(Minghui.org) I have been a daycare teacher for seven years. I have progressed from an entry-level teacher to the position of Teaching Director over three daycare centers. It is Falun Dafa that continues to guide me to become the most dedicated and effective teacher that I can be.
I used to work at a bank. But because I practice Falun Dafa and the Chinese Communist Party persecutes the practice, my company harassed and monitored me to the point that I eventually had to resign.
I tried several different jobs, until I settled on the daycare teacher position in 2010.
I was the English teacher for the two-year-old class. In China, many parents start pushing their children for academic excellence at a very early stage. Therefore, some daycare centers offer English class to very young children.
The two-year-old class was the hardest to run. The children are so young that they can't communicate clearly and often cry, and they need help with their most basic needs.
As a Falun Dafa practitioner, I followed the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, always trying my best for the kids.
Master told us,
“So in other words, whichever field you might be in, when you are able to improve your skills, that is a reflection of your having continually risen in realm. And people can see that you are a good person and someone who cultivates his or her heart and mind. From the vantage point of human beings, you are becoming a good person. As a result of studying the Fa and cultivating your inner self, you do better and better, and gods give you the wisdom you deserve and give you inspiration so that you can come to realize a lot of things while you study, create better things, improve your technique, and reach beyond. Think about it, in human society, this can be done in any legitimate occupation, can't it? While you do well at work, you are cultivating yourselves--can't you improve that way?” (“Teaching the Fa in the City of Los Angeles”)
When I started, I tried to meet each child's every request. Once, a boy wanted a drink of water. I brought him water five times, and each time he had some problem with the water – it was either too hot, or too cold, or too much, or too little. Then I realized that simply fulfilling their demands is not enough. That approach would spoil them.
So I started to teach them how to follow a set of reasonable rules.
A new pupil wiped her nose with a napkin and threw it on the floor. I asked her to pick it up. She refused. She cried loudly, demanding her mother. To calm her down, I said that I could take her out to look for her mother, with one condition: she should not cry; if she cried I would take her back in. She agreed. I took her out and when she cried, I calmly brought her back inside. After a few times, she learned the rule. We played outside for a while, then I took her in. I said to her softly, “The dirty napkin should go into the trash can. Let's pick it up and throw it in the trash.” She did it this time.
I constantly try to find the best ways to teach the children. For instance, there is a poem that's designed to have the kids gesture with their pinkies (smallest finger). I found that they were too young to manage their pinkies, so I changed the poem to use their index fingers.
The parents were happy. The center director praised me, “The two-year-old English class is the best in the center.”
I was later promoted from assistant teacher to the primary teacher, and my salary was doubled. I also studied and got certified as a Montessori teacher. I was eventually appointed to the position of Teaching Director for three daycare centers, with a salary five times my original salary.
From my interactions with the kids, I realized that they are just a mirror of their parents. If parents are polite, so are the kids. If parents curse a lot, so do the kids. If the parents are violent, the kids will hit others.
So I learned that whatever problem my own child might manifest, I should look within and examine myself.
Master said,
“Some people will lose their temper in disciplining children and yell at them, making quite a scene. You should not be that way in disciplining children, and neither should you, yourselves get really upset. You should educate children with reason so that you can really teach them well.” (Lecture Nine, “People with Great Inborn Quality,” Zhuan Falun, 2014 Translation)
I never scolded my daughter. Instead, I tried to find effective ways to teach her to be a good person. When we got on a bus, people would give their seat to my daughter. I would say to her, “They gave you their seat because you are young. When you grow up, you should also give your seat to small children or seniors.” She understood and nodded.