Hi all! Happy Tuesday! I hope your week has gotten off to a great start. It's Tuesday and time for another installment of...
This week, our Teacher Feature is
Laura Hill
Read more about her at
Teaching Tailshttp://theteachingtails.blogspot.com/
She kindly took the time to share a bit about her experiences with Teachers Pay Teachers and teaching.
1. How long have you been TPT'ing?
I have been on TpT since February 4th, 2014. It has officially been 1 year since I started TpT and I could not be more happy with all the great products I have created and all the wonderful people I have met on the forums.
2. What is your most helpful advice for new TPT'ers?
My most helpful advice for new TpTers is to stay true to yourself. Whatever you are passionate about, create it. Anything that you can say was from your heart and your drive for teaching is a worthwhile project. Anyone can make a simple packet, but it is the passion, time and determination that makes a product worth while.
Take time to reflect on products and modify them when needed.I think it is extremely important to make a relationship with your followers and people who visit your store. Always reply to people who buy your products and are kind enough to leave feedback for them. Kindness and just the thought that you appreciate people goes a long way as a seller on TpT.
Just having a store and saying "Oh I just made $10.00" yet not celebrating or providing thanks for those who purchased your products is not the point. You should be proud of EVERY accomplishment you make, whether that be completing the newest packet you have been working on for weeks or gaining a new follower.
If you stay true to yourself and share your creations with others through some free and some paid products, you will be successful on TpT. Every little packet you sell or put out for free download is just one more classroom you have touched with your passion for teaching and creating.
Take time to reflect on products and modify them when needed.I think it is extremely important to make a relationship with your followers and people who visit your store. Always reply to people who buy your products and are kind enough to leave feedback for them. Kindness and just the thought that you appreciate people goes a long way as a seller on TpT.
Just having a store and saying "Oh I just made $10.00" yet not celebrating or providing thanks for those who purchased your products is not the point. You should be proud of EVERY accomplishment you make, whether that be completing the newest packet you have been working on for weeks or gaining a new follower.
If you stay true to yourself and share your creations with others through some free and some paid products, you will be successful on TpT. Every little packet you sell or put out for free download is just one more classroom you have touched with your passion for teaching and creating.
3. What is your most helpful advice for beginning teachers?
Coming from personal experience, one of the most important tips I could give to any first year teacher is have a routine for everything and go over it again and again until it is solid. Don’t let anything slide until at least a few months into teaching and the rest of the year will be smooth sailing. You can always relax and calm back down, but if you start off letting things go, you will be re-teaching routines constantly.
Another important aspect for teaching is to be unique! Do what works for you, and create rules, routines and lessons that come natural to you!
It takes a lot of time, but developing your own activities and lessons to go along with a curriculum just makes teaching that much more enjoyable. If you do what works best for you and are passionate about those things, your students will not only be more engaged but will also enjoy learning when they know their teacher is just as excited if not More excited about it than they are.
The students won’t necessarily remember the exact decorations in your classroom or the specific lessons you taught. They’ll remember how you made them feel, and how the classroom made them feel! Make them feel motivated, safe and loved and that your classroom is their home away from home. Take time to appreciate every little moment your students acknowledge their feelings towards you or their classroom. Set the expectations high so that when students reach their goals, they will just keep wanting more!
Another important aspect for teaching is to be unique! Do what works for you, and create rules, routines and lessons that come natural to you!
It takes a lot of time, but developing your own activities and lessons to go along with a curriculum just makes teaching that much more enjoyable. If you do what works best for you and are passionate about those things, your students will not only be more engaged but will also enjoy learning when they know their teacher is just as excited if not More excited about it than they are.
The students won’t necessarily remember the exact decorations in your classroom or the specific lessons you taught. They’ll remember how you made them feel, and how the classroom made them feel! Make them feel motivated, safe and loved and that your classroom is their home away from home. Take time to appreciate every little moment your students acknowledge their feelings towards you or their classroom. Set the expectations high so that when students reach their goals, they will just keep wanting more!
Additional Tips :)
Throughout the year and especially at the end of your first year, when looking back and reflecting, you will recall that there were a ton of things you did wrong and a plethora of mistakes you have made... but please realize, it is okay! Make time for yourself whether it is for 10 minutes or a whole day. Don't always bring your work home, take time to be passionate about what you do, but don't always let that passion take you. Teaching is not in any way easy, nor is it something you can master over night..or even in 30-40 years. Mistakes will be made, crying will commence, and things won't always go according to plan. However, never give up! Things may seem hard, but believe in yourself, believe in your love for teaching and the sky is truly the limit.Featured Product
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Brain Breaks! |
I love brain breaks! I recently did a FAB training that I will blog about later. I didn't understand how much students needed to take breaks and how implementing more breaks influenced my classroom management. Take a look at the preview to see how great this product is!
Make sure to drop by her blog for her wonderful teacher tips and products! I love how practical her advice is for new teachers. Routine and structure is your very best friend. In the words of my mentor teacher, if you don't have a plan for your students, they will have a plan for you!
P.S.: She makes awesome clipart!
If you would like to be featured on a Teacher Feature Tuesday, simply fill out the link below!
Thank You so much for putting me on your blog for Teacher Feature Tuesday!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed Laura's feature. Her passion and love of teaching was so apparent.
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