Teachers are super heroes for their selfless and relentless dedication to enlighten young minds.

Every year on May 16, schools throughout the country celebrate Teachers’ Day. This annual event is usually marked with a national award to recognise individual teachers and at school level various activities are organised to celebrate teachers.

Concerts, mini sports, football matches and lunch treats are the typical events held in schools to honour teachers. Students and parents too usually join in to shower teachers with all kinds of gifts as a show of appreciation.

Last year, however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the celebrations were scaled back tremendously and some schools held it on a virtual platform minus the funfair. The same is expected for this year as the number of COVID-19 cases have escalated over the past few months.

While the national level Teachers Day celebrations fall on different dates in different countries, there is also the World Teachers’ Day which is held annually on 5 October. This commemorates the anniversary of the adoption of the 1966 ILO/UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers. Some countries like Canada, United Kingdom and Germany have adopted this date to honour their teachers.

May 16 was designated as Teachers’ Day in Malaysia because on this date in 1956 the Razak Report which provided the framework for our education system was endorsed by the Federal Legislative Assembly of the Federation of Malaya.

Why Celebrate Teachers

Without teachers there are no other professions. Think about this phrase and how much truth it holds. If you had aspired to be a doctor, engineer, astronaut, lawyer or scientist, it all had begun with the guidance of a group of educators in your school.

Teachers set the path for a child’s future development, mentor and inspire them to work towards their goal. They have helped generations of students realize their dreams through learning.

Teachers are super heroes for their selfless and relentless dedication to enlighten young minds.
Teachers are second parents for the long hours they spend, day in and day out, with students from childhood through adolescence, teaching them right from wrong and shaping their lives for the better.
Teachers are role models who inspire children to dream and achieve greatness.
“A teacher is like a candle – it consumes itself to light the way for others.” – Mustafa Kemal Ataturk

The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us more reasons to continue honouring teachers. Teachers are facing so many challenges during the pandemic.

With education interrupted due to school closure amid a rising number of COVID-19 cases, teachers took on additional responsibilities to ensure students continued to learn in one way or another from their homes.

They needed to think of new ways to present lessons online and engage with students effectively. Teachers formed support groups through social media platforms, reaching out to both students and parents to guide them in the distance learning process.

Some teachers also went the extra mile to reach out to students who didn’t have access to online learning.

To Teacher with Love

While roses make good gifts for teachers, there are other ways to celebrate teachers on Teachers’ Day (Photo Credit: Freepik).

So, on this Teachers’ Day show some love to the teachers who made a difference in your life and/or show your child’s teacher how much you appreciate their hard work. Also encourage your children to show how much their teachers mean to them with appreciation gifts.

What makes a good teacher appreciation gift?

Flowers, especially a single stock of rose or a bouquet represent gratitude and for years this has been the most common gift teachers received. While a box of chocolates and a bouquet of roses sound like ideal gifts to celebrate teachers, here are some creative ideas to make your gifts more significant.

Remember that gifts don’t have to be expensive to show appreciation or to be appreciated.

Frame-worthy personalised handwritten cards

Teachers value and cherish handmade cards and notes expressing gratitude. Cards with a personalised message is more meaningful as it shows how much thought had gone into it and what a teacher means to you. Make it a frame-worthy card so that it can be cherished forever.

Make a frame-worthy personalised card for your teacher (Photo Credit: Freepik).

A note of appreciation from parents

Parents should consider writing a note of appreciation to their children’s teachers expressing gratitude for all they have done to help their children learn. A simple thank you note can go a long way to motivate teachers.

Bookmarks of all shapes and sizes

Bookmarks definitely will come in handy for teachers. For that special teacher in your life, you can make a variety of bookmarks. Different materials can be used to make bookmarks such as cardboard, pages from an old book, photographs, ribbons, paper clips, fabric, buttons and thread. You can hand paint, draw or place stickers and pictures to make these bookmarks more attractive.

Books for the readers

If your teacher loves to read and is a book collector, there’s a never-ending list of books that you can purchase for him or her. Find out what genre of books he or she prefers and do some research online to find out details about the latest books available or even the classics that might interest the teacher.

Honour teachers virtually

Perform a song or dance on TikTok or Instagram stories and dedicate it to a teacher or all teachers in your school. Help your child record a video showing appreciation to their teacher and share it with the teacher via YouTube, Whatsapp or email.

Make a gift basket

A basket filled with goodies is always appreciated. Find out what your teacher’s favourite snacks are and create a gift basket that will bring a smile to his or her face. It doesn’t have to be all food items. You can include essentials like scented liquid hand soaps, disinfecting wipes, hand sanitisers, tissues and even masks which can be very useful for the teacher in the classroom.

Gift cards to nail salons and spa

Get your teacher a gift card to the nearest spa or a nail salon. Surprise your teacher with a spa day where she can unwind, relax and refresh. Teachers will definitely appreciate this after spending long hours teaching, managing students and handling loads of paperwork.