Side Hustles or side jobs are becoming increasingly popular these days. In fact, more than 37 percent of Americans report having some kind of side hustle. These aren’t just your run-of-the-mill part-time jobs, they are jobs people find deeply meaningful or have a lot of passion for. Maybe this list of side hustles for teachers can help!
That being said, side hustles typically come out of necessity. Maybe your 9 to 5 job isn’t quite helping you make ends meet, or perhaps you just want some extra spending money for travel, gifts, or savings.
As a teacher, it might seem like it is implausible to have a side hustle. From getting up early to make sure you are in the classroom first to staying late to help kids with their work or grade papers, it can sometimes feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day to add to a teacher’s side hustle. But here are 12 great side hustles that even the busiest of teachers can fit into their days.
1.Sell Your Lesson Plans
You work hard on your lesson plans, so why not make a little extra cash off them? Sites like Teachers Pay Teachers are changing the way teachers share content. A lot of teachers are willing to pay for great lesson plans that can save them a little extra time especially if it is a side topic they know the kids are going to ask about but isn’t necessarily in their own plans to teach.
As a teacher, you must know how many after-school hours are spent on preparing educational materials for classes. Even if you’re not creating them yourself, then you’re most certainly spending the same amount of time googling them.
In short, too much work goes into creating resources that you and your students will use only once. If you have great lesson plans, these sites are a great way to learn some side jobs for teachers and earn some money for your hard work and help your fellow teachers. Wouldn’t it be great to share your work with other teachers? And wouldn’t it be even better if you got paid beyond your regular salary for the materials you create?
2.Sell Your Clothes, Shoes, and Jewelry
One of the best side hustles for teachers that love collecting clothes or simply dressing up is selling those that you don’t wear or have never even touched, but not the ones you wear all the time. Sites like Poshmark and Facebook Marketplace make it a cinch to get those items into the hands of people who will wear and use them.
Purge your dresser and/or closet of all the things that have been sitting and collecting dust. And be honest with yourself as to whether you’ll actually wear it. Once it’s all in a pile you can move onto the next step of cataloging each piece, pricing everything, and providing a detailed description. Once a month, go through your closet and dressers and find all the things you haven’t worn.
Some resell apps let you take photos on the platform, but if you just want to start photographing away, go for it. Take pictures of each item and throw it up on the site. It’s as easy as that. Pro Tip: Modeling the items and taking pictures of them in good, bright light gets you more sales!
3.Write An E-Book
Do you have a great teaching methodology or way of life that people are always asking for more details on? Why not monetize it and write an e-book? Kindle Direct Publishing makes it easy to write, edit, and publish your own e-book. The book then becomes automatically available on Amazon making it easy for people to buy and read.
For many, learning how to make money with ebooks, the journey started elsewhere. You’ve heard about passive income, and you might be thinking, “what could be better than that?” Put in some work now and continue to reap the financial benefits for weeks, months, and even years to come.
Although print books are still more popular than their electronic counterparts, it’s more feasible to break into publishing. While it’s not always as simple as that, writing ebooks is a second job for teachers that you won’t want to disregard. It is relatively simple, though not necessarily easy.
4.Try Online Tutoring
This is a great side hustle for teachers during summer or school breaks when you want to earn a little extra money. There is an online tutoring service for almost every subject and with everything being online, you can do it from the comfort of your own home.
As an added bonus, you get to set your own schedule, and if you set up your own tutoring business, you also get to set your own pay rate. The qualifications vary from program to program so make sure you do your research before diving in.
Online tutors help students in a certain subject or more than one subject by interacting with their students via webcam, Skype, or by phone. Typically, you will work one-on-one with students, tutoring them in the area they need.
You may also find online tutoring positions that allow you to offer instructions or lessons to a group of students online. This is not a bad deal for side jobs for teachers online since they usually hire people with teaching experience and you can further hone your teaching skills
5.Babysitting, Nannying, or Caregiving
A slightly more stereotypical option, babysitting or caregiving are popular side hustles for teachers during the summer months. With school being out and many homes having two working parents, many households need some kind of nanny or babysitter to look after the kids and make sure they are fed and cared for. We couldn’t possibly deny how ridiculously stressful parenting is, the good news is that actually parenting a kid isn’t on the list of requirements to become a babysitter.
The benefits of babysitting are numerous, not the least of which is the presence of a certain care-free attitude from the kids you’re working with and it’s a good way to answer, “how to make extra money as a teacher”. You can either rely on your personal network or try using sites like SitterCity or Care.com to find families that need a babysitter or caregiver.
6.Drive for Uber or Lyft
A very popular side hustle for teachers, driving for Uber or Lyft is a great way to make some extra money especially if you live in a city with a lot of nightlife or summer tourism. You can create your own schedule and work as much or as little as you want.
When you drive for a rideshare company, you are earning a portion of what a rider pays for the ride. To understand what you’ll be earning and whether or not driving for Uber is worth it, or any other rideshare service, there are some costs you’ll need to factor into your earnings.
Being familiar with your area will be an advantage. If you don’t know the area, then take some time to review local guides, talk to other drivers. That being said, many cities are over-saturated with drivers so make sure you check out the opportunities in your city before fully committing and check out other teacher side jobs.
7.Write
There are not a lot of great writers out there. A lot of companies are constantly on the lookout for people to do a little freelance writing for them. From writing blog posts and email copy to rewriting web page copy, there are a ton of options for teachers who love to write. You can easily find freelancing gigs through websites like Upwork or Indeed. Just make sure you are crystal clear on how much time you can commit to writing and what your turnaround times are for projects.
One thing you need to keep in mind before starting your freelance writing career is that web writing is entirely different from book or even essay writing. You need to build the right skills before you can get hired and paid. This can help you avoid a lot of headaches later down the road. But for teachers that love writing or specialize in it, it may be easy teacher money.
8.Coaching or Refereeing
If you love sports, coaching or refereeing might be great side hustles for teachers to earn some extra money. Many schools offer the opportunity for teachers to coach at the schools where they work. It is a natural transition many teachers take advantage of. Local communities, gyms, and dance studios are always on the lookout for good instructors. There might even be paid coaching opportunities at your own school.
If you are looking to referee, you might have to go to the next school district over. Exact pay will vary depending on factors like what sport you officiate, where you live, the age of the players, and the competitiveness of the league. As a bonus, running up and down the field or court is a great way to stay in shape. But many times, the sports commissions don’t allow teachers to referee within their own school districts.
9.Freelance Editing
In the same vein, as there aren’t a lot of great writers out there, there also aren’t a lot of great editors. Those people who choose to write are oftentimes looking for great editors to proofread for them. This is a great side hustle for English teachers who can zoom through essays and find errors and problems in no time. Just like writing, you want to make your deadlines and time commitments clear before signing on for a project. This can help you avoid any additional stress.
10.Camp Counselor
If you never want the school year to end, becoming a camp counselor might be the perfect side hustle for you. You can get away for the summer and spend some time outdoors and helping kids learn new and different skills. If you don’t want to commit to going totally off-grid in the middle of the woods somewhere, look for day camps. These can be a great way to have something fun to do during your summer days and help you earn a little extra money.
11.Pet Sitting
Want to spend some more time with your furry friends? Pet sitting is a great way to earn some extra income and get all the kitty and puppy snuggles you want. Sites like Rover.com make it easy to sign up to be a pet sitter or dog walker. You can completely customize your own schedule and help out pet parents who need someone to keep an eye on their dogs and cats.
12.Tour Guide
Do you love to travel and get outside? Then being a tour guide might just be the perfect side-hustle for you. You get paid to talk and walk around your city while you explain to tourists why the place you live is wonderful and unique. More common in large cities, there are a number of tour guide companies you can work with during the summer months or school breaks to earn some extra money.
Side hustles are a great way to stay busy during the occasional downtime that comes with being a teacher. They also help you earn more money for whatever you are saving up for and can help the summers feel a little more productive.
While all the side hustles for teachers we listed above are ways that a teacher can earn some extra money, you are going to want to check your contract before you sign up for any kind of side job. Some schools explicitly forbid teachers from selling their lesson plans or writing and selling curriculum, and it’s better to be safe than sorry in those situations.
Are all these ideas not what you’re looking for? Check our massive list of side hustle ideas!
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