Rick, a ten-year-old boy, was constantly angry at everything around him. He always fought in school with the other kids. Once he had an outburst in school. Upset by something a classmate said to him, he pushed the boy, and a fight happened. When the teacher stepped in to break it up, Rick went crazy, throwing papers and books around the classroom and rushing out. His teachers couldn’t say anything that would comfort the kid. And the parents of his schoolmates were getting concerned. Rick was earning quite the reputation. After talking with school officials, Rick’s mom tried everything she could to calm Rick down.

She tried different methods until one day she came home with a canvas (画布) and paint. “What’s this?”, Rick asked. Rick’s mom handed over the painting equipment and said, “Whenever you feel angry, paint whatever you’re angry about instead of bursting out.” Rick wasn’t that happy about it but he gave it a try anyway. Over the next few weeks, the young boy created several artworks. They mostly showed disturbing images though. So his mom took all of the paintings and called Rick over so that they could talk about them. “Tell me, Rick. What are these paintings about?”

“Well, the first painting is about how some of the kids show off their new clothes and pencil cases. The next painting is about my teacher who keeps telling me about how I’m doing things wrong. And the last painting is about how one of my schoolmate’s father suggested that I change my attitude. All of them make me so angry.” Rick’s mom, in a calm voice, took Rick by her side and told him: “Don’t you see it, Rick?” “See what?” Rick asked. “You’re so angry at all of these things but not once did you try to understand why you’re getting so angry. What have all these people done to you, really?”

Rick was lost in thought.

Rick knew it was time to change.

Tim had high respect for his father, Mike, who was also his teacher. With a burning sense of responsibility, Mike loved his job so much that he always went the extra mile.

In the very early morning, Tim could always see Mike busy with breakfast for him. Later on, they went to school together to accompany the students to greet a new day of learning. At table, Mike exchanged what he knew in school with Tim. Typically, Mike would always wear a shiny smile for the funny moments; frown for his students’ problems or challenges. At that moment, Tim did feel his father’s passion for the class.

Having finished the housework and said goodnight to Tim, Mike, eventually, sat at his desk peacefully and buried himself in what he enjoyed. In the delicate light of a lamp, he made preparations for the next day, trying to make what students found boring in the textbook come to life.

Sometimes, Mike worried Tim might be envious of the attention he gave to other children. However, Tim didn’t complain about it. Instead, he admired his dedication and love. It was one of the qualities that made Mike such a fantastic father.

Tim liked making videos of activities in daily life, and kept his camera handy in case there was any opportunity to capture footage (捕捉片段). Also, he captured some of Mike’s.

One weekend, Tim approached Mike’s room, hoping to get advice on making videos for the next class meeting themed Love, only to find Mike staring at the photos of his students on the wall, a little upset.

“What happened?” Tim asked as he stepped into Mike’s room.

“You know, some of your classmates recently have been rebellious (叛逆的). Despite discipline and heartfelt communications, they’re still breaking rules, skipping classes and complaining about my strictness. Though I could be demanding sometimes, I’m concerned about them. ” Mike sighed.

Thinking of his upsetting classmates who couldn’t sense Mike’s efforts, Tim decided to try to do his part in helping Mike out in secret. With an idea flashing into his mind, he knew what the video was about.

Tim started working on the video.

The students, along with Mike got surprised when the video came to an end.

During my six years at the Boyd E. Smith Primary School, I was lucky to have so many great teachers who served as thoughtful role models. They were admirable characters who had far-reaching effects on me in more ways than I could have known. Among them who influenced me the most was my fourth-grade teacher, Mrs. Green.

The truth is that Mrs. Green was unlike anyone I had ever known. She had so much energy and passion for the world and for her students that she spent thirty years of her life at Boyd E. Smith. Mrs. Green taught maths. She devoted herself to her work. I would never have imagined that I would have left her class with so much.

Mrs. Green is everything that I want to be. The first time I met her, I knew she was someone special. Being young fourth-graders, we were taught to show respect to teachers as we learned to say “Thank you, madam” and “Yes, madam” on a daily basis. We did not complain about it. We knew she did it to make us better young adults that would carry on through life with respect for our elders.

Mrs. Green was an amazing teacher for many reasons, as she was intelligent and passionate about what she taught. She did not scold (责骂) us, but she taught us to recognize the difference between right and wrong and to be responsible no matter what we did. Looking back upon those days when I was in her class, I realized that she was teaching us qualities that were important to our characters. The most valuable lesson I learned from her was to live with honesty. I had no idea what this word meant until the incident (事情) in a math exam.

I was caught in the act of cheating in the exam.

Now I am also a primary school teacher like Mrs. Green.