Amy L. Watkins 

Amy L. Watkins is a high school English Language Development teacher with 19 years of previous elementary school experience. She started her career in television, moved into marketing, then teaching and most recently became a self-published children's author. She received her M.Ed. and BS in Communication from the University of Maryland and is a National Board Certified Teacher.
She is originally from Pittsburgh and has Italian and Irish roots. She moved to Maryland as a teenager and has lived there ever since. Amy grew up hearing her great grandmother speak Italian and has lived in diverse neighborhoods with diverse friends. She chose to highlight her friend's children in her book, "We Love Nacho", who are Guatemalan and Irish.
Amy was inspired by Duncan Tonatiuh and the way he includes some Spanish words in his books. She wanted her students and her friend's children to see and hear themselves in books. She loves her dog Sadie, aka Nacho, and hopes you will love her too as you read her stories. Instagram: amy.watkins.author

---