The New Teacher!

Bonny Singh had recently become the Prince of the forest. One morning, he decided to take a tour of the forest to learn about his kingdom, especially the state of education.

He disguised himself to look like an old lion with a grey beard and moustache.

He walked slowly with the help of a stick so that no one could recognise him.

As he walked around, he saw many children, both young and old, playing around and disturbing other animals.

A few naughty ones tried to snatch his walking stick. Bonny was taken aback by this nasty behaviour.

“What is going on here? Why are the children behaving so badly and not in school? They are being very unkind,” he thought to himself.

He went to the palace and called Jacky jackal, the Education Minister to ask about the education system in the forest.

“My Prince, we do have a school in the forest, but no teachers are ready to teach despite us giving them high salaries.

Any teacher we hire, resigns within one week of them joining the school. The students too are not interested in studying so we had to shut down the school.”

Prince Bonny spoke to various retired teachers of the school and they too said the same thing, “There is nothing we can do. The children just do not wish to study.”

“What could possibly be the reason for the children not being interested in studies?” thought Bonny to himself.

He decided to understand the problem in-depth and asked permission from the King to do so.

Next morning, Bonny called his school friend Charlie cheetah.

Charlie had just completed his training in child psychology. He loved teaching and being with children.

Bonny requested Charlie to take over the responsibility of teaching the forest children.

The next day, Charlie reopened the school doors and got the entire school cleaned. He hired Chinki cat as an assistant.

A week passed, but no child came to school. Charlie then sent Chinki cat to meet the animals personally and find out why the children were not interested to come to school.

Chinki met and interacted with a lot of children and their parents.

“School is no fun. One has to only study and read books, memorise them and write an exam. What good is going to school then?” complained Robbie rabbit.

“And there are no games, sports, or fun activities and we have to only sit on the bench the entire time. I always have a backache after school,” added Ghazi goat.

“There is no fun during lunch either.

The food that mom prepares for us in the morning goes cold by lunchtime
and doesn’t taste good at all,” said Romi puppy.

“The children are not taught any practical skills and we want our children to know skills like plumbing, carpentry, sewing, and not textbook knowledge only,” added Romi’s father.

Chinki noted all the complaints and came back to school to discuss them with Charlie who smiled as he read all the concerns. He now understood the root cause of the problem.

After a few days, the animals of the forest were surprised to see a variety of swings on the school grounds.

Various sports equipment like balls, footballs, and cricket kits were arranged neatly in sports boxes.

A table had been arranged with colourful books and games like Carrom Board
and Ludo.

Charlie waited for the children to come to school after making all the arrangements.

A few of them circled around and looked curiously at the interesting items. They could not gather the courage to enter the school premises.

Charlie signalled Chinki who ran and kicked a football.

The football flew high and fell out of the school boundary, where Ghazi goat was standing.

“Please pass me the football, but make sure you kick it and not throw it with your hands,” said Chinki, encouraging Ghazi.

Ghazi looked around and kicked the football with all her strength.

The ball went straight inside the school. Ghazi was so thrilled, she called all her friends. Soon, a full-fledged football match started on the school premises.

It was a fun experience for all children.

Next morning, Charlie was pleased to see a few children coming to school.

He allowed them to play, paint and read stories along with studying the school subjects. Soon, the children started to enjoy coming to school.

They learnt tables in the form of songs. Lessons were taught using plays and skits.

Basic mathematics like addition and subtraction were taught by exchanging fruits among the students.

Science was explained using practical experiments while examples from real life were used to teach moral values.

Charlie asked the parents of the children to run the school kitchen for the children.

The meals were sponsored by the King who wanted the children to have fresh and nutritious food.

Soon, the school became popular and started running at full capacity.

As the number of students increased, a need for another school rose in the forest.

When Charlie went to meet Prince Bonny to open another school, Bonny asked, “How did this miracle occur, Charlie?”

“The children were always curious to learn new things. Textbook learning makes studies boring. They find education fun and interesting when practical examples are used. When we included fun activities to classroom learning, the children got interested along with adults,” explained Charlie.

Bonny was delighted to hear this. Charlie truly knew his role as a teacher was to make studies interesting.

He was appointed to handle the education department of the entire forest.

He trained many animals to his method of teaching so that all the children of the forest were happy to attend school daily.

Best Teacher

Hey buddy, Roli squirrel, the teacher is too strict. She scolds us all the time,” said Piyu, the tortoise.

Denko, the donkey added, “She lectures all the time.”

Tom, the dog could not stay from saying, “There are so many teachers in school. But, Roli keeps such a stern eye on us as though we are culprits.”

Piyu said, “On Sunday, I met her in the market. She asked me why I was roaming around in the bazaar. She also asked whether I had informed my parents before setting out. She wanted to know about my friends; who they were and where were they studying? I was tired of answering so many questions.”

Denko said, “We can do what we want when we are not in school. Why should that bother our teachers?”

Teachers’ Day Gift

Suddenly, Roli appeared in front of them. On seeing her, Kapil, the mole stammered and said, “Good Morning Madam. I didn’t say anything. I…I…I was just listening to them.”

Hiding her laughter Roli replied, “Classes were dismissed quite a while ago. You should’ve gone to your homes by now.”

Denko, Piyu and Tom quickly scampered away.

Roli said, “Kapil, you are good in studies. Denko, Piyu and Tom have more interest in mischief rather than studies. They don’t concentrate on their school work. You are their friend. While talking with them, advise them to take interest in studies as well. Alright?” Kapil nodded his head in agreement.

The half-yearly exams were over. The results were declared. Kapil’s results were satisfactory; whereas Piyu, Denko and Tom’s results were disappointing.

Soon, it was Teachers’ Day. The parents of all the students had been called to meet the teachers. This was the first time that the parents were meeting the teachers. Denko, Piyu and Tom were sitting together in the hall.

Grinding his teeth Tom said, “Where is Roli? I hope she doesn’t lecture to our parents as well. My father doesn’t like listening the lectures.”

Denko laughed and said, “My father gets angry easily. I hope he doesn’t get into an argument with Roli. Look, she has gone to sit on the stage.”

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Piyu whispered, “My father doesn’t like people who talk a lot. He wasn’t even ready to come to school. I had to persuade him to come.”

That’s when Denko exclaimed, “Goodness! What’s happening? Look Piyu, your father is touching her feet!”

More From Champak: Dadaji And Teachers’ Day

All of them were surprised. Not just their parents, but also many other parents were touching Roli’s feet as a sign of respect.

Roli looked at Kapil and indicated that he should come towards the stage. Kapil ran towards the stage. She said something to him and Kapil immediately ran back to where his friends were standing.

He said, “Ma’am is calling the three of you on stage.”

Piyu said “What’s going to happen now? We have no idea what Roli must have told our parents about us.”

Denko said, “Come on, let’s go. Can’t you see? Our parents are also looking in our direction. Things may not go well for me.”

Tom said, “I am scared. Both of you walk ahead. I will follow you.”

Piyu, Denko and Tom reached the stage. Roli was surrounded by parents.

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Seeing Piyu, Denko and Tom on the stage Roli said, “These three students are the pride of our school. They have done well in extracurricular activities. I am confident that they will perform very well in the annual examinations. They will score higher than all the other students.”

Piyu’s mother said to Roli, “You taught Piyu’s father too. He was just telling Tom’s father that whatever he has achieved so far, has been due to your efforts in teaching him.”

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Denko’s father said, “Like me, there were several backbenchers, who were motivated by teacher Roli. She gave us advice, as well as a direction to our lives. We are confident that our children will make this school proud of them.”

 

Piyu, Denko and Tom listened silently. They thought to themselves, “Roli is the Best Teacher.”

 

 

 

 

Teachers’ Day Gift

Chimpu, the hedgehog, Shanu, the squirrel, Renu, the sparrow and Mani, the rabbit’s favourite teacher was Priya, the jackal. They wanted to gift her a card.

On the other hand, Manu, the pigeon, Pranshu, the mouse and Gopu, the fox wanted to please their teacher Akshay, the bear. They hoped that he would consider them his favourite students and praise them.

The principal of Andavan School, Aju, the lion had already put up a notice in the school that no student was allowed to buy a gift or a card. If the students wished to give their teacher something then it had to be something handmade.

Unlike the other children, Raki, the crow and his friend Chinnu, the eagle were to their usual mischief. They were unaware of the fact that the other children were earnestly preparing to celebrate Teacher’s Day.

They neither paid attention to their studies, nor did they submit homework on time. They didn’t participate in any school activity. Priya, the teacher often asked them to participate in sports, but they usually ignored her.

Trip To Cave

The children also had to prepare for their upcoming examinations. Koko, Shanu and Renu decided to make a card together so that they could make it quickly and save time. They could spend that time studying for the exams.

Priya had also said that working together in a group made each one learn something from the other, as well as saved time.

Manu, Pranshu and Gopu thought of making a huge bouquet of flowers. They gathered a lot of flowers from the jungle and arranged them together. They even decorated the bouquet with a few fancy items they bought with their pocket money. They finally presented this huge bouquet to their favourite teacher on Teacher’s day.

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Seeing the huge bouquet Akshay thanked them and also told them that if they had given him a single flower with genuine respect he would have accepted that as well. He told them that the size of a gift, whether it was big or small didn’t matter, as much as the sincere intention with which it was given.

The other children at the school had also brought gifts for their teachers; some had brought sweets, some had brought fruits. All of them presented their gifts to their teachers.

That day all the children were happy. Seeing the others wish their teachers with cards and gifts, Raki and Chinnu thought that they should have brought a gift for their teacher.

More From Champak: Dadaji And Teachers’ Day

They were the only ones who had come empty-handed to class. Priya knew what was on their mind. However, she thought it would be sensible not to say anything to them.

Two weeks later, the examinations began. All the children except Raki and Chinnu worked hard. When Priya declared the results in class, everyone except for Raki and Chinnu, had passed with good grades. That day, both of them felt ashamed. They asked her to forgive them for their poor results.

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Priya told them that if they wished to gift her a Teachers day gift they should promise her that they would study every day and they would listen to their elders. Raki and Cheenu promised they would do so.

Priya thought that if these two became studious and obedient, then that would be the best Teachers Day gift.