So I have been on teacherspayteachers for a few years now.  Up until this year, I really did not devote much time or attention to my store.  I realized what a great venue it could be, but I was more a user of the website than active participant or author.  When we moved to PA last year, that changed, and I dove into recreating products that I had tested successfully for years in my classroom.  Honestly, there is almost no ready-made, published materials available for teachers who work in severe and profound settings.  It is truly sad.  So, I knew this would be a worthwhile venture for all involved.  I literally spent the next year crafting over 150 products.  My sales went up, but nothing extraordinary.  So, as year 2 of my “sabbatical” begins, I feel I need to refocus my energies, and find a way to connect with more teachers in the same situation I was in.

First, let me say I am NOT a social media fanatic.  Up until we moved, I did not have a Facebook page, nor a Pinterest account.  Now I have both.  But I want to talk a little about pinterest in this blog entry.  I am such a horrible pinner.  I admit it, and beg forgiveness for whomever has stumbled previously upon my page (https://www.pinterest.com/christajoy1765/).  I just did not get it, nor did I put the time and effort into understanding this platform.  Well, I have spent the last 2 weeks getting educated!!  It is truly an amazing resource full of some of the best ideas I have ever seen.  I have watched some tutorials, read other blog posts, and listened to some webinars all in an effort to become someone you would want to follow.

It will be a process.  I have a lot to clean up on my site, and that will take some time.  But, with the few changes I have made, I have already had some people reach out to me and ask me to collaborate with them on their boards.  I am honored.  I am humbled.

I promise from this point forward to be a good steward to this powerful social media presence which is the biggest driver of buyers to teacherspayteachers.  And, without buyers, I might as well just close my store down and read a good book.