My first day at the “Registan LC” in Tashkent felt like stepping onto a tight rope. I had agreed to teach a mixed-age math class (6 to 14) armed only with colorful worksheets, a handful of markers. Among curious faces, she sat at the back with an empty notebook and tired eyes. Her name was Nilufar, 12 years old, and according to rumors she once loved math her brother coached her until a family crisis pulled her out of her lovely learnig center where were her friends to my group I was teaching. She was so smart and understood better than my other students, but she lost interest to math because of depression and loneliness and her performance went down. In week 1, I skipped the formulas and handed out a treasure map. Each coordinate solved correctly led students to hidden "gold" stickers taped under desks. The room lit up with laughter, and for the first time, Nilufar looked up with a little interest. Week 2: I gave to every student "Math mystery" (interresting math questions wrapped in papers) like balancing water for a village, who wins races falcons against the wind etc. Nilufar stopped at a quadratic puzzle. I approached her and said: "Imagine your brother cheering." She wrote the answer firstly amoung groupmates and the class erupted in applause. There were days when Nilufar seemed isolated. She sat at the last desk, rarely looked up, and her math notebook remained almost empty. I felt that it wasn't a lack of ability, but something else. Several times I saw her standing at the window and looking sadly outside. One day, when everyone had already left, I approached to her and asked "Gulnara, do you have a minute?" She nodded. We sat down at the desk. I began, - I noticed that you're having a hard time in math class,but it seems to me that you're not just worried about numbers. - I miss my old school, - she said softly. - Everything worked out for me there. And now... everything is different. And math, too. - I understand. Changing schools is always difficult. It's like starting a new game with different rules, right? But math, you know, it's the same everywhere. It's like a universal language. We began to sort out the equations, which, according to her, were explained differently at the old learning center. I didn't just give her answers, I tried to show that the principles remain the same, but the approach can change. Every time she understood a new "version" or found the familiar, a very sincere relief appeared on her face. The midterm test was approaching (it was done my learning center to check the performances of student and top students were granted with a one-month free lessons). On the day of the test, most of the children were talking noisily, some were nervous. Nilufar sat quietly, but there was no previous concern on her face. She wrote intently, sometimes thinking for a second, but then confidently continuing. It seemed like she was just doing her job step by step. When I checked the works, I was surprised. Nilufar got a perfect grade, her progress was amazing. She overcame her confusion and showed that she is capable of learning in new conditions. There was a small note pinned to her work, written by her in russian: "Teacher, thank you for supporting and believing me". That evening, coming back to home, I realized that teaching is not just about academic knowledge. It's about helping children adapt, find their strengths in a changing world, and trust that they can handle any new "rules". By the end of the 2024, Nilufar was promoted to a higher group and had already started helping the new students who came to our group. She did it quietly, with special patience, explaining to them how "everything works here". Everytime when she sees me she hugs me and says "You are the best teacher I have seen!"
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