Story behind Tannu's Concept Corner

2024, I stepped out of my IB PYP classroom. Not because I stopped loving teaching—but because something inside me quietly whispered, “There’s more you’re meant to build.”

So, I shared my growing inclination towards teacher training with my superiors. What began as a simple conversation slowly turned into something much bigger: the beginning of a training institute. We had no roadmap, no large team, and no blueprint to follow. Just a notebook full of ideas, questions, and dreams.

At first, the intention was simple: conduct meaningful professional development sessions for teachers across our campuses. We started planning a 5-day training program for more than 600 teachers. It sounded exciting on paper. In reality, it meant stepping into a world none of us had fully experienced before.

Suddenly, teaching was no longer the only thing on my plate.

I found myself:

• Designing posters and promotional videos

• Learning about logistics, venues, catering, and budgeting

• Drafting policies from scratch because none existed yet

• Building a website with absolutely no background in web development

• Planning content while simultaneously figuring out marketing

• Responding to emails, networking, documenting ideas, and running social media campaigns

There were days I did not know who I was supposed to be anymore.

Was I a trainer?
An organizer?
A content creator?
A marketer?
Or simply someone chasing an idea that felt bigger than her experience?

And yet, in the middle of all that uncertainty, something surprising happened.

I did not feel burnt out.

I felt awake.

More focused. More alive. More connected to myself than I had in a long time.

It felt like I had finally stepped into a space where all the parts of me—the teacher, the learner, the creator, the thinker—could exist together.

One of the most meaningful things to emerge from this journey was the creation of my own website: Tannu’s Concept Corner — a one-stop space dedicated to concept-based learning and teaching.

What started as scattered notes, workshop ideas, and classroom reflections slowly evolved into a platform where educators can access strategies, concept-driven resources, inquiry ideas, language frameworks, and practical tools for meaningful learning. I wanted to create a space that simplified concept-based teaching and made it more accessible, practical, and inspiring for teachers navigating the same questions I once had.

In many ways, the website became an extension of my classroom philosophy.

A place built by a teacher, for teachers.

People sometimes ask me, “Do you miss the classroom?”

And I always smile.

Because honestly, I never really left it.

My classroom simply looks different now.

It is filled with teachers instead of students.
It runs on conversations instead of textbooks.
It is still messy, meaningful, creative, and magical.

I am still learning every single day.

I still google things at midnight.
I still make mistakes.
I still ask myself, “Did that work? Could I do it better?”

The learning has not stopped. If anything, it has only deepened.

This past year has stretched me in ways I never expected—not because I had everything figured out, but because I was willing to remain curious and keep learning without waiting for permission.

And maybe that is what teaching has always been about.

So, dear teacher, if you are reading this and feeling a quiet nudge toward something new—a new idea, a new path, a new possibility—this is your reminder:

Leaving the classroom does not mean you stop being a teacher. It simply means you choose to teach in a different way.

You can still guide.
Still design learning.
Still inspire.
Still build meaningful spaces for others to grow.

You are not behind.
You are simply building differently.

I am still figuring things out. Still scribbling ideas into notebooks. Still learning new tools. Still forgetting passwords to platforms I built myself.

But I would not trade this season for anything. Priority is still investing in myself.

I did not leave teaching.

I simply followed it to a new place.

And through it all, I hope we continue learning together.