HAMPTON ROADS, Va. (WAVY) — A local teacher has created a tool to help ease the pain of separation from students.
Lisa Thompson has taught area students for 30 years in districts across the Hampton Roads region. She says the pandemic has been hard on teachers, students and parents.
She decided to write a book from the perspective of one of her students, and she hopes it might help.
“I Miss My Teacher” is a phrase many parents have probably heard during this pandemic. It’s also the title of Thompson’s new children’s book.
“During our Zoom meetings, the students would say, ‘Ms. Thompson, I miss you! I miss you!’ and these themes just kept reoccurring,” Thompson said.
The themes didn’t leave her brain. So, in April of 2020, she decided to get those themes onto paper.
In just one day, she wrote a book.
“When you read the book, it’s actually about things you did in the classroom, our meditations, some of the quirky things I would say to them,” Thompson said.
It’s from the perspective of one of her second-graders, reflecting on some of the experiences they shared in her classroom and reminding students that this is hard for teachers, too.
Thompson said, “Knowing that they are loved because, at the end of the book, it says ‘Your teacher misses you, too, your teachers loves you, too.’ Just knowing that you are loved.”
Virtual learning can also be tough for parents, which is why Thompson wrote a special section just for them.
“Don’t be so hard on yourself,” said Thompson. “You were your child’s first teacher. I wrote that part in there. When we got them, you were their teacher.”
Thompson has a goal for distributing these books.
“One million books in a million hands,” she said. “Getting as many books in children’s hands as I can because there are many underprivileged children who don’t have access to books.”
A book for every child, making sure they know they are loved.
You can learn more about Thompson and her book by clicking here.