Sarah Iehl was placed at Dr. Howard Elementary in Champaign as a student teacher while attending the University of Illinois. A quarter-century later, the Collinsville native is still at Dr. Howard, where she started professionally as a first-grade teacher after graduation in 2000.
During her 25 years at the school, Iehl has also has second and third grade and is set to begin her second year of fifth grade. The nationally board certified teacher was given a Shining Star Award by the Champaign-Urbana Schools Foundation this year.
I find my work important because … I get to introduce students to new things and hopefully help them develop a love of learning. Being an elementary teacher is important because you set the foundation for learning by teaching the basics and exposing students to lots of new information everyday. By teaching the subjects and topics in fun and enjoyable ways, I hope that it will encourage my students to want to dig deeper and continue to study and learn as they get older.
I became a teacher because … my mom was a teacher and I grew up wanting to follow in her footsteps. When I was little, I liked helping her set up her classroom, and I had a lot of fun in the summer playing school with my two younger sisters and our dolls. I also always enjoyed going to school and learning new things, and as I got older I realized that I liked working with children too, so being a teacher made sense. I remember debating for a while on whether or not I should become an elementary, middle school or high school teacher. I eventually decided to become an elementary teacher because then I would be able to teach all of the subjects and not just one, and because it was too hard to pick a favorite subject anyway. As an elementary teacher, I was also excited about being able to work with young children and watch them grow, and help them find joy in learning new things, just like me.
My favorite or most unique lesson that I teach is … well, there have been several in all my years of teaching! When I taught first grade I always enjoyed our plant unit and experiment. We would do an experiment to see if light was needed for a seed to start growing and for a plant to continue to grow. My students were always amazed at the results! In second grade, I (surprisingly) enjoyed our insect unit. It was fun teaching and learning about the different insects and their body parts and life cycle. At the end of the unit, each student did a research project and presented an insect wax museum to the parents. However, the first- and second-graders would probably say that their favorite activity was at the end of the year when we had Camp Iehl-Have-Fun. I would turn the desks into tents and we would do various educational activities around a camping theme. Now that I am in fifth grade, a favorite unit for my students and I was our reading unit on Don Quixote. I never would have guessed it, but my students ended up loving reading about this eccentric man who convinced himself that he was a knight and set off on adventures in an attempt to rid the world of evil. Students who rarely participated during reading class became engaged in our discussion on character traits and development, and my reluctant writers had something to say about Don Quixote and his positive and negative attributes.
Even after we were done with the unit, they would still make references and comparisons to him when we read other books. Over spring break I went to Spain on a study-abroad trip, and when I came back they were excited to hear that I saw Don Quixote’s statue and that I saw where the author, Miguel de Cervantes, lived in Madrid. In fact, several of them now hope to travel to Spain as well someday to see these things too. This past year was my first year teaching this unit, but I’m already looking forward to teaching this unit again this upcoming year.
My most fulfilling moments on the job are when … I see a student finally get it. Whether the student is in first grade or fifth grade, when they are being introduced to something for the first time, there can often be confusion or even frustration, and sometimes I can get frustrated as well! But after repeated instruction, or sometimes different instruction, and practice, eventually they get it. When I see the smile across their face when they figured out the math problem, or when I see the otherwise reluctant student raising their hand to share an answer, or when a parent tells me that their child was excited to share with them what they learned in class, all of the hard work and occasional frustration becomes worth it. When the end of the year finally comes, I reflect with my students and we talk about all that we have learned and accomplished throughout the year, and I end up finding it really hard to say goodbye. This feeling of pride that I have in their success always serves as a reminder of how much I enjoy teaching.
I keep students engaged by … showing enthusiasm in what I teach. I find that if I’m excited about the book or the activity, or if I can find a way to connect what we are learning to real life, then they will be more likely to be enthusiastic and engaged in learning. I might do this by sharing a story about my own experience with the topic, or by finding other resources that will connect the skill to their everyday life. I also try to vary how I present the information, for instance as a whole class or in small groups, or through a reading or a demonstration, and I have them do their work in different ways too, such as with a partner or independently. This keeps school from being too repetitive, and it helps them explore different types of learning and figure out what styles of learning works best for them.
Something else I’m passionate about is … traveling! Ever since I was little, my family has gone on road trips together. In our travels, we have visited all 50 states, some of them more than once, and we have visited a few countries as well. I really enjoy getting to spend time with my family as we explore new places. Because of my interest in traveling, I have also started taking part in the College of Education Study Abroad program at the UI. Through this program, I have visited several cities and places in Italy, Singapore, and Spain.
This program also takes us into the universities and schools in these countries as we look at similarities and differences between these educational systems and our own.
It has been a lot of fun to see what schools are like around the world, and I look forward to hopefully taking part in more of these study-abroad trips in the future.
My favorite teacher and subject to study in school were … all of them! I loved all of my teachers growing up for various reasons and I learned new things from each of them, but there are two that stand out. Mr. Miller was my third grade teacher at Holy Cross Lutheran School in Collinsville. I remember him expressively reading lots of great chapter books to us after lunch. Listening to him read was always my favorite part of the day. Mr. Bentz was my algebra and pre-calculus teacher at Metro East Lutheran High School in Edwardsville. He really encouraged me and helped develop my interest in math because he made learning math fun and easy to understand. Math ended up being my favorite subject in school, but I also really liked reading, writing, and life sciences too.
If I weren’t a teacher, I would be … an accountant or a geneticist, or at least that is what I considered briefly in high school. But now, I think I would want a job that has to do with traveling, maybe a travel agent or some sort of tour guide.
I’m spending my summer break … relaxing, spending time with friends and family, and traveling! This summer I traveled to New York and North Carolina to visit friends and family, and I went on a Disney Cruise with my parents, two sisters and brothers-in-law, and my five nieces and nephews (they called themselves the Cruising Cousins). We had a wonderful time and we can’t wait until our next trip together! I had a really great summer and I’m sad that the summer and my travels are quickly coming to an end, but I’m looking forward to starting the new school year and meeting my new class too.
ANTHONY ZILIS