Tips on How to Use Social Media for Schools

Blogs and social media can be a great way to share your school’s bright spots and messages with the community. A well-run blog and social media campaign can help attract new students, reach families, recruit new staff, and promote your school to the community at large. Here’s a list of tips from Team XQ to get you started.

Blog tips for educators

Whether you’re writing an XQ guest blog or a piece for your own website, here are some writing tips to make for a successful post:

Aim for clarity and simplicity. Focus your piece on just a few main points. Think through ideas and themes, and maybe draw up a brief outline, before sitting down at the keyboard.
Be concise. De-clutter your sentences by avoiding filler words such as “very,” “really,” “so,” etc.
Get to the point. The message should be in the first or second paragraph.
Write a catchy lede (the first sentence in your blog), as if you’re telling a story to a friend. A good lede makes readers want to read the second paragraph, then the third, then the fourth, and so on.
Keep the tone conservational, lively, and upbeat. Write in your own voice. If you’re enjoying yourself, the reader will, too.
Avoid edu-jargon. This is your chance to break free of phrases like “benchmark data-driven professional learning communities” and “cognitive disequilibrium.”  Your audience might not have prior knowledge of education, so try to keep your language clear and direct.
Post plenty of pics! Of yourself, your class, your school, anything you think would illustrate your post. Photos that work well online are colorful, well lit, and focus on people.
Include an element of surprise. The internet has thousands of education blogs, but you have something unique to say. Use specifics over generalities, and illustrate your point with plenty of examples from your own experience.

Social media tips for educators

Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and other channels are great places to share your message quickly with a wide audience. Here are a few tips to ensure your posts don’t get lost in the shuffle:

Show and tell! Photos, videos, and links are more visual and they’re more likely to grab attention on social. Everyone loves photos of good learning in action. Share photos from projects, field trips, and your students highlighting their work. People are more likely to engage and share with content that is real and authentic.
Create stories. Using features like Instagram and Facebook stories is a great, easy way to share what’s happening in your classroom. There’s little to nothing required to get started and make them, and it’s a great way to open the door and start a “conversation” with your audience.
Share your knowledge. Ever find an article that’s so good the entire world should read it? Sharing relevant links on your social is a great way to share your perspective and point of view, and it requires very little to get started.
Bring those warm and fuzzy feelings. Everyone loves a good heart-warming, feel-good story. Share your students’ wins—and yours! Thank the partners and supporters of your school and classroom. In a world with so many negative headlines, spread a little love.

Do you have tips on school design or story-telling you’d like to share with XQ readers? Be an XQ guest blogger! Fill out this form and let us know your ideas.