Viva Las Vegas!

Hello, hello! Welcome to my brand spankin' new kindergarten teaching blog. I have always wanted to be a blogger, but I always made excuses for myself on why I shouldn't be. After attending the SDE I Teach K! national teaching conference in Las Vegas this week, I am officially inspired!! Let me just tell you - if you have any glimmering ability to get your cute little selves to this conference - DO IT! DO IT! DO IT! I could fill an entire blog with what I learned this week on its own - seriously. It is SO worth the money even if you have to fund it on your own - I did, and I will do it again and again! All of the phenomenal teachers that I listened to all were well-known bloggers, and if I'm going to speak at a conference one day then I better start sharing my kindergarten world with all of you!

My name is Kelley and I LOVE MY JOB! I am a kindergarten teacher in the picturesque state of Colorado, where I live and teach in a ski resort town smack dab in the middle of the Rocky Mountains! I literally live in a visual paradise, where our summers average 75 glorious degrees and our winters bring us fresh, powdery snow on the peaks. I teach on a 4-day school week (Monday-Thursday). Yes, it's lovely! But, we have long, 8-hour days, and I feel like that extra day would allow me to extend some of my projects further with my kiddos. Kids and teachers ski free on Fridays at our local ski resort too! How cool is that?? I live with my husband who works at said ski resort and our 11-year-old kitty Lexus.

Teaching is actually my second career. I spent 8 years in the banking industry where I hated my life every single day I set foot in that building. It was deceitful, unfair, and quite frankly a toxic place to be. But, it was all I knew and I was well-respected in the industry and good at my job.

To combat my unhappiness in my career, I got involved in the Junior League, a women's service organization dedicated to provide service to women and children in the community. Through the Junior League, I found inspiration to follow my dream of having a meaning with the work that I do. I obtained my MAT at night in a rigorous graduate program while still working at the bank full time. Finally, in 2012, I was able to kiss Corporate America goodbye forever and began my student teaching. At this time, we were living in Louisville, Kentucky. Shortly after finishing, hubby and I moved to Colorado to live and work in the most beautiful place we have ever seen.

Last year I taught 4th grade and had a blast, but I truly believe that kindergarten is where my heart is and is where my gifts are meant to be given. I am thrilled to go on my blogging journey as I share our creative, inquiry based learning with you. I hope you will follow me!

Cheers!

Kelley