Seventy‑four‑year‑old Bui Thi My, a retired Muong teacher, has gone back to the classroom after more than three decades away. She uses an upright wooden kitchen table as a blackboard, turning a modest home space into a viral math lesson.

Her youngest son, Bui Van Dung, was born in 1995. He records each lesson on his smartphone and posts the videos on Facebook, where some have attracted hundreds of thousands of views and a few have passed three million.

My left the profession in 1990 because her family faced severe financial hardship and her husband’s illness, while she also had to support seven children. At that time, during Vietnam’s centrally planned economy, her monthly salary was only VND45, and she had worked for years in mountainous schools.

She says her return is driven by a love for teaching, memories of former students, and her son’s encouragement. My stresses that she teaches for personal fulfillment, not for fame, and she does not use social media herself, relying entirely on her son to film and upload.

Viewers say the videos bring back school memories, let former pupils reconnect with their old teacher, and also reveal My’s continuing financial difficulties. The strong response shows how a simple kitchen classroom can inspire millions while highlighting the teacher’s ongoing hardships.