A pre-kindergarten teacher has revealed how she copied the hairstyle of one of her students to make the little girl feel more confident and empowered.
Taking to Twitter, Leigha Bishop, a teacher of seven years at Lakeview Elementary School in Sugar Land, Texas, shared how her student came to class in a topknot bun and cornrows and expressed that she wasn’t happy with how she looked.
So the next day, Ms Bishop turned up to the classroom sporting an identical hairstyle to prove to her student that her hairstyle wasn’t just okay, but something to be proud of.
Inspiration: Pre-kindergarten teacher Leigha Bishop has revealed how she copied the hairstyle of one of her students to make the little girl feel more confident and empowered
Twinning: The teacher at Lakeview Elementary School in Sugar Land, Texas, shared how her student told her she wasn’t happy with how she looked
Posting a picture of the two of them to Twitter, she captioned the sweet snap with: ‘When your student is just so cute, you HAVE to copy her.’
The tweet has since gone viral, and Ms Bishop has shared with Refinery29 that she’s surprised by the reaction.
‘I mean, for people to feel this picture was exactly what I was hoping for, but never in a million years would I have thought it had the ability to impact this many people.
She also revealed that her first grade teacher text her when she saw the picture and as she’s very close to a lot of parents of children, past and present, she received lots of ‘reassuring’ messages that she had done the right thing.
Discussing her motivation to support her student in this way, Ms Bishop explained that although she advocates for all children, she is mindful of being a role model for the African American children in her classroom.
Role model: Ms Bishop shared that she is mindful of being a role model to African American children and feels reassured by the positive response to her tweet
Award winning: Leigha was been voted teacher of the year by her colleagues in 2017
‘Black men and women need to know that our young ones are watching every post and every news headline,’ the teacher who was voted Teacher of the Year by her colleagues in 2017 said.
‘If young Black girls knew of the never-ending list of Black women who made a difference and are still making a difference, we wouldn’t have so many little Black girls with no one to look up to.
‘It is important for these girls to know that they are important, too. They have a voice that can be heard. They have a story that can be told. They have a heart that can be loved and respected.’
But it seems her student was more shocked that the teacher stayed true to her word and copied her look, as Bishop explained: ‘When I opened the car door to help her out, her face was priceless.
‘Her jaw dropped and she just stared at me. I told her, “You thought I was playing? We are going to be cute together!”‘