Hannah Little is a new teacher at Donelson Elementary School who teaches 3rd grade. She teaches all subjects and is looking forward to her first year at DES.

When did you first start teaching?
This is my first year. I student taught at Donelson last year.

Why did you start teaching?
I have wanted to be teacher for as long as I can remember. As a student, I had a lot of years where I absolutely hated going to school. There were years when I was young that I cried almost every single morning on the way. I think this played a big part in why I knew I wanted to be a teacher. I want to create an environment where not only are students learning, but they actually want to be there.

What is your teaching style?
I try and have an interactive and hands on learning environment for the kids. I think it is important for students to really be involved in their learning and collaborate with one another. It is a lot harder to do that this year, but we are finding new ways for the kids to learn with these new guidelines every day.

What advice would you give new teachers?
I am a new teacher, but advice I am constantly reminding myself to follow is to never be afraid to ask for help. You aren’t expected to know everything, and there are so many amazing teachers willing to help.

What has been your favorite moment as a teacher and why?
My favorite moment so far definitely has to be the first day of school when all of my students started walking in my classroom for the first time. Being a first year teacher through all of this has definitely been challenging, but seeing those kids for the first time made it 100% worth every challenge we have had to face this year. When I saw them walking into my classroom, I knew that I was where I was supposed to be.

What advice would you give to your students?
I would tell them to work hard for their dreams. Most things don’t just happen, but if you push yourself, and work hard in everything you do, great things will come.

What’s the most difficult part about teaching this year?
The hardest part of the year has been the kids not being able to work together or share materials. It is so hard to not do fun group activities and games!

What’s your favorite quote and why?
“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.” – Walt Disney
I think it is so important to encourage children to dream big. If we push ourselves and don’t give up when it gets hard, we really can do anything we put our minds to.