You probably know Mrs. Wuebben as the person who assigns essays and gets us thinking about books we didn’t choose to read. But what’s her day actually like? I spent an afternoon interviewing her to see what it's really like to be in her shoes, and trust me, there’s more going on than just correcting grammar.

 

Let’s start with her educational background. Before she was teaching us how to analyze novels, Mrs. Wuebben was hitting the books herself. She earned her degree in English from University of South Dakota where she knew she for sure wanted to help people get degrees. The thought: “How can I help people?” came to mind right before the thought of becoming a teacher did. She certainly did not think she would enjoy teaching all that much, but of all surprises, she loved it! 

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With this teaching job came a challenge. In our little interview, Mrs. Wuebben stated that the biggest challenge that comes with teaching is balancing work and her personal life. She mentioned that her husband helps out a lot on the home front for which she is thankful for. 

 

Mrs. Wuebben has also had quite a few highlights during her career. One being the fact that she realizes she actually has helped students by getting them to enjoy reading. A student she knows doesn’t like reading ends up loving a book they’re reading in class is one of the top highlights for her. Another career highlight is simply watching her students grow and seeing all the progress they have made over the years in school and out.

 

Mrs. Wuebben has a pretty full schedule during the week. She simply starts by getting to school, usually she’ll have both current students and students from past years wanting to visit and chat. As for her classroom, Mrs. Wuebben describes it as “good controlled chaos”. Later on, she has a break and lunch with her co-workers which she enjoys. She mentions that her favorite part of the day is classes where students participate and when she can have discussions with her students; it seems that she likes to hear different point of views.

 

Mrs. Wuebben shared some of her hobbies and interests with me. She mentioned that she loves reading (obviously), is a big family person and fan of listening to music and watching basketball, and along with all that, she likes cooking and trying new foods.

 

We finished the interview with Mrs. Wuebben giving some advice for her students. What is it you ask?  Well, she stated that kids should simply enjoy their high school years and childhood, don’t wish it away. Of  course savor it in a responsible way, however you will have your whole life to work and hold down a job... but you only get one childhood.

 

Now at the end of the day, Mrs. Wuebben is just doing her job - teaching, grading, and making sure we’re keeping up. It’s clear she’s got a lot on her plate, but she handles it with a sense of calm that we might not always notice. It was interesting to hear what goes on behind closed doors, and it definitely gave me a new perspective on what a typical day looks like for her.