Teacher overcomes serious illness to live and write for children

When writing for adults, poet Tran Ha Yen keeps her pain and sorrow to share with literature. But her poems and stories for children express the heart of a teacher full of love and sincerity for children.

Editor's note

Teachers who carry on their shoulders the noble mission of "cultivating people" are also very passionate about nurturing the souls and cultivating the skills of students through books written by themselves. These are pure poems that help convey humanistic values, educate students to have a beautiful lifestyle, to become kind people; books that make young people love their national history or projects to develop English in the community... VietNamNet's series of articles helps readers get acquainted with teachers who are also authors of books that honor reading culture. - How was teacher Tran Ha Yen's path to literature? This is a long journey of love, passion and effort to overcome a serious illness to live and write. The love for literature has been rooted in me since childhood. At that time, although I was still young, I loved reading books. No matter if I bought or borrowed a literary work from a friend, whether it was poetry or a story, I would devour it immediately, craving books more than I craved food. And over the years, my love for literature has become deeper. As a high school teacher, my daily work is mainly teaching Literature. However, I not only find joy in coming into contact with the innocence, naivety, and purity of my children, but also find excitement in feeling the beauty of each literary work selected for teaching in school. Therefore, I spend a lot of time writing as a way to express my thoughts and feelings about my career and life around me. At first, my works were just diary entries, small notes about things I saw and heard, and some pedagogical situations. Gradually, those pages became stories and poems that were more artistically refined, containing my own moods and emotions. - For you, do the teaching and writing professions support each other? The teaching and writing professions not only support each other but also complement, support, and enrich each other. As a teacher, I have the opportunity to understand more about the psychology of students in school situations. These real-life experiences are the vivid and genuine materials for Ha Yen to create. From there, the works become closer, breathe life and sympathize with children. Literature also helps me to do well the role of a literature teacher, cultivate the ability to express and feel deeply, making the lessons richer and more attractive. I can convey the lessons vividly, thereby arousing in the children a love for literature and promoting the development of literary appreciation.

For poet and teacher Tran Ha Yen, literature and teaching blend together into a unified whole.

- Why did you switch from writing poetry and stories for adults to writing for children this year? Ha Yen's shift in writing for children stems from her close experiences with children in over 30 years of teaching. Initially, I mainly wrote poems and stories for adults to share my thoughts and feelings about life. But I realized that children's literature is a land full of potential to convey human values, educate children to have a beautiful lifestyle, and become kind people.

Compositions for children by teacher Tran Ha Yen.

After a stressful time fighting a serious cancer and the painful after-effects that remained, I focused on writing for children and felt my soul lighter and more optimistic. The difficulties and pressures of life were significantly relieved - that was an intense positive emotion that I now realized. Poems about the world of children are actually small slices of life, but when written, especially when they are received by young readers, they create a special excitement for the writer. Therefore, I decided to spend all my time writing for children, releasing 2 poetry collections and 1 short story collection. - "The Secret of the House Made of Candy", your latest work is written in the fairy tale genre, stimulating rich imagination for children. In your opinion, how important is imagination for children? Imagination helps children see the world not only as it is but with countless new possibilities. Through this, children are free to create, explore and develop the ability to think multidimensionally and independently. The fairy tales in the short story collection The Secret of the Candy House encourage children to ask questions, imagine exciting adventures and interesting relationships.

Fairy tales help children love nature, understand kindness, friendship and courage naturally.

For young readers, imagination is the foundation for the development of creative thinking and problem-solving skills. When visualizing new situations or worlds, children begin to practice reasoning, predicting and imagining how to deal with real-life challenges. The fairy tales Ha Yen writes are not only a gift for children but also a sharing with adults that imagination is an indispensable part of keeping our souls fresh. - There is a clear difference between writing for adults and children. Many authors tell stories or write poems for children but... for adults to read. As someone who writes for both audiences, how do you think we can avoid that? Writing for children requires a different approach, not only in language but also in the way emotions and meanings are conveyed. Therefore, writers need to really put themselves in the pure, simple world of children, instead of imposing complex thoughts and mature perspectives on the content of the work. Each story needs to have action, specific details and avoid stiff lectures which are not easy for children to receive.

Poet and teacher Tran Ha Yen, whose real name is Tran Thi Minh Hanh, is a member of the Ho Chi Minh City Writers Association. She is a high school teacher and is now retired. Tran Ha Yen has published 5 poetry collections and 1 short story collection for adults ( The season of dry yellow sunshine, Singing for distant love, You and nostalgia, Drops of time, Passing through the thirsty land, Orphaned sunshine ), along with 2 poetry collections and 1 collection of children's stories ( Doctor Bird Worm, From my garden, Secret of the house made of candy ) which are loved by children.

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