Students and their Thai teachers prepare together for weeks before how they will dress, what they will say, how they should behave and where they need to go during the event. The procession usually directly follows the morning flag ceremony and teachers are asked to sit in chairs which are strategically placed to surround the shrine. Foreign teachers are generally placed near the front of the ceremony and Thai teachers behind or beside them. Parents of children attending the school are invited to take photos and/or video the performance.
The appreciation begins with the principal of the school addressing the group of teachers and saying a speech about how lucky the school is to have them, what good work they are doing with the students and also the spirit they bring to the school. One of the teachers is asked to video the performance so the people at the front are asked to smile a lot and look very interested in what's going on. It's hard not to listen but the whole procession is spoken in Thai and foreign teachers are at a loss for knowledge.
Now a student who, bless her little soul, is asked to sing the song she has been rehearsing. This song is actually more like a hymn that would be sung at a local church service back home. It is based upon belssing the teachers and thanking them for instilling knowledge and insight and helping them to become better people. It's really sweet. A few more students are brought forward to do a drum session and play on the keyboard in traditional Thai style to make the day more interesting. It's quite pleasant to listen to and actually carries a good beat.
Now the children are ready to give their gifts to the teachers. The little ones come first, they are only 2 years old, following each other and trying not to trip over their feet. They carry small boquets of flowers, incense and candles and stand in front of one of the teachers. At the first signal from the odler students on the drums, the children give the flowers to the teacher in front of them, second signal drop to a praying stance on their knees, third signal bow down to the floor at the teacher's feet and on the fourth signal they stand up and follow each other back to where they started out.
The children carry on in the same style until every child has had their chance to give a teacher a gift. Children don't get to choose who they give their gift to and often want to stop and give it to their favourite teacher along the way. The Thai teacher in charge of making sure the kids do what is expected of them ushers them along their way to complete the ceremony. Teachers often take pictures of the children performing during the porcession as chances are slim at the end. Teachers also end up with such a lot of flowers, incense and candles that they can't take them away all at once. This is a great opportunity for students to help their teachers and also to practice their English in front of their parents.
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