As part of my English-Secondary Education program, student teaching was a key requirement for completion. In the spring of 2024, I completed my student teaching at Elmwood Park High School, where I taught five classes spanning freshmen to seniors. This experience was incredible, allowing me to navigate various age groups, adapt to diverse materials for each class, and fully embrace my role as a teacher. 

As a student teacher, I was responsible for preparing, creating, and teaching all my own material. I rarely used department resources, aside from the occasional big final test. I graded all my students' work, provided feedback, and guided them through rewrites and resubmissions. It was definitely a challenge to develop materials that pushed my students academically while keeping things engaging and creative. But this experience taught me the importance of balance in teaching. I couldn’t just stand in front of the class and talk for forty minutes—I needed to actively engage them. Whether through reading aloud, filling out a worksheet, answering questions, or doing hands-on activities, I found that my students did their best when they were directly involved. 

During my student teaching, I already knew I’d be starting my MLIS degree that summer, which was perfect timing. In May, the job posting for the Crown Instruction Intern went up, and by then, I was a licensed teacher, had started my first MLIS class, and was more than ready to be back in the library. Having the skills of my student teaching in my back pocket to prepare me for this job. 

Being a Crown Instruction Intern means a lot of things. For me, it means to be a tool and support for Dominican students, meeting with professors, creating engaging and meaningful material for classes, and constantly being on the lookout for learning opportunities. On a daily basis, I am either working on materials for an upcoming class I will be teaching, working on social media posts, creating/organizing events or workshops, attending meetings, working on Research Guides or in a classroom teaching!  

My student teaching experience has been a huge asset in my role at the Rebecca Crown Library, giving me the confidence to teach students across all levels. I’ve developed the skills to create—or sometimes adapt—materials for each class. When I’m in front of students, that’s where I feel most at home. I’m ready to engage, spark conversation, and get students excited to learn.  

Currently, I am only about four months into this internship, and I have had the amazing opportunities to meet with professors, sit in on a department meeting, shadow other librarians while they instruct a class, and explore my own interests. Instruction has slowed down in recent weeks as the semester comes to an end. I am excited to teach next semester and have a goal of teaching one class per week.