One of the biggest perks of being a teacher is having a couple months off every summer. The first week or two feels awesome as you adjust to life without early mornings and strict routines. By about the third week, you need something to do. Why not earn some extra money this summer?
Educators are strong communicators with extensive knowledge on a variety of subjects. We’re lifelong learners, and we love to share our research with others. The world is full of excellent summer side hustles for teachers, if you know where to look.
1. Become a Freelance Writer
One of the easiest summer side hustles is freelance writing. You can find hundreds of gigs in all subject areas, and most of the time they pay rather quickly.
Freelance websites like Fiverr and Upwork are a good place to start your search, but I’ve found many gigs on Flexjobs.com. They charge a bit to view their listings, but it’s worth it to find legit, at home jobs. Look around for a discount code.
Most of the freelance writing I’ve done the past ten years has been ghostwriting. It can be as simple as writing a blog post for someone to as complicated as drafting an entire book.
2. Teach Online
Online teaching is huge! You can find jobs in and out of your subject areas just by searching indeed.com for “remote faculty” or “online teacher.” Places like ConnectionsAcademy hire certified teachers all year, but there’s a large summer demand for students trying to get ahead in their studies or those tackling complicated subjects in the summer when there’s less distractions.
If you have a graduate degree, you can teach for online colleges. Any master’s degree gives you the credits you need to teach student development courses like “Student Success Skills,” and a lot of colleges require all students to take them, so there’s a high demand for good teachers. You can find these jobs by going directly to the university’s websites.
3. Tutor Online
You can tutor for any subject online, but there’s a high demand for English language tutoring. Children and adults in foreign countries need practice with native English speakers to refine their language skills. Look for jobs on places like VIPKid and FlexJobs.com.
You might also apply to tutor at your local community college or university. Most have online tutoring services as well as on-campus tutoring. SmarThinking is always hiring tutors, too.
4. Create Online Classes
Creating classes online is amazingly easy these days. Anyone with even basic computer skills can create online courses, and people pay for them, too.
You can create a course on any topic using a lightweight learning management system like Teachable. If you’re looking for a creative outlet for your teaching skills, this is a good option, and Teachable is free to start.
The only caveat is that online, make-a-profit learning management systems are not as robust as the ones we’re used to using. You don’t have a grade book, and you have to recognize that your learners progress through your materials at their own pace. I suggest starting a Facebook group so your learners have a place to connect with you and each other.
5. Write an eBook
eBooks don’t have to be 15 chapters and 100,000-words long. You can create a small novella or tutorial ebook at around 10,000 words and make a tidy profit. The best place to publish your ebook and see returns quickly is Amazon’s Kindle store.
Kindle promises that you can create your book in as little as 5 minutes and it will show in their stores in 24-48 hours. As far as pricing, most people who do this for a living recommend pricing your book below $9.99 because Amazon pays royalties of 70% for books in this price range.
6. Start a Podcast
You can make money through advertisement, sponsorships, and even subscriptions by creating a podcast. People look to podcasts to learn about most any topic, from entire foreign languages to basic grammar. One of my favorites taught me the basics of conversational French. Très bien!
You’ll need a good microphone, but “good” means “clear,” not “expensive.” You can upload your podcast to a variety of places, from the iTunes Store to SoundCloud.
7. Become a Virtual Assistant
Small businesses don’t always need full time assistants, so they look to hire someone part time to complete specific tasks. Employers are starting to realize they can save money by hiring virtual assistants who never come into the office at all. With your strong communication skills, you could pick up a summer gig as a virtual assistant with relative ease.
Take a peek at this task list from PennyHoarder. As you can see, virtual assistants perform tasks like proofreading, light web design work, customer support, and social media promotion.
Look for this type of job on places like Fiverr and Flexjobs, but don’t be afraid to post an advertisement for your services on places like Craigslist and Moonlighting.com.
8. Become a Notary
Notaries are always in high demand because court and business documents require notarization on almost everything. You can charge what you want for your services, and we’ve seen some notaries charge more than $6 per page!
Requirements to become a notary vary from state to state. Here in Florida, the cost is about $100. Notaries attend a 3-hour course and must seek bonding by a state agent.
9. Start a Blog
Blogging can make you a good amount of money in the long term, but it takes a lot of work. You could use your summer vacation to get your blog set up and established, and look for a good chunk of Christmas spending money if you keep up with your posting, promotion, and monetization.
InMotion Hosting is my favorite for blogging. They make everything super easy, from setting up WordPress to buying your domain.
You’ll need a good topic that you can write about a couple times per week. Stay away from topics that might get you fired, like “stupid parents” or “best homework answers.” Think about a topic that you know quite a bit about and write helpful, meaningful posts each week.
[bctt tweet=”You’ll need a good topic that you can write about a couple times per week. Stay away from topics that might get you fired, like “stupid parents” or “best homework answers.”” username=”perfectlyemploy”]
10. Become a Tour Guide
If you live in a town with historical or entertainment value, you can use your presentation skills to become a local tour guide. Create your own tours and promote them online via websites like Vayable and ToursbyLocals.
You can charge what you want for your tours. An Orlando-area tour guide charges $600 for an eight-hour tour of Winter Park and Mount Dora. His calendar shows bookings, so it’s definitely a viable business venture.
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