Celebrate Teacher’s Month

I read once on social media that “If your profession needs/has an appreciation day, then you are definitely not being paid enough.” Anyone heard of Doctors or Lawyers Days? – to be honest I’m not even actively looking, but I do find it funny.

HAPPY NATIONAL TEACHER’S MONTH

The day officially celebrated on the 5th of October

It’s also the month for Breast Cancer Awareness 🎀 [very important]

Back to teachers.

We all know the stresses that come with the profession, and yet we are awesome for pushing through when everyone else is pushing back.

We are about to enter the final quarter of the year, where I believe it was quite strategic to place the appreciation day right before the start of the 4th term to energise us for final exams preparation. Smart 🧐. I’m not sure how energised teachers feel because I’m sure many had Spring Schools to attend as tutors and teach other learners from different schools, a government initiative for mostly public schools, while private schools do their own thing, but same same.

What I’m hinting at is that in the shortest of school holidays, teachers are still on the clock, and we deserve more appreciation than we are sometimes given. Gifts will do, and not the apple thing that we see in the movies 🍎😅. And also, genuine support to deal with the public’s kids.

Teaching can be and often is purposeful and fulfilling when people remember that we aren’t superhumans and treat us with kindness and patience and compassion because this job is not always sunshine and rainbows.

All these things within boundaries of course.

I spent part of the day sending love to some of my previous teachers, the ones whose contacts I have and still alive, I can’t reach them all (actually, they are still my teachers. They just don’t examine me anymore).

I am who I am because of them …

I find that it is important that they know that I’m still forever grateful. We don’t need to talk every day, but at the very least, they know my love and appreciation as well as my inability to comprehend how they continue to do it for so long. Apparently, once you reach your 7th year, you are in for life, I was only aiming for 5 years 😅. Whatever happens, happens, right?

I urge everyone to reflect on who your favourite teacher(s) is(are) and why? And then make the effort to let them know in whatever way possible because it would mean the world to them and God knows we don’t hear it enough.

A suggestion: Show them what makes them special by demonstrating the impact that they have made in your life. E.g. For my Afrikaans teachers, I say the thank you or other few words in Afrikaans without translation assistance (integrity). For my maths teachers:

Celebrate teachers. 🍾 #ThankATeacher #BeATeCher