blatant acting is typically construed as "fun" instead of "lying." High pitched voice is considered fun & friendly.

Remember the axiomatic truth of small talk. Fun = stupid, therefore stupid = fun.

Some fun variants on "Hi:"

"Howdy, y'alls!" in cowboy voice
"Ohai!" like an LOL-cat
"Oh, hi!" the absentminded professor who barely remembered to put the greeting in
"How diddley do?" like the annoying neighbor on the Simpsons
"Hiya!" in a sing-song voice. First syllable pitched higher then the second

I like to follow greetings with "I remember you!" for roommates and people you see every day.

I'm OK at greeting people at my volunteer job at a charity shop. In fact I quite like it, because it then gets me into practice with smiling and being friendly and keeping up a positive impression and so on.

But what I do find most difficult is when I first walk into my charity shop where I volunteer and see everyone is busy and there are too many customers all at once and I don't know whether to: 1) stand there awkwardly like a lemon and wait 'til the busy atmosphere dies down a bit then greet, 2) shout out over the customers ''hiya!'' when I first walk in, or 3) just creep past and say hello later whenever they first discover that I'm there.

I think I go for 3, because I can't look unfriendly if they don't see me, and I can just say hello a bit later when they're less busy and just tell them that when I came ealier in there was a load of customers and so I didn't want to interrupt (people should understand if they know that I'm a quiet person).
I don't like to shout out names or salutes over a crowd of people because (this is part of my Social Phobia I have) I fear that the other person might not hear me and I would get a bunch of people looking at me wondering who I yelled out hello to, and I have a fear of feeling silly. It's a lifetime phobia - can't do anything about it.

Try to mimic their behaviour as much as you can...even if you have to fake things a little. I know faking can be exhausting at times, but fortunately, you can limit it to saying "Good morning" to everyone. If you see a person coming, prepare for how you will greet them. Gradually look up to them (do it slowly), smile, and after they greet you, just say "good morning" back.

As for conversations, just start by talking to one person at a time (if you can) since one on one conversations are less complex. Try to talk about things you have in common and experiences you both share. Ask about their classes and how they went. Talk about the weather, or the drive/ride to work.

For criticism...I can totally see the teacher saying this playfully/sarcastically, since there's a bit of a discord between the language used and your role as an adult assistant. Then again, I don't know because I wasn't in this situation. As for things that are definitely criticism, I know it's hard not to take things personally. The situation is usually better, though, when you reassure the person that their criticism is valued, even if you don't take it well. Say..."Thank you for letting me know": it usually stops the person from carrying things on.

Oh, I forgot to add one thing that helps me actually. If you can force yourself to walk in with your head held high, and just concentrate on that one aspect above any of the other issues with not being able to give an enthusiastic greeting, the those other issues might be more easily resolved. I've noticed that if I just concentrate on not ducking my head down, it makes it way less difficult to respond to people.