Okay, so I've basically tried everything to get a job (I have revamped my cover letter, resume, got business cards, built a very professional website, put a portfolio together, etc etc) and then I find out about brochures. I'm still a little lost on the brochure front. First, where do you get your template? I looked at Microsoft Publisher, but they didn't have any I liked. So I tried searching online and nothing came up. Maybe I was searching the wrong words?? Next, what do I put in them? Just little snapshots of how I want my classroom run? I heard some people put their philosophies on them...my first paragraph barely fits! lol. Just curious... Also, does anyone have an example I can see? I don't know why this is so hard for my to grasp, but I sat there for an hour today trying to get it right and I just ended up extremely frustrated! Any help would be appreciated!! Thanks in advance!
I have a mac so I made my brochure using Pages (our version of Word). There are a lot of templates to choose from in there. I am not sure if word has templates to choose from or not. I know that you can make them on Vistaprint, too. If you want, I can send you my brochure so you can take a peek. I shortened my philosophy to just bullet points because I also could not fit the whole thing in there.
I had to create mine on my own because none of my friends have brochures.... I used microsoft word and used one of their templates (you can always change up the color/style etc) I constantly had my name and info flowing throughout the brochure... I have in mine pics of me working with the kids, few "points" of why I chose to teach/philosophy, and parts of my teaching resume! And it would be a good idea to get it printed in color...because black and white isn't really attractive even though I have received alot of positive feedback on mine..
I've not seen one but I like the idea, with the competiton being keen I'd take advantage of everything I could. I'm thinking about the attractive travel brochures I've seen, and what made one more attractive than the other. Vista print is awesome, simple, fast and in color. Good luck!!!
And if you do get them printed in color, please don't go to office depot or staples, 20 copies will cost like 20 bucks!
I used a template in Word....If you have an online portfolio though, that is more "up to date" I used to mail the brochure with my resume/cover letter...now I jsut put the link to my online portfolio in my cover letter. If you want to do one anyway Use publisher or word and start from scratch...you can add clip art and pictures so you really dont need a template. There are 6 panels.... 1. your name *big!, your pic, an educational quote 2. list of certifications and degrees 3. philosophy or about you, how you got to this point- I wouldnt do smaller than 12 font, so you may need to cut this down 4 and 5. pictures of student work, how your classroom is set up, bulletin boards ,etc. I put 3 pics on a panel with a caption for each. 6. I wrote a paragraph about incorporating technology and how I do it...but what ever is realevant to the job you are trying to get. *also the back panel, prob 5th I only put 2 pics and then my contact info. Good luck, but I think that if you have an online portfolio that trumps a brochure....of course if you already spent all that time creating the portfolio it will be easy to copy and paste the stufff over to add to your brochure.
Thanks for all the advice. I have all day to try and make one, so we'll see. PCdiva, I'm not getting any hits on my website. Kinda sad considering how much time I spend putting it together! That's why I want something extra.
I hope the borchure helps! I know it has helped me a bit, everyone comments on it and I haven't seen anyone around here use it!
Ohhh, that is sad...I went on 2 interviews on wed and one yesterday...just checked, no hits this week The brochure should be easy for you now though, just take the info from your online portfolio...good luck!
I made a brochure and a website. I was told by my new teammate that the principal was impressed with my use of technology and that I went the extra mile. It really helped me land the job! As for the brochure I did mine through a template on MS word. I didn't really add crazy colors...I kept it neutral. I also simply printed my brochure from home and used nice resume paper. (Yeah you could go to Kinkos I supppose) The front of my brochure I put my name, a nice picture of the education statue from my university, and my favorite education quote. The brochure inside contained: -educational background -certification -educational experience (volunteer work, use of certain programs like the FOSS kits, DRA's, etc) -teaching methods -classroom management (I used a graphic organizer for this) -Some quotes about me from students during student teaching -My interests -"Why I am a teacher..." -My three highest priorities -Philosophy of Education The back of the brochure contained all my contact information and my website, with another picture. My website is virtually a combination of my brochure and my resume. I also added a page about my future classroom and a page of past lesson plans. If anyone is interested in looking on how I set either up...just PM me! It sometimes nice to have a visual in your head before you get started!
I got a template from someone on here ( can't remember who, but thank you). This was about a year and a half ago. Well, I got a great job and guess what??? MY new principal mentioned my great brochure about half way into the new school year. So, it seems like it really stuck with her. I could not believe it. I had forgotten that silly ol' brochure, but she didn't.
FYI During a 2nd round of interviews the asst super mentioned that she tried to view my website but couldn't b-c the school has such strict guidelines on viewable websites. So don't take offense if it's not getting hits. Mine is through Schoolworld which is very common. I had a couple of pages printed from my site in my portfolio so at least they could see all the pages I offer. good luck!
I had so many principals and secretaries make a big fuss over my brochure, but it never landed me a job. When I interviewed for my current job, I didn't even give my P a brochure. (I forgot it...) When I made mine, I used a Word template. I also bought brochure paper, which-- in my opinion-- gave it an even more professional look.
I modified a template from Microsoft Word for mine, but changed so much that it really only ended-up using the template for spacing purposes. You can just start by deciding what you want in there in terms of information and playing around with pictures, text-boxes, borders...and so on until you are happy with the result. I recommend having your certifications listed on the front panel, along with your name, picture and contact information.
Thanks everyone! I finally made it and am pretty happy with it. Tomorrow's my interview day, so I printed it out and love it . Thanks for everyone's help!
