This post contains affiliate links. I receive a small commission from the purchase of the products. All opinions are my own. If you are considering becoming a new VIPKid Teacher please click the button below! I receive a small bonus for every new teacher I refer.
Getting class bookings is essential to jumpstarting your VIPKid journey. Essentially you want kids to be excited to book you as a teacher. Part of that is being prepared and having great energy but along with that having great props, rewards and a colorful and educational background will be helpful in getting more bookings.
I do want to note that if you are a new VIPKid teacher and you don’t have many bookings, please don’t give up or don’t feel like there is something wrong with you. There isn’t. This is part of the beginning process and it happens to almost every teacher. You can read my how much money do I make with VIPKid post to see that it’s normal for it to take your entire first contract to fully book your schedule.
I also want you to know you don’t have to go out and shell out a lot of cash to be a great teacher. You can get creative and use your printer to print out and color props and rewards, use what you have already in your home, hit up a thrift store, or borrow some things from a friend. You don’t have to go broke to fill your schedule and get VIPKid bookings.
See Related:
How much money I make working for VIPKid
How to make money and travel full-time working at VIPKid
What it’s like to travel in an RV Full-time as a family of 6
Here is a list of some of my favorite things I like to use in my classroom that might help you come up with some great ideas.
VIPKID Classroom Essentials
Headphones
Of course, first of all, you need a great set of headphones. I like to use a pair of headphones with a mic that is noise canceling- this is a must-have because I have four children and we live in an RV sometimes it can get loud when I teach my classes. It is also a nice feature to be able to mute the mic for some privacy when you are sitting in the classroom before the class starts or after class when you add feedback. Just know that sometimes that feature malfunctions on almost every headset so be careful! We both like these headphones and find that they work well.
VIPKid Classroom Props
Props are great teaching aids with brand new English speakers, especially Pre-VIPKid, Level 2 and Level 3. I don’t use a ton of props for levels 4 and 5 but occasionally it’s fun to grab a food prop or an animal and make them smile. I also am a prop minimalist since we travel fulltime and like to keep things simple.
Mr. Potato Head
He is one of my favorite props. I like to use him a lot in Level 2 for the emotions and face parts unit. He also makes a great reward. “When you do a good job, we dress the potato!”
Play Food
I use this prop for almost every single lesson. They are particularly useful in Unit 2 Level 6 when we talk about food, but they are also great for conversations, colors, games, etc. I mean think about- our whole lives center around food!
Whiteboard
This is one of the few props that the company almost requires. There is a lot of things you can do with a whiteboard. You can do a lot of extensions, use it for rewards (I give a few of my favorite whiteboard rewards ideas below).
ABC Flash Cards
These are used mostly in Level 2 lower levels but they are sometimes fun to bring out with the higher levels as well. These will definitely make your life easier.
Shape Magnets
Having examples of the different shapes are very helpful in Level 2. They don’t necessarily have to be magnets but there are quite a few units throughout all levels where having shapes are great for learning support. These are great to use with your whiteboard and you can draw near them and show how the sides are the same or count them.
Animal Magnets
Great for Level 2 Unit 10 when you talk and teach about different animals. You can also make a great reward for all units and levels! “When you do a great job, you get an animal!” Magnets are easy peasy rewards because they are ready to go and you can stick them to your whiteboard. An easy extender is to count the magnets afterward.
A Great VIPKID Background
A colorful vibrant background is not required but it can help a student remember you the second you open up that camera. Students, just like teachers can often rotate a see a wide variety and a different number of teachers every week. If they find your background appealing or comforting or just plain fun then it might help pick up your book rate!
When it comes to backgrounds, bright colors, educational and just plain fun is helpful. It’s also important to note that if possible rewards should be displayed at all times, so configuring a clipboard or some form of a system on your wall would be ideal. For every type of reward, this is just not going to happen and that’s ok.
Best VIPKid Rewards
As a new VIPKid teacher having exciting and unique rewards can really give you the leg up on established teachers. Student’s love to see a variety of rewards used in class and the more you mix it up the better. Occasionally you will find the student who requests the same reward each and every time, but most often you want several to rotate through. Here are some easy and fun rewards that will put a smile on your student’s faces every time.
Make A Face
I love these sticker faces because they are easy to use and you can let the students choose the different face pieces. There are 100 of these so they will last for a while if you use them one for a class and discard or you can laminate the pieces and use them over and over again.
Ice Cream Cone
This is a class reward that is easy to use and can also be educational. Most kids understand the concept of ice-cream so they will love watching the visual of it getting bigger and bigger. You can also use this reward to affirm their understanding of colors. It may come in hand when practicing counting in the lower levels of unit 2.
Make a Pizza
Most students even at younger levels are familiar with the idea of building a pizza. It will be fun for the older students to choose their favorite toppings or you could make silly toppings like jelly beans and cookies.
Colorful markers
You can do a lot of fun and easy rewards using colorful markers and your whiteboard. This is great because they are easy to store and don’t take up a lot of space. They can also be used for multiple rewards.
VIPKid Reward Ideas for Whiteboards and Markers
Draw a Silly Face
Draw a circle and tell the student before the lesson, “When you do a good job we draw a funny face!” Then each time you give them a reward you draw silly eyes, nose, mouth, ears and then hair. You can let them choose big eyes or small eyes, color hair, etc.
Draw Funny Teeth
Very similar to the typical draw a tooth reward in the lessons but more entertaining. Instead of normal teeth draw funny teeth, different colors, shapes, vampire teeth etc.
Draw Animals
If you have extra time at the end of the lesson or you are looking for another easy reward that can be reused even with the same student, just draw. I like to draw fun things on the whiteboard or teach them how to draw on the last screen of the lesson. The last slide is left blank for classroom use and I often use it if I have time left over for games. This book is fun to follow along with to draw animals or you can create your own drawings.
What are some rewards and props that you use that are easy and fun? Tell me in the comments!
Check out my hiring tips here and when you’re ready, click on the button below to start!
Email me via the contact page if you have any questions!
Pin This
Comments 2
This is helpful but the Background Options part is blank.
Thanks for letting us know. We’ll fix it asap!