The Saline Reporter
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Young teacher loves her job
PUBLISHED: January 31, 2008
Name: Erica Michelle Peplinski
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Age: 26
Family: I was married in July of '06. My husband is a cook at Grizzly Peak in Ann Arbor. He is going back to school to be a teacher, as he sees how much I enjoy my job. My mother, father and sister live in Canton. My younger sister is going to Eastern Michigan University to be a teacher, too.
Education: I graduated from Eastern Michigan University with an elementary education certification. I minored in Spanish, science and structures of the discipline.
Native of: My family moved quite a bit when I was younger. I was born in Flint, and went to high school in Canton.
Teaching experience: I am in my third year of teaching, though I have worked with children in various positions throughout my entire life.
School you teach: Heritage in Saline.
Grade/subject you teach: I teach fifth grade. I am responsible for science, math, spelling and writing.
Favorite subject in school: All of them. I especially loved reading, science and math.
Least favorite subject in school: (No response.)
Something people would be surprised to know about you: I minored in Spanish, and studied abroad in QuerÈtaro, MÈxico, as part of an intensive Spanish language program. Currently, I am working on establishing a Spanish program for pre-middle school students in Saline.
Most influential person in your life: My husband, parents, and several teachers and professors.
Quote to live by: "The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires," by William Arthur Ward.
What do you like most about teaching?
I love having the opportunity to inspire students every day. As a teacher, I feel it is my job to not only help students learn the curriculum, but to also foster a lifelong love of learning. It's incredibly rewarding to be able to help students enjoy the learning process, and to see a passion for learning develop.
What do you like least about teaching?
I often become so involved in my work that it's hard to "turn it off" when I go home. I end up working really late, and then having dreams about school.
What is the most challenging part about teaching?
Finding the time to accomplish all the goals I set for myself and my students.
What are some of the goals you set for students?
Of course, I want all my students to learn the curriculum. However, a more important goal is for each student to try their hardest, and accomplish their personal best. It's also important to me that students develop a love of learning.
How do you handle a disruptive student?
This is a loaded question! Handling a disruptive student depends on the type of disruption. It has to be handled on a case-by-case basis. However, generally speaking, I am a strong supporter of the "Love and Logic" discipline method.
How do you handle a student who doesn't focus well?
Once again, the answer to this question is that I handle this situation on a case-by-case basis. Students who don't focus well do so for a myriad of different reasons. The way I would handle it would be based on the needs of the individual student.
What do you tell parents about being involved in their children's education?
My favorite quote for addressing this question is, "It takes a village to raise a child." Parents are a vital part of student's education. Children need parent and teacher support to become a successful, independent learner.
Are students feeling more pressure to succeed today?
I believe that each generation has their own challenges, when it comes to being successful.
Walk us through a typical day for you?
This is also a tough question as a ton goes on in a school day. Below is an outline of my day, there is no way I could include all the details. It would be pages, and pages long.
On a school day, I wake up at 5 a.m. to do yoga in the morning. This helps me to have more energy for the school day. After getting ready and eating breakfast, I head to school.
I arrive at Heritage around 7 a.m. I take this time to make some tea, look over the day's lessons and conference with my team teacher. Once the school bell rings, we listen to announcements. During this time, I take attendance, collect forms and student notes, and speak with students.
Between 8 and 9:22 a.m., I teach math and science. After math and science, I have my first planning period. I use this time to check in forms, and grade as much homework as I can.
After my planning period ends, I teach math and science again to a different group of kids from 10 to 11:30 a.m. From 11:30 to noon, I teach writing and spelling with my team teacher.
From 12:05 to 12:35, it's time for lunch. I usually spend this time in the teacher's lounge. However, occasionally I have lunch in the room with students, or once in a while, if it has been a really tiring morning, I eat lunch in my room and enjoy the quiet.
After lunch, we complete planners, answer questions about homework and enjoy our recess. When recess ends, students head to Encore, and I return to my room. During this time, I try to finish grading, and sometimes I even squeeze in some planning for the upcoming week.
When students return from Encore, we have D.E.A.R. time and homework help time. After this, it's time for the children to go home.
Our day is packed and it flies by.
After school, I finish up grading, look over my lessons for the next day, and do planning and preparation for days to come. I usually leave school between 4 and 5 p.m., though that doesn't mean that I am done with school for the day. I often spend an hour or two when I get home researching and planning for future projects.
Once I am finally done with the school day, I often enjoy dinner with my husband. After dinner, we might watch a few of our favorite shows. We like "Jeopardy," "Seinfeld," the History Channel, the National Geographic Channel, Food Network, the Discovery Channel or Animal Planet.
We also are big University of Michigan football, Tigers and Pistons fans, so if a game is on, we try to watch it. When we don't watch television, we either play a game or read.
How has your job changed over the years?
My job changed a lot over the past year as I moved from teaching third grade at Woodland Meadows Elementary School to fifth grade at Heritage. On top of this, each year is different as I look to new technologies and opportunities I can bring to my students.
What do you like most about teaching in Saline?
The supportive community and, of course, the children.
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