Ever since she was little, senior Sarah Bodnar said she has wanted to teach children and help them grow. In the fall, she will be attending the University of North Texas in order to pursue that dream.

Bodnar joined Ready Set Teach during her senior year and worked with a class of second graders at Westside Elementary. She said that the reason she joined Ready Set Teach is that she knew it would give her the opportunity to learn and work in her future environment.

“It gave me insight into what my future will hopefully consist of,” Bodnar said. “I got to see a day in the life of a teacher.”

Katie Travis’ RST class, offered to sophomores, juniors and seniors, gives students the opportunity to work with different teachers and students at various elementary schools in the district.

“Ready Set Teach is important because it gives you the opportunity to experience the field you may want to work in,” Bodnar said. “It allows you to figure out if teaching is really what you want to do in your future or not.”

While being a student teacher, Bodnar has taught lessons and read books to the class that related to their ‘seven habits,’ which are words and phrases that inspire the students to be more proactive. However, on a daily basis, Bodnar was also responsible for walking around the classroom, keeping the students under control and helping them understand their work. She had to write weekly observations as well for her teacher, discussing what all she experienced in the class.

“Working with the kids was a blast,” Bodnar said. “It was frustrating sometimes, but was also really rewarding to get to experience their personalities growing and developing.”