By Kristin Holtz, Staff Writer

Marcia Litfin has been in first grade for 35 years.

When September comes, she gets excited as any new first-grader preparing for a year of notebooks and pencils. And when spring turns to summer, Litfin looks forward to vacation, too, knowing next school year she’ll be back again.

But this summer is a little different.

Litfin, a first-grade teacher at Eagle Creek Elementary in Shakopee, won’t be back next fall. The Shakopee teacher is retiring after 35 years with the Shakopee School District.

Litfin, who grew up on a Carver County turkey farm and later moved to Chaska, always figured she’d be a teacher. Maybe, she said, it was because she was always playing school, or perhaps her mother, a teacher, had an indirect influence on her decision to pursue education.First-grade teacher Marcia Litfin is retiring after a 36-year teaching career.

After graduating from Gustavus Adolphus College in 1973, Litfin was hired as a first-grade teacher in Elysian, Minn., but after one school year, she married her husband, Randy, and moved back to Chaska. She was an instructional aide in Shakopee one year before first grade became her home.

“It’s addicting,” she said about teaching first-graders. “It never ceases to amaze me how much they learn and how much they change not just academically, but socially and psychologically. They really show growth.

“Plus, they love you no matter what you do.”

After teaching 19 of her first 20 years at Central Elementary School, Litfin spent the second half of her career moving among Shakopee’s elementary buildings. She taught at Pearson Elementary for eight years before moving to Red Oak Elementary to open the new school in 2002. After five years, she moved to Eagle Creek to open that school, too.

“I really enjoy working with the kids. Every year is a new challenge, no matter how long you’ve been teaching,” she said. “It’s always challenging and very, very rewarding.”

One of her most memorable moments, she said, was a farewell she received from a family as she prepared to move from Pearson to Red Oak. The family — mom, dad and their four children, all of whom she had taught — stopped in her classroom as she packed boxes to thank her for their first-grade experiences and gave her a quilt they had made.

Some stories are memorable for other reasons, too. Litfin once invited a llama into her classroom at Central. After the owner talked about the animal, the llama “promptly decided to relieve itself on the carpet directly in front of the class with all the force and splatter of a racehorse,” Litfin recalled. “I honestly don’t know if my principal at the time [Donna Harms] ever knew about this one.”

When you’ve taught as long as Litfin, there are two things a teacher can depend on — stories and a lot of change. From curriculum to teaching styles, new schools to district growth, Litfin said the changes have made teaching interesting.

“It’s wise to embrace change. You can only make so many changes, however, and you may find yourself right back doing things the way you did once before,” she said.

Litfin said the Shakopee community — students, families, staff and administration — have made teaching a joy. “I never wanted to go anyplace else,” Litfin said. “The community has always felt education is important and has always followed up those words with action.”

Now, Litfin is ready to try other things. She has plenty of projects sitting at home that she’d like to finish. She and her husband also plan to travel outside of school breaks. While she hopes to take a year off to just enjoy being retired, she’s also considering occasionally subbing in the future.

However, the decision to retire was difficult, said Litfin, noting how much she will miss the enthusiasm, innocence and unconditional love, and her colleagues support.

“It’s really hard,” Litfin said. “I’m not sure if it’s really hit me yet. It’s been a wonderful career. I can’t imagine doing anything else.”

Kristin Holtz can be reached at (952) 345-6678 or kholtz@swpub.com.