COEUR d'ALENE - Katie Pemberton found her calling early in life.

The Canfield Middle School math teacher's parents, and other family members, were at the school Thursday when Idaho Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Luna announced, during a surprise all-school assembly, that Pemberton has been named Idaho Teacher of the Year.

"Ever since she was a little girl, she wanted to be a teacher," said a beaming Karen Copeland, Pemberton's mother, following the announcement.

Copeland said her daughter, now in her eighth year of teaching at Canfield, used to turn her grandmother's basement into a school and "teach" her brother and cousin.

Now Pemberton is headed to Washington, D.C., to represent Idaho as a nominee for National Teacher of the Year. In addition to an all-expense paid trip to the nation's capital, Pemberton will receive $1,000 from Idaho State Department of Education.

Luna commended Pemberton for her willingness to collaborate and be innovative while using technology.

"I am so incredibly honored. This is the most amazing profession," Pemberton said, during the assembly.

She told the hundreds of cheering students who gathered for the announcement that they inspire her every day.

The admiration goes both ways.

One of Pemberton's students, Ethan Steiner, 13, called Pemberton "amazing" and said she's always enthusiastic in the classroom.

"She makes learning fun. She doesn't just tell you what to do. She makes it personal," said another eighth-grader, Rikki Hickman, 14.

Canfield Principal Nick Lilyquist said Pemberton always has a positive attitude, and can be found working with students before school, during lunch and after school.

"She excels with all levels, and nobody works as hard," Lilyquist said.

Superintendent Hazel Bauman said she thinks Pemberton has a good chance of winning the national award.

"She puts her heart and mind and soul into everything she does," Bauman said.

Pemberton is the seventh Coeur d'Alene teacher to be named teacher of the year in the past 13 years.

It's the second year in a row that one of the district's educators has received the honor. Erin Lenz, a Winton Elementary instructor, was the state's top teacher last year.

"I think that's indicative of the deep pool of talent we have here in our district," Bauman said. "There are about a dozen teachers right now that I think could easily become state teachers of the year."

In her application to receive the state award, Pemberton said that as Idaho's Teacher of the Year, she would focus on increasing the use of technology in the classroom to improve student achievement and work to build more respect for the teaching profession by encouraging more ambitious individuals to go into teaching.

Last spring, Pemberton was one of 97 mathematics and science teachers in the nation to receive the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science for Teaching from President Barack Obama.