For Teacher Authors: "To Blog or Not to Blog?" That is the Question!

Four months ago, I didn’t know a blog from a Sqworl, and now I have both! Consequently, my Teachers Pay Teachers sales have gone up 238% compared to last summer! Unconvinced? Look at these numbers! Pam’s Vintage Teacher blog had 2,100 page views in 5 hours when she posted her popular feature, Five Friday Freebies.

My blog, The Best of Teachers Pay Teachers, showcases free products from TpT sellers who have posted their products in the Sellers' Forum thread I originated, “Freebie Promotion = FREE ADVERTISING!” Rather than have one seller give permission to another seller to promote a particular free product, this thread allows sellers to give permission to all present AND future sellers to use their free products in promotions...you just cannot sell the items for profit. If you want to suddenly increase the number of page views on your blog by giving away free products, go to the Blog Archive on the right hand column of “The Best of Teachers Pay Teachers” and click on a free product that looks interesting. You will see the full product description of the product and you can easily decide if it would be a good choice to entice potential buyers to your blog. You can then cut and paste the title, seller’s name, and link to the product. At the bottom of each post, I cite the thread in the Seller’s Forum and the date when the seller-author gave permission for all teacher-authors on the Seller’s Forum to use their free product. I also have an index of the free products listed by subject. Thus, if you use “The Best of Teachers Pay Teachers” as a resource of free products, you can quickly and easily increase the number of page views for your blog.

If you would like your free product or all of your free products in your TpT store to be seen by thousands of potential buyers, post your links in “Freebie Promotion = FREE ADVERTISING!” Be sure to give permission to all sellers on the Sellers' Forum that they can use your free product or all of the free products in your TpT store in their freebie promotion.

Denise Boehm has tripled her TpT earnings since creating her blog, Sunny Days in Second Grade. She credits Charity Preston’s TpT product, “Teaching Blog Traffic School” for helping her blog followers grow from 200 followers to 750 followers in two months. Denise is now averaging 2,500 page views per day. Charity’s “Teaching Blog Traffic School” is like a gold mine of ideas. Her 30 videos teach you what to do and, more importantly, what not to do when creating a blog: how to earn extra money, in addition to your TpT products; how to save time, so that you can actually have time to be with your family and friends; and etiquette, so that you won’t lose followers. In short, it is “required reading” for anyone who is serious about creating and/or managing a blog. An added bonus of purchasing “Teaching Blog Traffic School” is that you will be able to join a special TBTS group on Facebook. This cohesive group of sellers work together to show the true power of cross promotion. Charity Preston is offering 10% off “The Teaching Blog Traffic School” from 9/12/11 - 9/15/11.

If you are still undecided “to blog or not to blog,” you may want to download my TpT free product, “How to Increase Your TeachersPayTeachers Ratings, Page Views, and $$!” Track the number of followers and page views you have on your blog, Facebook, and Twitter accounts using my Excel or iWork spreadsheets. Compare the data with your daily, weekly, quarterly, and yearly TpT earnings. You will have statistical evidence to conclude if all the time you have spent working on your blog, Facebook page, or Twitter has actually paid off in an increase in TpT earnings. This free product also explains how I received 17 TpT ratings and comments in 6 days. It includes a systematic marketing plan which you can use to increase your TpT earnings.

There are only so many hours in a day. Is it worth the time to create a blog and then manage it after a long day at school? You can probably answer that question if you can reflect on why you spend so much time creating products for Teachers Pay Teachers. For me, I just wanted to give my two children supplemental income which they can draw on for the rest of their lives. While at the same time, I really do believe that TpT teacher-authors can become millionaires. TpT has enabled teachers throughout the world to use my lessons. Moreover, the free products I post on The Best of Teachers Pay Teachers blog are used in France, Canada, Australia, and Russia. Teachers Pay Teachers has made a difference in many teachers’ lives, but it has also had an amazing impact on our students’ lives as well. The time we spend on cross-promotion is a win-win situation for all. Teacher-authors will be able to promote their products, new and veteran teachers will have access to inexpensive classroom-tested lessons, and our students will learn concepts in new and exciting ways. I hope this article helps you to decide whether “to blog or not to blog...”

Wishing you the best in the new school year,

Vicky Leon
Visit Vicky's Teachers Pay Teachers store

Follow Vicky on Twitter

Follow Vicky on Facebook

 

Related Products from Teachers Pay Teachers:
Blogging for Teachers, FREE
Teaching Blog Traffic School Lesson 1, FREE
Classroom Blogging Guide, $9.99

Making a Blog PowerPoint, $3.50
Poster Blogging, $3.00

Blogging in the Classroom (Enhanced eBook), $19.99

Featured Teacher Author: Michele Luck

Featured Teacher-Author

1.   How long have you been on Teachers Pay Teachers?  What made you decide to be a part of it?

I stumbled onto Tpt back in 2008.  I can't even remember how I found it, but I have been a seller, and loving it, ever since!

2.   When did you know that you wanted to be in education?

I didn't acknowledge that I wanted to BE a teacher until I tried a few other things in adulthood and realized that all along, I was teaching.  In reality, I have been a teacher since about age 2.  I would line my dolls up around the room and play "school" for hours while they "HAD TO" listen!

3.   How are you currently involved in education?

I am currently teaching high school level World Civilizations and Geography.  I have taught all areas in the Social Studies Department from grades 6-12 and English grades 9-12.

4.   What would be your advice to people who are considering joining Teachers Pay Teachers?

Just do it!  If nothing else, it is a great opportunity to collaborate with other teachers that are excited about what they do.

5.   What has been a highlight, thus far, about being on Teachers Pay Teachers?

The highlight has to be talking with the other teachers in the forum and on the blogs.  The great ideas and inspirational stories keep me excited about what we do!

6.   What is something fun about you that other teachers don’t know?

I LOVE to dance!  If you ever drive by the house while my shades are up, you will find me leaping and strutting across the living room to my good ole 80s music!

7.   Do you participate in education outside of the classroom?  In what type of role?

I am everywhere I can be that involves either Social Studies or Education.  I attend and present at conferences on a variety of topics, I participate on online forums and trainings whenever they are available, and I have worked with my local universities to motivate and encourage student and new teachers.  I have also written one book for new teachers, and I am working on another for the parents!

8.   What profession other than yours would you like to attempt?

I would love to work at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum AFTER they push me out of my high school classroom!  I just love the teaching experience every day, but I would also love the opportunity to teach people about the Holocaust and what can be done to teach the next generation to do better.

9.   What profession would you not like to do?

I am one that will try anything once, BUT... I am also a control freak, so anything involving jumping out of planes or off buildings would be out of the question.

10. Who is your favorite author?  Favorite educational author?  And why?

Reading is one of my favorite hobbies, but I do not really have a favorite author.  I jump around quite a bit in my reading from genre to genre, so I am always finding something new I love. 
My favorite educational author is Dr. Angene Wilson.  She is also my mentor and was my professor many years ago.  She writes for the Peace Corp (and other education magazines), and her articles always remind me why I am here and why I step into my classroom each day.

By Michele Luck

Michele Luck's TPT store

Michele's Favorite Products

My most enjoyable classes are the ones where my students are "traveling" around my room and investigating different places or times.  In the Renaissance Tour of Florence Activity, they get to explore the city as it is becoming the Renaissance center.  I love it!

Renaissance Walking Tour Activity



In my U.S. History classes, I have always loved it when my students take on the roles of average people from the past.  In my Immigration activity, they read from role cards and stand in front of great images of the times.  It is always very engaging in my classroom.

Immigration and New Immigrant Activity

Teachers Pay Teachers Link Up: Literature Resources

In celebration of International Literacy Day (September 8). This week's link up is for Literature based resources. Everything here is on sale for a week!

Back to School Night

Open House: Mario Andretti and Cats

Year One:

Gentlemen, start your engines!  Just as Mario Andretti mentally prepares himself before getting into his car, I prepare with a deep breath.  As a middle school teacher, I have seven minutes with each group of parents tonight. In this amount of time, I will need to discuss:

·         an overview of the school year,

·         my expectations and goals for the class,

·         my teaching style and how it best serves their child,

·         a quick review of what supplies their child should have for class,

·         and, lastly, build rapport.

My piles of informational sheets are now sitting pristinely by the door, ready for quick distribution and even quicker discussion.

I check the clock on the wall, then my watch, then the schedule.  Open House did indeed start at 6pm.  I should, in fact, have parents for my “first class.”  I quickly move to a team teacher’s room, peek in and see she has one parent seated in her room.  Surprisingly, no one showed up for my first class or even my second one.

During the entire evening, I had two parents, so I decided to tackle this lack-of-parental-involvement issue.  I discovered there seemed to be three main causes for this situation:

1. Teenagers do not usually find open house or their parents attending Back-to-School night as “cool”, “tight” or any other “word of the day.”

2. Parents have attended at least seven open houses in the past.

3. Parents understand the “Andretti Principle” I mentioned earlier and know that little information can be given in short periods of time.

If I wanted to get parents to attend, I would have to make open house an experience that was new and different, and I would have to provide lots of information in a short amount of time.

Open House Year Two: Cats and an Informational Buffet

The waiting area is filled with people milling about, grasping tickets, and waiting impatiently. Yet, this is not the premiere of a Broadway play, such as Cats.  Instead, it is Middle School Open House.  I gather my materials and prepare to open the door to a waiting crowd.

As parents enter my classroom, their tickets are promptly deposited into a box designated with their child’s class period.  Menus with selections are provided to make their experiences more meaningful and unique.  First, parents analyze the menu.  Then, they make their selections from the informational buffet in the middle of the classroom.  Finally, they select their seats.  I check with each table, answer questions, and assure their successes on activities.  After six minutes, parents are advised to finish up and to move on to their next scheduled classroom. This pattern continues throughout the evening.  Approximately 70% of my students’ parents attended.

During the week of open house, I gave each student two open house tickets. I explained that as parents entered my classroom (or sent a note on the ticket they couldn’t make it to school), their tickets would be collected and entered into a drawing the next day for a highly coveted homework pass. Parents came to Open House just for my seven minutes of scheduling just to turn in their tickets!

In order to build interest, I told the students their parents would be going through a “menu” experience, which outlined various choices they could complete during their visit.  These included reading the year-long scope and sequence (1 point) to writing a note to their child (6 points).  Parents were expected to complete 10 points before they left my classroom.  This also helped parents understood “menus” implemented within my classroom curriculum.

Open House Year Ten:

Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

Related Teachers Pay Teachers Products:

Frog ThemedNameplates $2.50

Can I Chew Gum in Class First Day Class Rules Activity $2.00

 My SummerBook $2.00

How to Educate Engage and Entertain Students $4.00

All AboutYou Questionnaire $1.50

Back-To-School Power Pack $3.00

Beginning of the Year Activities Classroom Management Tools $5.00

 Back-to-School Novel Activities $4.00

First-Day-of-School Find-a-Friend Treasure Hunt $1.00

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/FREE-Parent-Night-Activity-Fun-Quiz-for-Parents

Saving Teachers Some Work in Honor of Labor Day

The admins at Teacher 2 Teacher hope to save our fellow educators some of the hard work that goes into locating lessons and materials for the transition back to school.  This Labor Day weekend, take it easy and let us do the work for you!  We have already searched through the thousands of FREE items at Teachers Pay Teachers so you don't have to. Check out the items that made our list of:

30 Great Back 2 School Freebies from Teachers Pay Teachers

1. Monster Fun! Teaching Manners and Expectations by Growing Kinders

Grade Level(s):

Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd

2. September Brain Benders by Brain Benders

Grade Level(s):

Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th

3. Back to School Desk Nameplates by Primary Graffiti

Grade Level(s):

Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th

4. Parents are Teachers Family Literacy Brochure in WORD by Brenda Frady

Grade Level(s):

Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th

5. Back to School Top 10 Lists Activity by Tracee Orman
Grade Level(s):

2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, Higher Education, Homeschooler

6. Accountable Talk Anchor Chart & Reciprocal Cards by One Extra Degree

Grade Level(s):

1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, Higher Education, Adult Education, Homeschooler, Staff

7. FREE Back to School Mini-Unit by Mrs. Patton
Grade Level(s):

Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd

 

8. Elementary Reading Survey by Third Grade Bookworm
Grade Level(s):

2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, Homeschooler

9. The "Sweet Life" Candy Bar by Hope King

Grade Level(s):

Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th

10. Bathroom Passes by Secondary Solutions

Grade Level(s):

5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th

11. Jungle Safari Nametags by Katie Mense
Grade Level(s):

Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd

12. Exit Slips = Creative Closure by TechedOutTeacher
Grade Level(s):

4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th

13. Making Class Books: Back to School Themes by Linda Nelson

Grade Level(s):

Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st

14. Back-to-School Brain Teaser/Vocabulary Builder by Margaret Whisnant

Grade Level(s):

4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, Homeschooler

15. Daily Five Classroom Posters by Kim Swoveland

Grade Level(s):

Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd

16.Wet Mount Preparation by Lisa Michalek

Grade Level(s):

6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, Higher Education, Homeschooler

17. Get-to-Know-You Jenga by Rachel Lynette
Grade Level(s):

2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, Homeschooler

18. Classroom Procedures Student Guide by Anne Prince

Grade Level(s):

5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th

19. Back to School Student Gift Lucky Labels by What's The Buzz In First?

Grade Level(s):

Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th

20. Class Job Description by Erin Bivans

Grade Level(s):

2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th

21. Daily Math Journals by Deedee Wills
Grade Level(s):

Pre-K, Kindergarten, Homeschooler

22. People Hunt for First Day of School - Any Subject, Upper Grades  by Secondary Solutions

Grade Level(s):

6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th

 

23. Chicka Chicka, Boom Boom Postcard by The Teacher Wife

Grade Level(s):

Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd

24. Use of Lab Equipment and Data Analysis Skills by Science Stuff
Grade Level(s):

6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th

25. Would You Rather Questions for Kids! by Rachel Lynette

Grade Level(s):

2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, Homeschooler

26. Weekly Behavior Report by Kim Swoveland

Grade Level(s):

Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd

27. Back to School: Read, Trace, Glue, and Draw FREE by Deedee Wills

Grade Level(s):

Kindergarten, 1st

28. First Day of School Icebreakers by Elaine Romano
Grade Level(s):

Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th

 

29. Stand Up Get to Know Your Students Sponge Activity by Lisa Frase

Grade Level(s):

Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, Higher Education, Adult Education, Homeschooler, Staff

30. The Ultimate Classroom Supplies Checklist Everything You Need and More by Littlest Learners

Grade Level(s):

Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, Higher Education, Adult Education, Homeschooler, Babies/Toddlers, Staff

We hope that you have found something useful in the links we've shared, but keep in mind that we've only scratched the surface!  Teachers Pay Teachers has recently redesigned their site, making it easier than ever to search for exactly the lessons, activities, and printables you need for your classroom.  Regardless of the age and developmental level of your students, there is something for everyone at TPT. 

Our blog aims to share some of the best resources.  Make sure to subscribe to our blog and join in as a featured teacher author, link up with us, follow us on twitter and facebook, and consider guest authoring an article.  We'd love to hear from you!

Oh, and if you are looking for more freebies to get your school year started right; be sure to read through some of our previous posts.

Thanks for stopping by!

Disclaimer: All of the above mentioned items were listed as Free on TPT at the time this post was published.  Pricing of these items is subject to change as they are not maintained by the authors at Teacher2Teacher.

Featured Teacher Author: Michelle Walker

Featured Seller

1.   How long have you been on Teachers Pay Teachers?  What made you decide to be a part of it?

In South Africa, where I live, I recently started a small business supplying teachers with resources and when I came across TpT I thought "let's give it a bash"...I've had a store on TpT for about 18 months now, but have only realized the potential of really marketing myself within this quarter and have been pulling all the stops to get myself more "noticed"..it is slow going, but I have seen steady results so far (nothing to get too excited about yet, but it's a start!)

2.   When did you know that you wanted to be in education?

My first day of Grade 1!!

3.   How are you currently involved in education?

I taught for 16 years and when I went off on maternity leave my heartstrings tugged me to remain at home so I started a small business creating resources for teachers.

4.   What would be your advice to people who are considering joining Teachers Pay Teachers?

"Why on earth not?" You have nothing to lose and plenty to gain!

5.   What has been a highlight, thus far, about being on Teachers Pay Teachers?

Having a product selected as a feature in the first newsletter of this year! And a consistent rating of 4.0!!

6.   What is something fun about you that other teachers don’t know?

I love art! Painting, drawing, papier mache, pottery, anything! I'm happy to get messy...as long as I can get clean again afterwards!!

7.   Do you participate in education outside of the classroom?  In what type of role?

Well, my business is outside the classroom. I teach extra Maths lessons from home in the afternoons. I have a website and a blog!

8.   What profession other than yours would you like to attempt?

ART!!

9.   What profession would you not like to do?

Anything in the "hardcore" business line!

10.                Who is your favorite author?  Favorite educational author?  And why?

I loooove to read, no firm favorite, although I have read just about every Jodi Picoult written and love Audrey Niffenegger (Her Fearful Symmetry and Time Traveller's Wife)! Although not really an educational author I have loved Torey Hayden's books forever. She inspired me even more to want to teach during my high school years.

by Michelle Walker

Michelle Walker's TPT store

Featured Items

I simply adore my Monster Math Activity Pack! I had such fun creating this pack with the stunning scrapbooking clipart from 'Just so Scrappy 2' and just know that every kid I ever taught would have loved to work with it!
Monster Math Activity Packet
I am also extremely proud of all of my integrated Thematic Units (All about me, Bugs, Recycling and Dinosaurs and Dodos). I believe very strongly in integration when teaching young children. It helps children to make connections between what they are learning and the world around them and keeps learning exciting and relevant.
All About Me, Thematic Unit

Teachers Pay Teachers Link Up: FREE Printables!