Teachers are the first builders of any nation - the day I almost fainted….
If you think teachers are just people who stand in front of children to talk, come and borrow my ears for one day - just one day and you will know that heaven must reserve a special VIP mansion for teachers.
That day ehn… I don’t even know how to describe it.
I woke up thinking it would be a normal day. Normal noise. Normal shouting. Normal small small wahala but what I met? Omo, e pass my power.
As a crèche and pre-KG teacher, I am used to noise. I even wine and dine in noise now. Noise is my roommate. Noise is my colleague. Noise is my best friend but that day? My ear nearly tender resignation letter.
I was at school with the creche
preKG children alone. Other pupils went for excursions at a manufacturing company that specialize in the production of plastic.
Just small time, I noticed something my ear was paining me, and I kept telling the children:
“One more complaint and my ear will fall off o! E go just drop for ground like biscuit wrapper!”
You know little children … instead of pitying me, they were looking at me like:
“Aunty, abeg what are you saying?”
I don’t know what entered me that day, maybe it’s wisdom from above but I asked all of them:
“Everybody, rest your head on the desk. Sleep small. Santa Claus will give you gifts for Christmas.”
I said it with authority.
I said it with confidence.
I said it with boldness.
But let me tell you something, ONLY GOD knows if any of them actually slept.
The funny thing is that even when you ask them to sleep, they will still hold meetings inside their sleep. Small snoring, big complaint.
“Miss Lizzy, Favour is begging Miracle for her biscuits!”
“Miss Lizzy, Emma has broken my pencil!”
“Miss Lizzy, Ifeanyi is pushing me!”
“Miss Lizzy, I want to wee-wee!”
“Miss Lizzy, I want to poo-poo!”
Guess what? Ten minutes later…
“Miss Lizzy, I want to wee-wee again!”
My dear, sometimes I ask myself, is their bladder downloaded on Google Drive because of the amount of wee-wee I supervise daily, midwives suppose dey fear me.
I don’t even wear white to school again. I cannot go and stain my future.
Teachers of nursery and creche deserve national honours eziokwu
We don’t talk about it enough.
The way children complain ehn… 1 million complaints per day.
No exaggeration.
If you think I’m lying, just borrow one child for 2 hours.
Just one.
You will come back with Thanksgiving Offering.
There’s a point you will reach as a teacher when:
A child will put their mouth inside your ear to talk ONLY to you…
…and you still won’t hear a single thing they said.
At that point, you will just nod and say:
“Okay. Sit down.”
Even though you don’t know what you agreed to.
Let me tell you one secret Nigerian teachers know:
If a child tells you, “I cannot finish my food…”
Please, beg them.
Kneel down if possible because by 10pm,
One parent will call you and shout:
“Why didn’t my child finish their food? What were you doing?”
Omo, I have learned to beg a child like I’m begging for Federal Government grant.
Just when I thought nursery teachers had the highest wahala, one of my colleagues teaching JSS1 girls in a boarding school told me his own story.
This one weakens me.
He said:
“I stopped dressing like a professional teacher. I started dressing like an old man.”
Shoes? Cancelled.
Pams? Activated.
Paracetamol?
Permanent resident in bag.
Every day, he goes to the market to buy provisions for those girls and they will still choose the brand they want. Especially bread. Bread selection and a career for them.
For sleep?
Forget sleep.
If he closes his eyes for 5 minutes, one small JSS1 child will wake him.
“Sirrrrrrr… somebody took my cupboard key.”
“Sirrrrrrr… I miss my mommy.”
“Sirrrrrrr… they are laughing at me.”
“Sirrrrrrr… I can’t find my sponge.”
“Sirrrrrrr… somebody used my towel.”
By the time he encourages one, another one starts crying.
Another wants attention.
Another is homesick.
An igbo adage says that:
“Uriom hapu ya kpawa nri, egbe ya”(The chick that ventures to search for food outside the mother’s guidance is the one that the hawk gets to pounce and feast on
He said, “My eyes saw shege for their hand.”
Teachers deserve special reward o and not in heaven, here on earth because what teachers hear and see, you go laugh tire.
Creche teachers.
Nursery teachers.
Pre-KG teachers.
Primary teachers.
Secondary teachers.
We are the foundation.
We are the ones that mould the tomorrow people.
But are we valued?
Are we appreciated?
Is our stress recognized?
Many times - no.
But we keep pushing because teaching is not just a job.
Teaching is a calling.
The Bible reminds us that:
“Teach them the right path, and when they grow old they will not depart from it.” — Proverbs 22:6
Teachers are the ones applying this scripture daily - faithfully, tirelessly even when our backs ache and our ears beg for mercy.
Teaching is sacrifice
Teaching is patience
Teaching is love
Teaching is emotional labour
Teaching is spiritual assignment
Teaching is nation-building
Anyone who has ever entered a nursery classroom knows:
“Until you become an early grade teacher, you will not understand.”
AS HOLIDAY STARTS…
I’m already missing my pupils.
The noise.
The chaos.
The small-small wahala.
The innocent drama.
The tiny voices that shout louder than generators.
Those moments that make your head spin but your heart melt.
Teaching is not easy but it is beautiful.
Appreciate a teacher today.
Send a message.
Give a gift.
Say “Thank you.”
Support teachers’ welfare.
They deserve better pay.
Better working conditions.
Better respect.
MORALS
Children are seeds and teachers are the gardeners who water them every single day.
If you pray for a great nation, pray for teachers and support them.
Their work does not end when the bell rings.
© 2025 All Rights Reserved.
Follow @Elizabeth Akudo for more real-life Nigerian stories, inspiration, laughter and truth. #NigerianTeachers #TeacherWahala #NurseryLife #CrècheStories #BoardingSchoolTeacher #Teach
If you think teachers are just people who stand in front of children to talk, come and borrow my ears for one day - just one day and you will know that heaven must reserve a special VIP mansion for teachers.
That day ehn… I don’t even know how to describe it.
I woke up thinking it would be a normal day. Normal noise. Normal shouting. Normal small small wahala but what I met? Omo, e pass my power.
As a crèche and pre-KG teacher, I am used to noise. I even wine and dine in noise now. Noise is my roommate. Noise is my colleague. Noise is my best friend but that day? My ear nearly tender resignation letter.
I was at school with the creche
preKG children alone. Other pupils went for excursions at a manufacturing company that specialize in the production of plastic.
Just small time, I noticed something my ear was paining me, and I kept telling the children:
“One more complaint and my ear will fall off o! E go just drop for ground like biscuit wrapper!”
You know little children … instead of pitying me, they were looking at me like:
“Aunty, abeg what are you saying?”
I don’t know what entered me that day, maybe it’s wisdom from above but I asked all of them:
“Everybody, rest your head on the desk. Sleep small. Santa Claus will give you gifts for Christmas.”
I said it with authority.
I said it with confidence.
I said it with boldness.
But let me tell you something, ONLY GOD knows if any of them actually slept.
The funny thing is that even when you ask them to sleep, they will still hold meetings inside their sleep. Small snoring, big complaint.
“Miss Lizzy, Favour is begging Miracle for her biscuits!”
“Miss Lizzy, Emma has broken my pencil!”
“Miss Lizzy, Ifeanyi is pushing me!”
“Miss Lizzy, I want to wee-wee!”
“Miss Lizzy, I want to poo-poo!”
Guess what? Ten minutes later…
“Miss Lizzy, I want to wee-wee again!”
My dear, sometimes I ask myself, is their bladder downloaded on Google Drive because of the amount of wee-wee I supervise daily, midwives suppose dey fear me.
I don’t even wear white to school again. I cannot go and stain my future.
Teachers of nursery and creche deserve national honours eziokwu
We don’t talk about it enough.
The way children complain ehn… 1 million complaints per day.
No exaggeration.
If you think I’m lying, just borrow one child for 2 hours.
Just one.
You will come back with Thanksgiving Offering.
There’s a point you will reach as a teacher when:
A child will put their mouth inside your ear to talk ONLY to you…
…and you still won’t hear a single thing they said.
At that point, you will just nod and say:
“Okay. Sit down.”
Even though you don’t know what you agreed to.
Let me tell you one secret Nigerian teachers know:
If a child tells you, “I cannot finish my food…”
Please, beg them.
Kneel down if possible because by 10pm,
One parent will call you and shout:
“Why didn’t my child finish their food? What were you doing?”
Omo, I have learned to beg a child like I’m begging for Federal Government grant.
Just when I thought nursery teachers had the highest wahala, one of my colleagues teaching JSS1 girls in a boarding school told me his own story.
This one weakens me.
He said:
“I stopped dressing like a professional teacher. I started dressing like an old man.”
Shoes? Cancelled.
Pams? Activated.
Paracetamol?
Permanent resident in bag.
Every day, he goes to the market to buy provisions for those girls and they will still choose the brand they want. Especially bread. Bread selection and a career for them.
For sleep?
Forget sleep.
If he closes his eyes for 5 minutes, one small JSS1 child will wake him.
“Sirrrrrrr… somebody took my cupboard key.”
“Sirrrrrrr… I miss my mommy.”
“Sirrrrrrr… they are laughing at me.”
“Sirrrrrrr… I can’t find my sponge.”
“Sirrrrrrr… somebody used my towel.”
By the time he encourages one, another one starts crying.
Another wants attention.
Another is homesick.
An igbo adage says that:
“Uriom hapu ya kpawa nri, egbe ya”(The chick that ventures to search for food outside the mother’s guidance is the one that the hawk gets to pounce and feast on
He said, “My eyes saw shege for their hand.”
Teachers deserve special reward o and not in heaven, here on earth because what teachers hear and see, you go laugh tire.
Creche teachers.
Nursery teachers.
Pre-KG teachers.
Primary teachers.
Secondary teachers.
We are the foundation.
We are the ones that mould the tomorrow people.
But are we valued?
Are we appreciated?
Is our stress recognized?
Many times - no.
But we keep pushing because teaching is not just a job.
Teaching is a calling.
The Bible reminds us that:
“Teach them the right path, and when they grow old they will not depart from it.” — Proverbs 22:6
Teachers are the ones applying this scripture daily - faithfully, tirelessly even when our backs ache and our ears beg for mercy.
Teaching is sacrifice
Teaching is patience
Teaching is love
Teaching is emotional labour
Teaching is spiritual assignment
Teaching is nation-building
Anyone who has ever entered a nursery classroom knows:
“Until you become an early grade teacher, you will not understand.”
AS HOLIDAY STARTS…
I’m already missing my pupils.
The noise.
The chaos.
The small-small wahala.
The innocent drama.
The tiny voices that shout louder than generators.
Those moments that make your head spin but your heart melt.
Teaching is not easy but it is beautiful.
Appreciate a teacher today.
Send a message.
Give a gift.
Say “Thank you.”
Support teachers’ welfare.
They deserve better pay.
Better working conditions.
Better respect.
MORALS
Children are seeds and teachers are the gardeners who water them every single day.
If you pray for a great nation, pray for teachers and support them.
Their work does not end when the bell rings.
© 2025 All Rights Reserved.
Follow @Elizabeth Akudo for more real-life Nigerian stories, inspiration, laughter and truth. #NigerianTeachers #TeacherWahala #NurseryLife #CrècheStories #BoardingSchoolTeacher #Teach
