I had a hard time scaling through my childhood phase.
I had learning difficulties (we relocated to Lagos and after been examined by my new school, I was enrolled in Nursery class instead of Primary).
I had a speech disorder (I stutter terribly when I speak. Sometimes I had to hit my leg on the ground before I can pronounce a word).
I had slight amnesia (I forget things easily. You could give an instruction now and in the next five minutes, I have forgotten).
I forget myself and leave my mouth open, often. Sometimes, I end up having saliva roll down my mouth.
I had weak bones. I get tired easily, so I had to stay away from sports to avoid getting hurt.
I catwalk when I walk.
We were facing huge financial crises. The proper definition of a poor household.
I got mocked often. In school, on the street, wherever I find myself.
People mimic the way I talk. They insult me over my walking steps. I got scolded terribly because I could not give the teacher the result she desired.
My childhood was tough.
I had severe low self esteem. Sometimes, I feel the need to talk but the fact that people would laugh at me, shuts me up.
I stayed indoors because I did not want people making fun of the way I walked.
Everything I was facing, affected my physic. I told myself I was ugly. I did not see any reason to smile.
I looked at the mirror and felt disgusted at my image. That was how deep it was.
I once taught a child who openly told me that she would not speak English language because her classmates will make fun of her.
I have had students who told me they would not associate with their classmates because they believe everybody hates them.
There are several cases of students who would not attempt reading their books because they believe- and have been told- that they are “Olodo”.
Our students go through more than we can ever imagine. Teaching children in low income communities has exposed me to diverse unbelievable things my students go through.
Positive affirmation is one activity in class that I do not joke with.
If a child does not believe in him/herself, you would have a hard time teaching that child.
As teachers, we should not focus more on cognitive development and pay less attention to the attentive development of children.
The day I started smiling was when I could look myself in the mirror and boldly say “I love myself”. It was a huge relief. I began to see myself differently.
I would often pick a mirror just to smile and admire my beautiful self. I would record my voice and play it countless times. I would walk with pride and admire the way I catwalk.
Seeing myself in a positive light changed me. I became so bold to talk In front of people without been scared of stuttering. I became bold to do things I initially had great fear about.
The truth is, applying several strategies might not work if your students see themselves in a negative light.
In my class, we take our positive affirmations twice every week. Some days, I call my students and ask them to tell me five things they love about themselves.
Sometimes, I look at a student and say “Oh! Look at that beautiful smile”. I point out how beautiful or handsome they are. I tell them I notice even the slightest effort they make. I appreciate them on a lot of things and you should see the way they give me that cute big smile. I yearn for that.
We should focus more on appreciating our students than criticms.
We should pay more attention to their feelings than focusing on trivia matters.
Most times, when children feel bad about themselves, they tend to take it out on others by been rude, engaging in fights, and others acts.
In my case, I was rude and always fighting.
This is a post for teachers, parents and caregivers. Our reflex action should not always be to punish the child, a simple word of affirmation might change the situation.
In my book “EUREKA”, I talked extensively on Positive affirmations and also listed the ones we use in my classroom.
You can now preorder your copy of “Eureka”. See pictures below for details.
For my teachers and parents in other countries, the amazon link will be sent to you soonest. You can join the WhatsApp group below to get details on it. https://chat.whatsapp.com/FADeGRSu1PUEs8Ud79McvS
Miss Dairo loves you.
MISS DAIRO'S SPACE 