Life and Work with Katie Clark

Today we’d like to introduce you to Katie Clark.

Katie, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I started in the classroom as a first-year teacher seven years ago. When I was applying for jobs, I remember wondering if I was ready to be an adult, to have a career. I was completely terrified and I didn’t know if I could handle it all. I spent the entire weekend before my first day of school scripting out exactly what I was going to say. I knew that if I didn’t, I would absolutely freeze and I would just be standing there with 24-second graders staring at me wondering if I was really their teacher. The end of the day came and I LOST A KID! I couldn’t even remember the little girl’s name, let alone what she looked like. I knew I was going to be fired the first day! I didn’t get fired, and I survived the first year of teaching without losing any more students.

Throughout my first few years of teaching, I discovered a one of a kind teaching resource that I relied on to help meet the needs of my students. Teachers Pay Teachers is a website where teachers go to find digital resources created by other teachers. The first three years of teaching, I used resources that I purchased from Teachers Pay Teachers. I always loved the idea of creating resources for my own classroom but I just didn’t know how I would have the time or energy after teaching all day. I started to feel jealous and envious of successful Teacher Authors because I wanted to create resources, but I was really too scared to try. What if no one wanted anything that I created? What if my resources don’t look as good as other teacher-authors? These are all things that held me back from starting and kept me in that resentful place.

In July 2016, I decided to take the leap. I sat on my couch and thought of a name for my Teachers Pay Teachers store. I spent that summer researching and setting up my online shop. I was so excited when I got my first sale! I made $0.54! In August, I made $77.00 and I was hooked! Back then I didn’t know that I was starting a business. I just considered Teachers Pay Teachers a weekend and summer hobby. Since then, I have learned that I am doing more than spending time on a hobby. I’m building a brand and a business that is impacting my classroom and the
world.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
There have been some struggles along the way. Starting my journey was a struggle in itself. My advice would be, don’t let your self-doubt hold you back from doing what you want to do. Don’t let the fear of how you will be perceived by your friends and family prevent you from meeting your goals. Give yourself permission to do the things that you are passionate about and make sure that you take yourself seriously. You have a passion for a reason. You can do it! Learn everything that you can about your craft. The last thing that I wish I would have known is, don’t be afraid to ask for help. You don’t know all of the answers. You aren’t going to be perfect at everything right away. It is going to take hard work to get to where you want to be.

Please tell us about The Chalkboard Chatterbox.
When I’m not teaching, I’m creating digital resources for my classroom and other teachers. My passion is building a classroom community with my students. One thing that we do every morning is to have a morning meeting. I created morning meeting questions that I use with my students to get to know them. The questions have different themes based on the month. Teachers love how easy it is to change out every day and students love answering the fun questions.

As a brand, I’m most proud of the level of impact that Teachers Pay Teachers has on the world. My resources have been used in Australia, Canada, Brazil, France, and the reach is ever-growing. Teachers Pay Teachers is not just a website, it’s a community of teachers that are making an impact in classrooms all over the world.

Do you think there are structural or other barriers impeding the emergence of more female leaders?
I feel that the biggest barriers for women in my industry is finding balance and maintaining consistency. As entrepreneurs, we are the ones brainstorming, creating, and marketing. It’s difficult to manage it all without getting burned out quickly. It takes time to learn how you work best and to create a schedule that meets those needs. We have to remember that if we can’t do something well or don’t have the time, it’s okay to ask for help. I think as women, we also forget to find time to take a break from work and do things for ourselves.

Contact Info:

• Website: chalkboardchatterbox.com
• Email: katie@chalkboardchatterbox.com
• Instagram: @chalkboardchatterbox
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/thechalkboardchatterbox/
• Other: www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Chalkboard-Chatterbox

Image Credit:
Brett Clark photos of me, Katie Clark classroom photos

Suggest a story: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.