It has been more than a full week back to learning at Bangkok Patana School. This will be my tenth year at this institution and I must say, the vibe of the place over the last several days has been awesome. Children are excited to be here and the staff are very upbeat as well.
There was an old joke about teaching back home that I often heard: “What are the three best reasons to become a teacher?” Answer: “June, July and August!” While I do understand why that is funny, I absolutely disagree. For me, and I believe for my colleagues, the best thing about being a teacher is TEACHING! Being with young minds who are eager to learn and become well educated adults to make their mark in the world. Nothing is better than being in a classroom full of young people and watching them learn with amazement.
That being said, there is something to the summer break that is vital to teaching and being a student. Those days off timetable are so important. I think most would agree that the academic year here is full on; nonstop learning combined with many extra-curricular activities that fill most if not all of the days of the year. When is there time to decompress?
The summer break, as well as most of our other breaks, are necessary for this decompression. It is so important to have this time to be with family and friends, put the books and notes aside for a bit, and relax and enjoy other passions. I love hearing from my kids what passions they pursued while on their breaks. And I love it even more when they come in to class on day one and ask me, “Mr Smith, what amazing animals did you photograph over the summer?”
Well, my summer this year was packed with one of the most epic wildlife expeditions I’ve done in a long time, and I’ve done a lot of expeditions! I spent my time in Australia focusing on documenting as much wildlife in the main hotspots of the continent as possible. While my trip was non-stop trekking, driving, waiting in the dark for that special sighting, tracking animals in remote locations and sometimes eating and sleeping, I came back as refreshed and ready to get back to work as ever. I’ve been sharing my images with students and creating new curriculum with them and the kids have loved it. Now I’d like to share some with you, the Bangkok Patana Community. Enjoy!
