The last time Samantha Steffy read a book in a classroom at Masonic Heights Elementary she was a student there.

This month she returned as the author of “Where Did The Teacher’s Voice Go?”

“I don’t think there’s a bigger honor for our school, especially because she learned as a student here,” said Matt Barranca, principal of Masonic Heights Elementary School in St. Clair Shores that Steffy attended as a child.

Paula Crippen concurred.

“I am very proud of Sam for following her dreams and pursuing her passion to write a children’s book. Her book was so exciting to listen to and full of engagement for young readers. I’m looking forward to hopefully seeing her write and publish more literature for young children. The spark I remember in Sam as a second grader is still present in her adult self,” said Crippen, who was Steffy’s second-grade teacher. “My fifth-grade class was so excited to have her visit. Before she came, I shared my story of how I knew Sam and that she was once a student of mine. They had many questions for her about her journey of writing a book, and also many questions about what Masonic Heights was like when she was a student.”

As for Steffy, the visit was surreal.

“And very different from when I was a student,” said Steffy, who was accompanied by her parents, Cheryl and George Spiteri, and her 6-month-old daughter Dakota Rose.

While Crippen helped Steffy develop her skills as a writer it was her grandmother — for whom her daughter was named — who is credited with sparking her interest in books and her desire to write one of her own.

“My mother used to take her to the library in St. Clair Shores all the time, even when she was Dakota’s age,” said Cheryl Spiteri.

After graduating Lake Shore High School, her passion for reading and writing led her to attend Olivet College where she earned a bachelor’s degree in English and elementary education. After teaching preschool to second-grade for nearly 10 years, she decided to make her dream a reality and so began her work on “Where Did The Teacher’s Voice Go?” (Amazon.com).

“This is my first book,” Steffy said, before reading her story about a teacher who loses her voice and how her class helps her find it.

As a teacher Steffy was always losing her voice and whenever she told her youngest students they would always gasp and ask her where it went, which was often followed by many guesses as to where it could be. As she told her students it is this humorous scenario that played out in her class that prompted the idea for her book, which took her about six months to finish.

“I think it’s awesome. It inspired me,” said Olivia Kruszewski, who had all heads turning in her direction when Steffy read the story aloud and one of the names they heard was Olivia. “I think my future job might be to write a book.”

During her visit to the school Steffy made a point to tell the students that while she loved books she had a hard time with reading in the third-grade.

“I struggled with comprehension and I never read fast enough but all my teachers were very supportive and they made it a joy to read,” said Steffy.

“Now it’s my favorite thing to do,” added the author, who now resides in Amherst, Ohio along with her husband, Jarrett, daughter and two dogs, Tahoe and Kai.