Who doesn’t love a great challenge? When we gamify social media, it becomes so much easier to get content and buy-in from staff members. A perfect example is the Social Media BINGO game!
At #SocialSchool4EDU, we manage social media remotely for 88 districts nationwide, which means we have to get creative to keep content submissions constantly rolling in.
We often create social media challenges to encourage schools to try new tactics, share better stories, and drive engagement on their social media channels. Our recent Leadership Selfie Challenge was a huge success, so let me show you how you can do it at your school!
What is the Leadership Selfie Challenge?
This idea is beautiful in its simplicity! You are simply asking school leaders to take selfies with kids at the school.
You can tie this around a theme, such as “What Do We Love About Our School?” and award prizes for participation. The prize could just be bragging rights!
Here’s a perfect example of the kind of content this challenge will generate:
Why Does the Leadership Selfie Challenge Work?
School principals and administrators set the tone for the culture at your schools, which extends to social media participation. When they model involvement, staff are more likely to follow. Plus, people love participating in fun, interactive contests — especially when there’s a chance to win a prize!
From an external point of view, this challenge showcases the strong connections between leaders, students, and staff. As a bonus, these photos will boost engagement in the form of likes, comments, and shares on your social media posts, so your content will reach more people. Win-Win!
How to Run a Leadership Selfie Challenge
Step 1: Set the Theme and Goals
First, choose a theme for the challenge. At #SocialSchool4EDU, our theme was “What do you LOVE about your school?” in honor of February and Valentine’s Day. Other theme ideas could be “School Spirit,” “Friday Fun,” “Favorite School Moments,” and “Classroom Activities.”
Also, define your goal for doing the challenge. Are you trying to generate content that will drive social media engagement? Are you creating content that shows your school leaders are relatable and likeable with the kids? Are you hoping to highlight school spirit?
Step 2: Announce the Challenge
Invite your school leaders to participate by talking to them during a staff meeting, sending an email, or using another direct communication channel within your school. Explain the logistics of the challenge:
- Your theme and goals.
- What do you want them to do? Snap a selfie! You can even share a screenshot of an example from this blog.
- Provide a submission method, such as emailing the school’s social media inbox.
- Instruct them to include a couple of notes about the picture(s), such as the classroom they visited, so you can write a compelling caption.
- Share the prizes, if applicable!
Make sure your school leaders are aware of any students on the opt-out list for having their photos on school social media, before they visit classrooms.
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Step 3: Post on Social Media
Now, it’s the fun part! Post each leadership selfie as a standalone post. Your caption can be short and sweet, or tell a bit of a story like this example:
Make sure you include a call-to-action in your caption to nudge your audience to engage with the photo. Examples: “Give Principal Smith a thumbs up 👍 for hanging out with Mrs. Johnson’s students!” or “Drop a comment if this picture made you smile!” or “Share this post to show your appreciation for Superintendent Anderson! 😍”
Step 4: Celebrate Participation
As submissions start to roll in, thank the staff member and use their pictures to encourage others to participate! You can send out a staff-wide email that includes the photo (or link to the social media post) and issue a friendly challenge for other leaders to get on board.
When we did this challenge at #SocialSchool4EDU, we wanted each of our 88 school districts to compete with each other. So, we created award categories to make it fun! Here’s how it turned out:
Lastly, announce the winners publicly with a celebratory post like ours, and be sure to tag individual school buildings or the leaders themselves, as relevant.
The Impact of Our Leadership Selfie Challenge
Our February 2024 challenge saw incredible engagement. For example, the “Community Favorite” post reached nearly 19,000 people on Facebook!!
Participants reported overwhelmingly positive feedback:
Eric Burke – School District of Rhinelander
The Superintendent Selfie Showcase has been an incredibly rewarding experience, highlighting the energy, dedication, and success of our students and staff across the School District of Rhinelander. Our community is deeply supportive of our schools, and my goal with the selfies was to bring a fun, engaging way to celebrate the amazing things happening in our classrooms and events.
The response from staff, students, and families has been overwhelmingly positive. Many staff members invited me into their classrooms specifically for a selfie, which speaks to the strong connections within our district. Families and students also embraced the showcase, appreciating the recognition of their achievements and experiences.
While this wasn’t necessarily stepping outside of my comfort zone, I truly enjoyed the opportunity to engage with our schools in a lighthearted yet meaningful way. These moments captured in selfies are a reflection of the pride and spirit of our district. I look forward to these kinds of challenges in the future.
We greatly appreciate the creativity and investment by our social media manager, Laura.
“Best Representation of School Spirit” post:
Cari Guden – Edgar School District
The feedback from the community and followers on social media was overwhelmingly positive, with many expressing the huge support we have in Edgar. Comments like ‘There’s nobody better to do it,’ ‘You are awesome at what you do,’ and ‘They are so fortunate to have you coaching their education’ reinforced the impact of my work.
One of the biggest takeaways from this experience (the superintendent selfie) was stepping out of my comfort zone. I don’t usually like being in the spotlight, as my focus is always on the kids, but this moment allowed me to embrace recognition in a way that highlighted the importance of our shared efforts in education.
“Most Heartwarming Moment” post:
Cory Kulig – School District of Eleva-Strum
It was a great opportunity to raise awareness for the cause the kids had worked so hard to fundraise for. I enjoy any opportunity that will increase student engagement and make school more enjoyable. The students were very excited to see me get slimed, and I enjoyed the opportunity to see them really get into it.
These opportunities don’t happen often, so I am glad that I was able to be a part of it. Despite the messy cleanup, I’m honored that I was chosen to be a part of their special day. Maybe next time, I should get to pick the person to get slimed!
“Outstanding Video Footage Showcase Award” post:
Dani Mikula – South Shore School District
They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and this quick snapshot shows the fun, playfulness, and connection we all get to be a part of in our school! I love how our kids light up when we, as adults, embrace silliness and laughter.
#SocialSchool4EDU takes everyday moments like this and helps share them with the community in ways that resonate. Our parents and community members deserve to share in the simple, priceless moments we get to have with their children. With the support of #SocialSchool4EDU, we will keep telling our story and passing on that happiness… one little photo at a time!
Adapting This Challenge to Your School
Perhaps you are in a small district, without as many school buildings/leaders that you can playfully “pit” against each other. That’s OK! There are many different iterations for how you can customize this challenge to your school or district.
- Expand It to All Staff: Open it up to principals, teachers, support staff, and even students!
- Make It a Monthly Tradition: Try different themes throughout the year (e.g., Back-to-School, Spirit Week, Thankful November, etc.).
- Feature Student Involvement: Encourage students to suggest selfie ideas for staff!
- Offer Prizes: Even a simple certificate or small gift card can add excitement.
Try This Challenge and Share Your Results!
The Leadership Selfie Challenge is a powerful way to engage school leaders, staff, students, and the community in celebrating the amazing things happening inside your school. When you try out this challenge, we’d love to see it! Tag us at #SocialSchool4EDU to share your success.