My Mom was my very first teacher. Alam ko how much time ang binuhos nya sa akin when I was young para lang matutuhan ko ang bawat bagay at malaman ko ang tama sa mali. I'd still remember way back in Kindergarten when I'm about to deliver a speech as a valedictorian, sobrang haba ng ime-memorize ko. And during the graduation, she was right in front of the stage holding a copy of my speech, guiding me para lang hindi ko makalimutan yung lines. Alam ko sobrang kabado sya that time. I thanked you for that Mom. Because of my Mom's hardwork and determination sa pagtuturo sa akin ng mga values na dapat kong malaman about life, whenever they asked me if ano daw gusto ko when I grow up I always tell them, "I want to be a teacher". That has been the profession I've dreamed about nung bata pa ko. Ewan ko ba kung bakit nung nag-college ako my interest changed. But in one way or another, magbago man yung interest mo darating yung time na babalik at babalik ka pa din sa unang bagay na natutuhan mong mahalin at minsan mo pinangarap. I admit now, that was what I am feeling. And I am so glad I am making it real now, unti-unti ko na sya tinutupad.
I was very thankful to my friend Leo who gave me the chance to fulfill one of my biggest dreams, to be a teacher for kids. Nung una I was very nervous pa kasi I don't know what will be the kids reaction once they meet me but at the end of the day they welcomed me with happy faces. Sobrang overwhelming ng feeling. Kahit sobrang pagod ako pakiramdam ko nawala lahat yun when I saw them. They such a relief to me. Usually, we started the day with the kids doing some paperworks like yung nag-cocolor sila. We handed them a paper na may drawing about God and they began to put colors on it. Ang saya kasi you need to assist them one by one kasi hindi naman sila lahat marunong magsulat ng names nila. Kids were in the age of 4-7 years old. They were a mixed of boys and girls. They were all adorable. Most of them are playful and sobrang energetic. Patience is a virtue talaga. Then after that "praise and worship" na. We teach them prayer songs. We dance. We act. We jump. We shout. Nakakatanggal sya ng stress knowing na your doing this to help kids get close to God. Rewarding talaga sya sa pakiramdam. Sometimes kailangan mo din maki-jive sa mga moods ng mga kids kasi yung iba bigla nalang magta-tantrums or iiyak. I had this great experience yesterday when Tiffany, isa sa mga "fashionistang kid" bigla nalang umiyak. I was like I don't know what I'm going to do. Medyo nataranta ako. I tried to console her pero she still continued crying. I was asking naman the reason pero ayaw nya sabihin. Then I began to think. Naisip ko weakness ng mga kids yung books especially pag about family. So I grabbed a book and I started telling her the story. It's like a one-on-one storytelling. At first mahirap cause I was afraid baka hindi sya makinig pero nung nag-start na ko magbasa and I saw her wiping her tears and began listening to me, I can't describe what I feel that time. Nag-focus sya sa sinasabi ko and she's even giving her own opinion about the story and that made me smile. Magkakaiba talaga lahat ng bata, sometimes you need to adjust your emotions para maintindihan ka nila. It makes me happy din na ang bilis nila makuntento even in the smallest things. Yung tipong i-compliment mo lang sila parang kahit bad mood sila sandali lang magiging okay na ang lahat. May mga times din na mag-struggle ka talaga dahil hindi maiiwasan na may masasalit na "pasaway" na kahit anung gawin mo hinding-hindi makikinig sayo. Ang part na yun ang challenging talaga. Luckily, nasu-surpass naman namin yung mga ganung situation. I also observed na sobrang advanced na talaga ang mga kids din ngayon. They talk English well, minsan mahihiya ka pa kasi mas may accent pa sila sayo. Open na din sila sa mga modern gadgets and updated sila pagdating sa news. There's one kid pa nga dun who asked me to invite him on Facebook. Ang cool di ba? And one more, there's another kid din kahapon who cried because he was raising his hands kasi gusto nya sumagot sa question during "storytelling time". When the other teacher failed to call his name, he began to cry. His name was Joshua and he was a special child. He cried. He threw his stuff. Nung tinanung ko ba't sya umiiyak he told me he wanted to get the prize. After storytelling kasi may mga lined-up questions and once nasagot nila they'll get a toy or a prize. Sobrang nahirapan ako patahanin sya pero nung huli napatigil ko din. I gave him a green frog toy. Nung una ayaw pa nya tanggapin kaya sabi ko nalang na bigay nya sa brother nya and he was happy to hear that. Sometimes ang mga kids talaga sensitive din. But I like the fact they don't lie on what they feel. That's something I need to learn from them. Tinuturuan din namin sila gumawa ng mga crafts using recycled materials. Gumagawa sila ng bracelets, balloons at mga different accesories na iuuwi nila after ng day na yun to show to their parents. Sa mga ganung time talaga kailangan mo sila i-guide at tutukan na mabuti. You need to explain to them well the instructions. At yun din ang mga oras na sobrang maingay sila, panay tawag ng "teacher" na hindi mo alam kung sino uunahin mo. Nakakatawa pero minsan ako nalang gumagawa ng craft nila para matapos. Kasi pag nakita nila yung iba na tapos na and sila wala pang nasisimulan, they tend to panic so kailangan tulungan mo na talaga sila. Okay lang, kasi isang "smile" at "hug" lang nila sayo parang kumpleto na araw mo. Yung last part is what we called the "merienda time". We gave them some chips, chocolates and ang walang kamatayang Zest-O. We teach them din naman how to be organize. Alam nila na bawal magkalat, bawal magsalita when their mouth is full and mag-pray before they eat. I love doing this. I love being a teacher kasi hindi lang ako napapalapit sa mga kids pati kay God na din. I am starting to accept and know God through those kids. They help me to have faith in God and to do good things for God. Mas maganda na habang bata pa sila nakikilala na nila si God para paglaki nila sila na mismo ang tutulong para mas madaming tao pa ang makakilala kay God.
Finally, I am so proud to people who voluntarily give time to teach kids the value of life. Two-thumbs up for you guys! Lahat naman tayo alam kong busy at may iba't-ibang plans every Sunday but we still manage the time to be with the kids kahit sandali lang. I know the kids feel the same way for us! They're like our brothers and sisters na din. For me, sobrang fulfilling na work ito. The feeling is priceless. The experience is totally wonderful. And this is something I wanna do forever. I love being called "Teacher April" not because I feel like I'm gaining so much respect from them, but because the mere fact na you're teaching them, you're also learning from them. I will never get tired being called "Teacher April" and I will never give-up teaching and loving the kids. They're like my angels.
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