The 6 P's of teaching your best online...

Here are my tips for having a successful online class and keeping bookings or getting more!

1. Placement!

• Where are you going to teach? 

You need a quiet space, preferably with a wall behind you so that you can put up a background. If you're teaching a class that requires ethernet cable you'll either need to be close to the port OR you'll need a really long cord. Take all this into consideration.

You will need good lighting! Here in Aus. your classes will be at night so you won't have the benefit of day to light your face. I bought some cheap selfie lights from Target to help with the shadows, and I turn every light on in the room to make the space bright!

Your background should be colorful, educational, kid friendly - but NOT too busy. Some people go crazy and as a kid I would find this very distracting! You will probably need to display the company logo - I use the same background for both companies and then I switch out a laminated copy of the logo depending on who i'm working for. It's also a good idea to display your name somewhere! The older kids will refer to it and the parents will remember it! 

Here are a couple of mine:

Whether you are teaching on a laptop or a device it will need to be stable! It will also need to be at a good height! 

You don't want to be looking down at the kids - prop it up so that it's at eye level. 

My Husbands old textbooks come in handy for this. Personally I teach from my ironing board! Yep! Our home office isn't a good space for me and the ironing board is a great height, (and who has time for ironing anyway right?!).

Before class starts check your camera is framed correctly - you want it to be just you and the background - not your dirty washing off to the side. 

Wear a headset - some companies don't require them - but wear one anyway! It will block out any unexpected background noise and it helps you look more professional. 

Check your microphone and headset are working - I always jump on to Skype and do the 'echo test' call they offer - there have been a couple of times my volume was down or my headset wasn't plugged in fully - better to sort this out BEFORE class starts. 

2. Props!

• What props do you need?

Most companies have classes at different levels for those with ZERO English - up to those who can hold a simple conversation with you. I find props help with all of them! 

Do you have a puppet? How can you use it to get a point across? - Puppets are GREAT for demonstrating how you would like the child to respond - kids LOVE them. (Maybe not the older ones so much, but play it by ear, some older kids LOVE them!).

Go into you class early - have a look at what you will be teaching - and see if you need to find or MAKE something that will help their understanding. 

Older kids appreciate looking at different pictures of what they are learning. (You can show them on your phone if you don't want to print heaps). 

Younger kids like looking at visuals - it keeps them focused and interested. Have them ready to go next to you. If you are teaching multiple classes in a night have them in piles and in order. 

I'll do a whole post on props another day and show you how I keep mine organised.

The big bonus of using props is it shows the students and the parents that you prepared for the lesson! This will score you big points!

I also recommend having a secondary reward system. A WHAT?

Most platforms will have an in built reward system - you give the kids stars or positive reward cards throughout the class. Having a secondary one makes the class more fun, and the kids and parents really appreciate the effort. 

Here is my ice cream reward

When they do a good job they get to pick a flavour - it can get quite big! I have a few different reward systems so that they don't get tired of them. I'll post my favourites another time. 

3. Planning!

Ok so you don't need to come up with the lesson material - BUT you do still need to plan! The biggest thing that you need to plan is your time management! On one platform there is a space for me to write notes - I usually put at the top what time it should be when i'm teaching the particular slide. This way I know if i'm on track to finish on time and not too early! 

Time management is crucial because the parents are paying for the full time to be taught, down to the minute, and you can't go over as there are other classes to teach! 

If i'm teaching a higher level student I plan ways that I could extend them - just in case! Sometimes the lesson material is enough - but what if they zoom through it? I need to have something for them to continue learning. So think about how you can extend the material if needed. 

Play the games! There is usually a teacher guide with each slide to tell you how to teach. When you get more familiar with the format you won't have to spend so much time doing this. But when you're new you don't want to be reading through the notes on the spot! 

Practice, practice, practice... as you get more experience you will need to do this less and less. In the beginning it will help with your confidence and how you come across!

4. Physical response!

During class you need to be larger than life! You are 2D on a screen to them - make your gestures and reactions big! It will feel like you are being a fool - but to them it's just watching a good show on the TV. 

Here are some classic TPR gestures you can use:

Hello...

When you are waiting for a student to respond...

 When you are speaking..

Click HERE for my full TPR post. 

It's important to have a positive reaction to any effort the student makes! These are little kids learning a WHOLE new language, and they do a pretty good job at it! When you react in a positive way it encourages them to keep trying!

5. Pronunciation!

Parent's want their kids to learn English ... correctly! Speak clearly and if they respond and make a mistake praise them for the effort and then correct them. You may need to get close to the screen and demonstrate how a sound is made with your mouth. 

Always do it with a smile on your face. If they don't get it after 3 goes, move on and try again later. 

6. Play!

Have fun! My goal each class is to make the student (or the parent) laugh. Do something silly - over exaggerate a word - speak in a funny voice - Just enjoy yourself! If you're not enjoying yourself, you're not doing it right!

Happy Teaching! x

P.S. Every company offers a referral bonus - If you're interested in getting started and would like my help with the process drop me a line! 

Palfish referral code: 58910752 
SayABC referral code: EG63VF