As the 2014-2015 school year is coming to a close, it is important to identify and reflect on the special moments between teachers and students, especially with teachers who will not be returning. Starting next year, English teacher Theresa Eiserman will be retired, and enjoying a month in Italy.
Having taught for thirty three years at Yorktown, Eiserman knows her way around a classroom.
“I love moments when things just click and ideas connect and things get fun and get exciting. I love threatening students, part of it is being little; I can do it and sort of get away with that. I love listening to students, I love working with my colleagues, I feel really lucky to have good people to work with,” said Eiserman.
She will be in Italy for an entire month, going all over, from the countryside in Florence, all the way to Rome. In a more long term sense, Eiserman hopes to get into teacher training, whether that be on a college level classroom, or in a school systems mentorship program.
Eiserman loves teaching the classics; A Tale of Two Cities and To Kill a Mockingbird for her freshmen and Pride and Prejudice for her sophomores are her favorite units to teach. She also has a ‘choose your own book’ assignment that has gone over well with students in the past few years that she likes.
Eiserman graduated college and realized then that she wanted to teach.
“I love people and I love ideas, and teaching is a wonderful mixture of those. If I can help anyone else figure out what they think, and articulate that through their words and writing, then that’s a really cool thing,” explained Eiserman.
In her last years at college, Eiserman realized that the two income family system was going to become a norm. She selected a place of employment with a schedule that could fit the frame that she liked (having a life with her husband and children), while also making an income and teaching.
“Be honest about what you really like to do and then find a way to make a living out of what you like. It may not be directly related to it, but there are ways to incorporate it into your job. I’ve been really lucky for thirty three years I’ve liked what I do,” said Eiserman.
And she does a good job at it too.