I sort of stumbled into it by accident and then realized how much I truly loved it and how perfectly it suited me.
My HS guidance counselor steered me into going to college even tho my nitwit parents just assumed I wouldn’t. He advised me to apply to teacher’s colleges as they were the most affordable at that time and they weren’t paying my way.
Because English was the only thing I was really good at, I majored in the teaching Secondary ( HS) English program.
However, one summer job I ended up being a camp counselor for kids 8–10 yrs. old and realized how delightful kids in this age group were to deal with.
So, I happily ended up in my first job teaching 3rd and 4th grade and absolutely loved it and never looked back.
Looking back, I’m really glad I didn’t end up teaching HS as English is mandatory for the students and the one subject that the majority of them detest.
Little kids love just about everything ( or at least can usually be talked or coerced into it). It’s just an all around great age group to work with as they are not as dependent as younger grades. They can tie their own shoes, put on their own coats and boots, etc.
But they are still young enough to not yet have developed that snotty attitude sometimes exhibited in older children.
So a happy confluence of events at critical decision points in my life contributed to landing me in the perfect career path for me.