The most memorable and magical moments for Teacher Alesh – Sem 1/2019
I had a hard time going to Thailand to teach for a second time, leaving all my family and close friends behind. I wasn’t excited like the first time, possibly because I had been away for too long. Or perhaps because I had been feeling lonely. When I was unpacking and going through the things I had left in Thailand, I came across this.
It’s an amazing reminder of last year’s Valentine’s day (2019) when a lot of children were excited to put stickers all over me. My clothes. My computer. My phone. My glasses. My belt. My folder. Everywhere. When I removed them all and put them on a piece of paper this was the result. And so when I saw it again I suddenly remembered there was someone in Thailand who cared about me. I remembered that Thai kids have a lot of love to give. And it’s amazing because all we need is love.
My students. They were my little helpers, my kind elves! Every time I finished teaching 4th graders, 6, 7, 8, 9 or even 10 of them would want to help me carry my things from their classroom to my table. I had to give everyone something of mine. One would carry the bag, another one would carry the notebook, the third one would take their English notebooks, while the fourth one would take my phone, the fifth one would take my pencil case, the sixth one my folder, the seventh one the bottle of water, the eight one the flashcards, and so on. They were the sweetest and I loved them.
Another bunch of helpful elves. These were my 3rd graders who would also fight over my stuff to carry it to my desk from their classroom after a class. In addition, some time during my second semester teaching, some of my pupils started showing up at my desk before the class in order to take my things to the classroom. Amazing. They were my superstars. I loved when they came running to my desk to help me. I loved THEM!
Some of the funniest and most memorable moments were those when I’d just sit at my desk, the kids would surround me and we would have some fun. Teacher Alesh would be just as foolish as the kids. Or more perhaps?
Before the school changed the way the lunch was served I would often sit and have lunch with my pupils. I remember moments from the first term when the boys from the second grade would invite me to sit with them on the ground and eat lunch. I felt happy being around them even though we didn’t talk much. And during my second term when my former kindergarten pupils joined me at lunch it was a happy time. I was glad they remembered me. I missed them.
This was just another regular day in the Grade 2 classroom. Teacher Alesh had been promoted to the 2nd grade and had also become a scout. Just kidding. One way of having fun with the students was photo shooting sessions while making faces.
The Wai Khru ceremony is a Thai ritual in which students pay respects to all the teachers at the school. The ceremony took place in the school hall. Afterwards, the students came to pay respects to the teachers they actually taught them. It was amazing when some of my students came to me and gave me flowers and hugged me.
Teaching the youngest pupils in the lower kindergarten class was great and hard at the same time. What I loved about the little ones most was how affectionate they were. They wanted to hug me, they would sometime pull my head down to kiss me, they wanted to climb me or they would just sit in my lap. I was hugged countless times while teaching in Thailand. I also loved how they would giggle when I did something silly. I loved the charming smiles spread on their adorable faces.
One of my favorite activities was giving out rewards, either for good behaviour or good results. I bought a lot of different stamps and stickers because I really enjoyed to see the surprised faces of my pupils when they got a brand new stamp or sticker. When they helped me carry my things they would also want me to stamp their hands or faces. They loved it.
Another activity I used to do was to ask a pupil to be a teacher instead of me. I gave them my tie, sometimes my glasses, too. It made for a fun lesson.
When I gave a lesson on clothes, I brought my clothes in a suitcase and I let the kids wear my clothes. I did it twice with the lover kindergarten pupils and once with my 3rd graders. Such fun! They loved it and it may have been the funniest lesson ever.
I spent three semesters teaching at the Dan Khun Thot school and I was a notable teacher each and every semester. Notable teacher was a reward for those who did a very good job and tried to make a difference while teaching. I tried hard to teach well and I was glad my effort was recognized.
Teacher Hazel and Teacher Shaine were my closest allies while teaching in Dan Khun Thot. We only spent one term teaching all three together and I spent teaching two terms with each of them. They were foreign teachers like myself and they kept me going and kept my spirits up when teaching, or just being in Thailand, was too hard to take. We had a fun time either at lunch or in the coffee shop, our safe haven. I’ll always remember and miss them.
I will be missing you T. Hazel ❤️ See you in November T. Shaine, my only partner in crime from now on. ❤️
When I was leaving on the last day of the first term of the 2019-2020 academic year (my second term teaching) a lot of kids surrounded me to say goodbye. It felt as though they thought I was leaving for good. They wanted to spend time with me not wanting to let me go. I felt happy and sad at the same time. I started to realize how hard it would be to leave for good. I knew I’d cry. I told my friends I would.
Go on to read about he most memorable moments from the second semester by clicking here: THE MOST MEMORABLE AND MAGICAL MOMENTS FOR TEACHER ALESH – SEM 2/2019.