6 Things No Teacher Can Afford to Ignore

1. Show Your Students How to Eliminate "Very" from Their Writing

Teachers asked me all the time for a poster of the infographic 128 Words to Use Instead of "Very," so I finally did it. Perfect for a classroom, this poster (which ships just about anywhere in the world) is downright awesome. Get a poster for your classroom here. If you're not an English teacher but you know some, (1) congrats! (English teachers are great) and (2) send them the link to this page and say, "Wouldn't this look very good excellent in your classroom?"

2. Never Have Your Lesson Plan Run Short Again

Speaking of class, you know that moment in the middle of first period when you realize your lesson plan isn't filling the whole class period, but you still have three more sections in the afternoon? I've got you covered. Fill the gaps at the end of class by challenging your students to learn the alternatives to using "very" with these multiple choice quizzes, crossword puzzles, word scrambles, and word searches. All 15 worksheets are available as a package of printable guides for any price you think is fair. The suggested price is $9 for the 15 worksheets, which is how much your favorite mug costs that always seems to disappear from the teachers' lounge. Where does that mug go? Check out the 15 worksheets here and, incidentally, if you're looking for an awesome new "teachery" mug, we found some funny ones (Zazzle is a ProofreadingServices.com affiliate).

3. Make Extra Money During Breaks

Here are three excellent options: (1) Work for us as a proofreader (click here to apply) or (2), since we can only hire so many people, check out this guide we wrote called 104 Places to Find Work-from-Home Proofreading Jobs. It's available for any price you want. The third top way to make money over school breaks that I recommend to fellow teachers is selling their old books. Nearly every teacher has a seemingly unending pile of read books and books that'll never get read. My favorite tool for easily selling them is SellBackBooks.com (an affiliate of ProofreadingServices.com). Can you guess what they specialize in? (Helpful hint: They're more likely to buy nonfiction books.)

4. Build Your ESL Lesson Plans with These Guides

If you teach ESL, make your life easier by checking out these guides we wrote for ESL teachers. There are 44 of them, and you can get the whole package for whatever price you'd like. (Sensing a trend?)

5. Save Time with These 84 ESL Conversation Questions

Are your ESL conversation questions old? Even clichéd? If "Jorge, what'd you do yesterday?" sounds like something you've said in class recently, let's fix that. Check out these 84 ESL conversation question flashcards (they're all classroom-appropriate and will lead to vibrant discussions over five minutes long). Stop asking about your students' weekend plans and pick an engaging question at random, like "Do you have an idea for an invention?" Check out the printable cards here.

6. Get a Better Teaching Job

Underpaid and underappreciated? Want to find a better teaching job? It sucks trying to juggle resume creation, cover letter writing, interview prep, and more while also juggling three preps, five sections, and the fact that Jimmy won't shut the f*ck up in the back row. We can help. We've been offering Job Success Packages for ages (which is just a fancy way of saying we help people write resumes to land their dream jobs), and we have a comprehensive resume writing package geared specifically toward teachers. If you want an expert to walk you through the arduous process of preparing your job search materials and a team to do the heavy lifting, we're your guys and gals. A better future as a teacher begins here.

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