Katherine Burge, a teacher at Poplarville Upper Elementary, has been named Nissan of Picayune’s Teacher of the Week.

Burge teaches special education in all subjects in third through fifth grade.

She has been teaching for the past eight years, all of which have been at Poplarville Upper Elementary.

Her favorite aspect of teaching is watching her students grow during their time with her, which is usually over the span of three years. Because they spend so much time with her over those years, she feels as though they are her own children.

The most important thing she wants her students to take away from their time in her class is that they are loved and she wants them to remember the life skills she imparted on them to help them become more independent.

Some things her students may not know about her include that she is a foster parent for children and dogs and she also has four children, three dogs and three cats.

She also writes grants to find funds so she can increase her classroom.

“This year I was able to build a sensory room and a life skills lab for my classroom. The life skills lab is equipped with a washer, dryer, dishwasher, oven, cook top, fridge and cleaning supplies,” Burge said.

She said those items helps her students learn the skills not typically taught in classrooms.