Noelia Garella, 31, has just become Argentina’s first teacher with Down syndrome.
Ever since Garella was a young student herself, despite being called a “monster” by adults and her peers alike, she knew she wanted to be a teacher. “Ever since I was little, I have always wanted to be a teacher, because I like children so much,” she explained.
Many teachers and school directors had their reservations about hiring a teacher with Down syndrome. But after many people – teachers; parents; the former school director, Alejandra Senestrari; and even the city’s mayor – weighed in, they decided that there was “no reason” to not hire Garella from teaching early learning classes.
"We very quickly realised that [Garella] had a strong vocation. She gave what the children in the nursery classes most appreciate, which is love,” Senestrari said.
Garella now teaches a class of two- and three-year-olds, all of whom “crowd around her affectionately” in the classroom. They love listening to her read out loud to them.
Watching Garella’s students welcome her with open arms was a moving experience for the remainder of the school staff. “The way the children accept her, incorporating her naturally into the school – there is a lesson in life there for us all,” said one of Garella’s colleagues.
For Garella, she loves her students dearly and constantly reminds them that there are “no monsters” in her classroom. It’s a reference to her own nursery school teacher who called her a “monster” because she had Down syndrome.
“She is a sad monster, who knows nothing and gets things wrong. I am the happy monster,” Garella explained.
It is Garella’s hope to continue teaching in the future. She loves being with the children, their parents adore her, and her colleagues have become incredibly welcoming.
One of her favorite parts of teaching right now is when she has a student with Down syndrome. “I have a boy with Down syndrome in my class [right now],” she said. “He is wonderful. Oh, it is lovely when someone like me is born."
