It is summer. You deserve a break and a chance to soak up some sunshine.

But I bet you are starting to think about next year already.

Those endless days, those weekends that end up devoted to try and “catch up.” Social media updates are a fun part of your job, but it still takes time. It is another thing to do each day.

What if I told you there are things you can do right now to make it easier on yourself next year? There are! Here are the three best things to do now, before that first bell rings in the fall.

1. Create re-usable graphics. Canva is a FREE resource available to you to create dynamic graphics for social media. It has the correct sizes for Facebook posts and cover photos, along with Twitter and Instagram updates. You can create some generic graphics now, save them in a labeled folder, and next year they’ll be ready to use the moment you need them! Here are a few that we have made that can be used for a variety of posts:
   • Don’t Forget!
   • Celebrate
   • Reminder – No School
   • Schedule Change
   • Music Concert
2. Schedule posts for the first half of the year. You have the school calendar set, so why not get ahead and schedule those posts ahead of time? Facebook has an easy-to-use feature that allows you to schedule the day and time of posts six months ahead of time. That means you can bridge the gap to Christmas vacation!
   
   Related Blog Post: How to Schedule a Facebook Post
   
   For the schools we manage, we auto-link Facebook posts to Twitter. But if you don’t do that, we recommend using Hootsuite to schedule your Twitter posts.For late starts, early dismissals, ends of the quarter, in-service days, Thanksgiving break, concerts, etc., you can schedule a fun graphic with that information now. I recommend putting a reminder about a week or two in advance of the event and then always the day before at around 7-8 pm at night since most social media users do a scan right before they go to bed.
3. Develop one idea to incorporate social media into your daily routine. If daily is just too much to commit to, then at least setup something weekly. If it is part of your routine, you will not forget to update your community. Here are a few suggestions:
   • • Elementary Teachers – Incorporate social media into your daily lessons with students. Here are some ideas:
       • Math Mondays – Share a math fact that you are learning about.
       • Trivia Tuesday – Include a random trivia question that your kids help develop.
       • Weird science Wednesday – Showcase something learned in science class.
       • Throwback Thursdays – Invite kids to bring in a baby picture and have followers try to guess who it is. No scanning necessary, just snap a photo with your phone!
       • Rewind Friday – Include a short video of a student or small group of students highlighting their favorite lessons from the week. Simply record on your phone or tablet and upload directly to social media.

   Here is an example from Miss Cruse’s Classroom.

   

   • Middle School/High School Teachers – Most likely your students are active on social media themselves. Asking them to incorporate things from their everyday life using hashtags is a great idea. Amanda Fay, an English teacher from Chippewa Falls, Wis., does #cfmsgrammarproblems where students snap photos of incorrect grammar that they come across in the real world.
   • Principals and Administrators – As you welcome students to school in the hallway each morning, make a point to find one smiling student and snap a photo (preferably a selfie with you and the student) and post it on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. You can come up with a catchy phrase incorporating your school hashtag to be used like, “Look who is showing their #ColfaxPride today!” It’s simple, easy, and your daily post is done before the first bell rings.

Social media should be a fun way to tell your story. It will be much less work if you do some prep work now!