Hi! I'm Kelly!

 

I am a "retired" teacher and I want to help teachers all over the globe. Before I get into all of that, I should probably tell you a little about myself.

I am from a small town outside of Dallas, Texas called Mansfield. I spent most of my days playing sports and crafting in my spare time.

I went to the University of Houston for one year as a bilingual education major and then transferred to Texas State University when I became a general elementary education major. This moment is very pivotal. I didn’t realize it at the time but that change said a lot about me. I didn't believe I was capable of learning Spanish in 4 years so I changed my major.

I graduated in fall of 2011 and got married in fall of 2012 to my wonderful husband Nick! Together, we have 2 boys. Yoshi, our terrier mix is 9 and Koopa, our mini pitbull is 2. (no that is not a thing, he just looks like it).

In spring of 2013, I FINALLY got my first job teaching 4th grade! I wasn’t ready for what was to come but I fought it out and finished out the year. It was the hardest thing I thought I had ever done.

Then I moved to first grade. Thank God for a team full of vets because I had no idea what I was doing. They were so helpful and I couldn’t have asked for a better team! Then 5 weeks later,  moved to Kindergarten. Now THAT was the hardest thing I’ve ever done! I spent 2 years teaching kinder before making the decision to teach closer to my home. I got a job teaching 5th grade.. Only I never do so because I was moved again! There weren’t enough kids in the grade level so I was sent to another school to teach 1st grade.

 

 

 During this entire process of picking up and moving and learning to function in new environments quickly, I picked up a skill. I didn’t have the money to continue buying new worksheets, graphic organizers, and resources  for my kids. I could never find exactly what I was looking for so I started making worksheets and resources that were visually appealing and “rigorous” enough for my kids. Word started to spread and I started creating for other teachers as well. I loved the creative side of education. I also started to realize that teachers were not getting everything they needed so they were having to spend their own money finding what they were looking for.

After 5 years in the classroom, I decided that it was time to retire. My passion for teaching children never went away. However, there is a new focus. That new focus is helping teachers in anyway that I can. I would love to say that I came up with the idea to create my own website but that is not the case. My husband gave me the idea. I sat on the idea for over a year but finally warming up to the idea. After months of preparation and creating, Teacher Doodles was born!

This is new territory for me as far as putting myself out there in a new “profession” but I can’t wait to see what the future holds. I want to make finding new and visually appealing resources for your kids as easy as possible! I want to help you in anyway that I can! If there is anything you want created for your classroom or any advice or suggestions you have, please let me know! I am here for you!