“The Great Activity Book for Teachers” is $18 on Amazon

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The fun and entertaining ‘Big Activity Book for Teacher People’ just might get them through the summer (Picture: Amazon)

The past two years have taught me the true value of teachers. What a wild ride they’ve had – a mysterious virus, the sudden shift to virtual, the shaky return to in-person classes, teaching through masks, rising infection shutdowns, pivoting and pivoting until what vertigo strikes. And yet, these mighty heroes lifted our children above all else.

It was difficult. So hard, in fact, that I stopped teaching myself when my school returned in person in the fall of 2020, before the vax. I am in awe of those who persevered. And I am particularly in awe of the teachers at my child’s school who never wavered after their the school building was destroyed in a fire a devastating night last February. (No one was hurt…physically, at least.)

To thank all the teachers we know, I distributed a comic catharsis: the brand new Great activity book for teachers (Tarcher Perigee) by Jordan Reid and Jacqueline Ann May. Part scream journal, part coloring book, part meditation, and all therapeutic hilarity, this book is exactly what I would have liked. Compassionate comic relief for just $18 on Amazon.

$18 at Amazon

Coloring pages of a teacher in a crazy pantry and funny things teachers eat. — An overview of some coloring pages. (There are many other types of activities inside!) (Photos: Amazon)

Each of the 133 fun pages feels like a mini therapy session with your funniest friend. There’s the teacher appreciation week mad-lib, the “things you never thought you’d say out loud” roundup, and exercises like “draw your dream haircut from rest”.

The playful but serious “Mental Health Check-in” checklist weaves together coping strategies so deftly that the reader won’t even notice they’re getting help. A coloring page of “Things You Don’t Want To Receive From A Parent – As Ever” includes a gifted candle, apple cup, and other over-gifted items, but leaves space for thoughts on a meaningful gift they received (this book will certainly deserve a mention).

Co-authors Reid (the Big activity books for the anxious, pregnant women, divorced, et al) and May (There’s No Manual: The Honest, Bloody Wisdom of Having a Baby) are a perfect match for this deeply funny and badass activity book. They really to have teachers.

Abby Freireich and Brian Platzer, teachers and co-authors of Eliminate the stress of homework, wrote about this workbook: “It’s official! Schools should do away with professional development workshops this year and just hand out copies of The big activity book for teachers Instead. Let teachers laugh, cry and color! We are so tired! Please just let us color!”

And an art teacher who received it as a gift wrote in their five star review: “I laughed during the whole book!”

So don’t wait for an opportunity. Give this to every educator you know. Current and retired teachers, student teachers, principals, contractors and beyond. My 8-year-old daughter, who has been discussing plans to start a school since she can talk, even begs for her own copy.

And if you are a teacher, know: We appreciate you!

$18 at Amazon

The reviews quoted above reflect the most current versions at the time of publication.