Hi I'm April Atkins and teaching is my jam! I am a  third grade teacher at Creek View Elementary and I love every minute of it. This passion I have for teaching began back when I was about eight years old. I had the most wonderful third-grade teacher who instilled in me a love for school and learning! From that year on I never looked back. I knew teaching was what I wanted to do and after all these years I'm still just as passionate about it as I was when I first began.

I grew up in Boaz,  Alabama. Upon graduating high school I attended Jacksonville State University where I earned my Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education. After graduating from Jacksonville State I married my husband, Jeff Atkins, and moved to Helena Alabama. However, my teaching career began in Birmingham City Schools where I taught second grade at CJ Going Elementary. After teaching for Birmingham City Schools one year I was offered a third-grade position at Helena Intermediate School. I taught third grade at HIS for four years while earning my masters degree in ESL. After four years, I took an opportunity to teach in the computer lab. My other love is technology and this was an opportunity I could not pass up. Even though I loved teaching in the computer lab I could feel the classroom calling me back to it. I went back to third grade and taught there another four years. During this time I also went through an extremely reflective process to earn my National Board Certification for Education. When Alabaster made the choice to become a city school system another opportunity arose. I was offered a position at Creek View Elementary teaching third grade!  I jumped at the chance to be a part of such a fantastic school system. I am now in love with working at Creek View.  It is always my goal as a teacher to make sure the kids love coming to school. I believe all kids learn when they're excited, motivated, and they know that they are loved. It is my job to infuse fun with awesome learning every day!

MY FAVORITES

SHOPPING: Amazon (I buy TONS of things for the classroom at Amazon!!!)

FOOD: Chinese/Japanese

SNACK: Baked Cinnamon Pastries

DRINK: Coffee with Hazelnut Creamer

RESTAURANT: Mizu Hibachi

BOOK: Buddy, Stone Fox, Wonder

SHOPPING: Amazon (I buy TONS of things for the classroom at Amazon!!!)

SEASON: Summer

SPORT: Competitive Cheerleading/Alabama Football

ACTIVITY: Camping

VACATION: Disney World

ANIMAL: Dogs/Cats