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New teacher passing on her love of literature
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Neighbors | Submitted .Poland native Abby Aebischer teaches language arts and English at Poland Middle School. She graduated from Poland Seminary High School in 2003.
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Neighbors | Shaiyla Hakeem .Abby Aebischer (standing), 26, has lived in Poland her entire life. She is one of Poland Middle School's new faculty members teaching seventh-grade lauguage arts and eighth-grade English.
By SHAIYLA HAKEEM
Not everyone is a reader and a writer, but for one of Poland Middle School’s newest teachers, it’s a passion.
PMS’s new seventh-grade language arts and eight-grade English teacher, Abby Aebischer, has lived in Poland her entire life. The 26-year-old attended North Elementary and graduated from Poland Seminary High School in 2003. She loved her home so much, relocating to another area was not an option.
“I had such a great experience growing up here. I knew I wanted to make this my home,” Aebischer said.
After receiving a degree in secondary integrated language arts from Youngstown State University in 2007, Aebischer student taught at P. Ross Berry Middle School located on Youngstown’s East Side. She then worked as a tutor and part-time teacher at the PMS, which led to her current position.
She said she couldn’t see herself teaching in any other school district for her first full-time teaching experience.
English is a subject that doesn’t come easily to all students, but Aebischer said she has a love for literature and reading and wants to share that love with her students. She comes to class excited each morning in hopes of keeping the morale of her classroom high. She also gears her lesson plans to keep her students interested in her assignments.
“They are still young enough where you can do fun activities, but are old enough where they can be independent and have responsibilities,” she said.
Aebischer said seventh and eighth-graders aren’t the easiest to teach, but she has found that her passion is working with that particular age group. Her goal is to show them a side of reading and literature they can enjoy. She wants to instill in them a desire for literature and writing.
“Seeing them come in excited every day and knowing I am able to teach them and give then what I love so much keeps me going,” she said.
Aebischer currently resides in Poland and is in her third year of advising the seventh and eighth-grade Bulldogs cheerleading squad.
She plans to begin graduate studies in the spring focusing on English or reading. What she doesn’t plan to do is leave her hometown.
“It’s like a family at the middle school and it is a pleasure to get up and go to work every morning,” Aebischer said. “I am fortunate enough to work in a place I love.”