Does your school have a Facebook page or Twitter account? How are you using these tools to communicate? Is it really worth it? We want to share our top five ways to use social media at your school. Ready. Set. Tweet!
- Post the good news, and post the “boring” stuff. Sure sharing contest winners and pictures from the Science Fair are great, but have you thought about posting a link to the minutes from last night’s School Accountability Committee meeting? Parents want to know what is happening behind the scenes and want to feel connected to school even though they may not always have time. Include pictures of parents, kids, and volunteers who work hard to keep things humming along during the school day.
- Add at least two other people as admins on your social media channels. Principals can’t do it all. Consider assigning admin rights to your school secretary, the PTO president, and maybe one more person in your building as a backup in case of a crisis situation. Always check with your district communications/security office regarding your specific social media policies.
- Encourage teachers to share what is happening in their classroom. Show off the hatching baby chicks in the Kindergarten class. Post a video of the Robotics Club competition. Take a selfie with the giraffes at the zoo. Engage your parents, your students and the community and shout out the great things happening in your building.
- Follow up social media posts with e-newsletters and mobile app notifications. If it’s important and you want your community to well-informed, you have to make sure you are using all of your communication tools. Include articles and pictures in your e-newsletter, send out a notification about the next fundraising night via your mobile app. It all works together to keep parents engaged.
- Your school doesn’t use social media. What??? We need to talk. Call us.
Want to dig deeper? This article is a great resource for schools new to social media, or those of you who have been using social media for quite a while. After that, take a peek around our website. We may be able to help you set up a communications plan that makes sense for your school.