In this oral history interview, retired educator Mary Ann Finley recounts her decades-long career teaching in public and private schools across Texas from the early 1970s to her retirement in 1992. Motivated by a desire to help her children avoid college debt, Finley returned to school at Stephen F. Austin State University to earn her teaching certification. She reflects on her early years teaching first grade in newly desegregated Woodville, Texas, and her later work teaching fourth grade in Giddings, Hempstead, and other Texas communities. Finley shares insights into changes in classroom technology, discipline practices, curriculum development, and cultural expectations in public schools, as well as her experiences teaching second grade at a Catholic school in Bay City. She emphasizes the importance of structure, clear expectations, and the tone of voice in classroom management, recounting both humorous and poignant moments from her career-including helping a young student navigate the trauma of family loss. Finley offers reflections on the long-term evolution of education, including the decline of analog skills like clock-reading, shifts in recess and dress code norms, and the rise of technology in classrooms. The interview concludes with Finley's advice for future educators: to thoroughly know their subjects, maintain classroom structure, and connect students' learning to larger historical and real-world contexts.