Uncle Ho with children at the Presidential Palace. Photo: Document

Your generation will always remember a time when you were young with a red scarf on your shoulders, standing at attention with your friends, reciting Uncle Ho's 5 teachings in unison every Monday morning, creating a proud chorus, and becoming your precious baggage throughout your life. A new school year has come, and your children and grandchildren are receiving the sincere teachings of beloved Uncle Ho. Born 63 years ago, those teachings still shine and remain meaningful, because this is his extremely comprehensive and profound educational perspective from intellectual education, moral education to aesthetic education.

During his lifetime, President Ho Chi Minh had a lot of love for teenagers and children, always paying attention to educating the young generation of the country. The five things Uncle Ho taught teenagers and children were taken from his letter to children nationwide on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the founding of the Young Pioneers (May 15, 1941 - May 15, 1961). In 1966, Uncle Ho added the phrases "really good" and "Modest", to have the full content: "Love the Fatherland, love the people; Study well, work well; Solidarity, discipline well; Maintain good hygiene; Be modest, honest, brave".

Brief, concise, only 30 words, but "The Five Things Uncle Ho Taught to Teenagers and Children" contains a profound content and that is Uncle Ho's special love for the future owners of the country. Those five teachings show his great concern for the cause of educating the young generation, entrusting in it the expectation of training a generation of Vietnamese people with enough virtue and talent to make the country famous. Over the years, many generations of Vietnamese teenagers and children have memorized, remembered, and used them as standards and motivations to study, practice, strive, and grow up to become useful people for their homeland and country.

The first thing Uncle Ho taught was that teenagers and children must: “Love the Fatherland, love compatriots”. Loving compatriots is love for everyone, sympathy, sharing and helping each other in life. In an increasingly developed society, sometimes people easily become distant and insensitive. Therefore, Uncle Ho's teaching of “love compatriots” reminds our children to always preserve and promote the spirit of solidarity, mutual love, mutual assistance, and living for the community.

The second thing Uncle Ho advised students to do was: “Study well, work well”. To study well, students must have the awareness and spirit to study, study hard and be creative. Study at school, from friends, learn from daily life. Must have awareness and know how to “work well” with the spirit: “Young people do small jobs - according to their strength”. Must love work, appreciate the achievements and value of work. Know how to do work within your strength at school and at home to create good habits. In the past, schools had work hours, this was a useful activity, effective in educating the awareness of loving work, schools should now maintain it to follow Uncle Ho's 5 teachings.

Uncle Ho requires: "Good solidarity, good discipline". Solidarity is a good tradition of our nation, it is necessary to form this awareness when children are still young. Good solidarity according to Uncle Ho's teachings is shown in the relationship between friends, in class, in school; brothers and sisters in the family, is to know how to care and help each other in studying, building a united and progressive class, building a strong Team. Good discipline means that children must know how to comply with the rules and regulations of the school and class, and behave civilly in public.

Uncle Ho's words for children are also very specific, they must know: "Keep good hygiene". Not only suitable for a generation of children in the "building a new lifestyle", children in the period of building a "clean and beautiful green landscape" environment today must also understand and follow Uncle Ho's teachings. We must help children know how to keep hygiene at school, at home, in public places as well as maintain personal hygiene.

As children, it is essential for you to practice the virtues: “Modesty, honesty, courage” is the fifth of the Five Teachings of Uncle Ho. Modesty is the correct attitude towards yourself, not exalting yourself, seeing your own shortcomings, being humble and consciously learning from your friends. Honesty is not lying, telling the truth, being straightforward at all times and places. Courage is being brave, daring to think, daring to do, daring to take responsibility, not being cowardly, not afraid of authority or violence.

The above teachings of Uncle Ho to teenagers and children are very profound and heartfelt educational viewpoints that must not only be memorized but also understood correctly. Anyone who grows up, becomes an adult citizen or official of the country cannot go beyond the age of teenagers and children. Therefore, early access and learning from Uncle Ho's teachings is very beneficial to help children have a direction to practice and strive to have a solid foundation to enter life.

NGUYEN ANH