Recently, I've started a TPT store.
TPT seems like a great way to begin meeting my current goals. I'm not working full-time, but I still want to have opportunities to impact students in school. However, there are mixed feelings about it in my conscience.
While I haven't talked to many people who sell on TPT or done much exploring, I've already noticed it's a road with its own challenges. Ads pop up on Facebook for me now displaying "How to do this on TPT to be successful" and "get advice from this TPT coach." Also, there is a paid premium feature that gives you more access to the store's features. Something not helpful for those just starting, unless you make enough each month to make it worth it. Another roadblock is knowing what content is most likely to be seen and then purchased by teachers. TPT offers a seller's blog and training, which I haven't yet fully investigated.
Overall, my end goal is not really making money, but creating high-quality resources that encourage students to research, design, and create, using technology as a tool. And, I say, a little sadly, it seems we have to rely a ton on social media to promote our stuff. I'm not a salesperson, and I'm not really excited to be one, because my goal isn't to see teachers as people who should spend more money trying to do their job well when their curriculum isn't providing what they should have already.
My TPT store is named "Lightbulb On Learning" with Ellie D. It is also what inspires this blog. I feel pretty clever with the pun; hopefully, one thing I did correctly was creating a memorable name.
My vision is that "lightbulb on" moment, when students have that epiphany and understanding, that "aha" moment. This comes not from "one right answer" but from critical thinking and deeper understanding. What a challenge it is to correctly implement effective learning strategies that bring students to this level.
A bit of an aside: math and technology classes have been a large part of my career, and you can see how these are linked together. For you all who teach math, I reference the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) Principles and Actions when trying to do something effectively for my students. Some principles in the book require effective collaboration among teachers and the school when making decisions about math programs. It takes a bunch of work, and more than any subject can have different views among teachers on how to teach it. The emphasis that hit home for me, though, is that educators are not just teachers, but still learners themselves. It also states that there are beliefs that are either "productive" or "not productive." This is an important viewpoint because it's not just saying something is "right" or "wrong" or one way is "better" or "worse." It's just shown to be more effective. You can find more about these on the NCTM page here.
In the technology and learning design world, there are principles used when creating effective learning programs. There are technology standards for educators that focus on these areas: learner, leader, citizen, collaborator, designer, facilitator, and analyst. You can see the first one in the list: Learner! It states, "Educators continually improve their practice by learning from and with others, and exploring proven and promising practices that leverage technology to improve student learning." It's the same goal as a math teacher: to learn how to help students more effectively by being open to learning myself. I've expanded my learning in teaching through my career in my education as a Learning Experience Designer, the focus of my Master's Degree. It starts with the principle of empathy and understanding of learners before moving on to the rest of the brainstorming and design process. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and accessibility are also a large focus.
Now to connect this to get back on track: these principles I've encountered through my own learning pathway as an educator are used in my design process for lessons in my teaching and are designed for TPT. My focus is to create units of learning, not just exercise pages or worksheets. In my first years of teaching, I felt there was a plethora of these resources, but I desired ones that integrated higher levels of learning and would take students on a journey through learning, not just to have them "complete another lesson." Students can create and become artists, which is a much higher level on Bloom's Taxonomy wheel. It's difficult to do this in reality, though. In my experience, my first years teaching were tough because I had limited time to find, adapt, and implement lessons that did this effectively. But yet again, another challenge of TPT is that teachers may only be looking for supplemental-type materials. The materials I hope to create would also integrate technology heavily, with students using Chromebooks.
My first major product, designed for my husband's tech class and made available for TPT, is the Atomic Elements Brochure Design Tutorial. Students select an assigned element from the periodic table, research it, and create a Google Slides brochure with facts. Additionally, they learn how to create the brochure to look nice using actual design techniques, such as white space, alignment and visual hierarchy, and not just throw it together.
This was a fun challenge to design this mini learning unit. It is appropriate for grades 6-10, where teachers assign it on Chromebooks, and it is self-guided for students, without teachers needing direct instruction. Instead, they spend the time supporting students in their research and design process. My goal when designing this unit was to use my prior teaching experience and apply the process of the ADDIE Model and Universal Design for Learning to this project.
Overall, the project was a success. After I viewed the student work samples (and this was samples from another teacher, I never interacted with the students face to face), they came out as intended, and there were even a few students who earned full points on the rubric. There were some things I would have done differently, but it will make my future units even better.
Finally, I posted the unit on TPT. After two months, I have 4 views on my product page, and no sales yet. Some of the free resources I've posted, including MLA guides, have reached around 20 downloads. This feels like an impact, even though it is small. I've at least provided something useful to 20 educators out there. I am currently working on an animal research unit for 3rd- and 4th-graders, where they will design and present their findings on Google Slides. I am in the middle of the journey, for sure, and I want to ask, "Are we there yet?" This means: is this truly worth the investment of my time and help?
For sellers on TPT, comment below about your experiences. Why do you choose TPT to sell your products? What are your goals?
For those who don't sell on TPT, who are educators, what do you like and dislike about TPT? One thing I've heard before that was frustrating is that teachers don't have time to explain what they want and need. This is why the teacher ends up making their own resources, since they can't find what they're looking for. You're out there doing all the gritty work of wearing many hats and trying to please so many different people.
Comments
Post a Comment