I received a text, informing me that a mutual friend had school resources for me. She is a teacher, and had bought these resources out of her own money. Miraculously, she lives around the corner from our new house, so my daughter and I set off on foot, unaware of how hot it was outside. This angel brought crates of workbooks in from her garage, and as I leafed through them, I realized that all of them were incredibly valuable to our schooling this year. I was held spellbound as she described her work, and the hard graft involved. Teachers such as her don’t leave at 3pm, that’s for sure! Each year, she buys extra resources for the kids in her class. She also spends her own money in making the classroom a conducive environment for learning.

I was astounded when she showed me her art pad, and the drawings she has done for her students to build stories upon. She downplayed her talent, through the evidence was there in vivid colours. She confessed that she has many adult colouring-in books, to simply admire; refusing to add her mark. “You would only add to their beauty,” I insisted, and I meant it. She wrote down a list of excellent online resources after my daughter told her that she wanted to put more educational apps onto the IPad. As if all this weren’t enough, she gifted my daughter a map of the world to colour in, and drove us and our three crates home!

She has had time off these school holidays, to relax and unwind, but there have also been several shopping trips to obtain things for the school; a trip to school to decorate her new classroom, online organizing, meetings and much more. Here’s to dedicated teachers like my friend. My daughter hasn’t stopped raving about our visit, and has already set to playing the IPad games you mentioned and is now colouring in the world. Educators such as yourself give kids the world. You literally did the other day. xxx