ANDREA RUNNELS
Hi there!! It’s me again!! Your push to Periscope! The sassy redhead on your shoulder. I kind of feel like making an Uncle Sam-type poster that says “I WANT YOU to Periscope!” I’m keeping up with my goal to scope at least 3 times a week. My focus for my word of the year in January is confidence with Periscope. I’m so determined I clicked Broadcast Now on my last scope without remembering to paste the title I had copied from my Notes app!! Can you tell it’s still bothering the perfectionist in me? I have no problem with coming up with things to talk about! “Needs to control talking” was probably written in sharpie on my report cards. If the reason you haven’t gone for it is because you aren’t sure what to talk about, I’ve got a list of 10 live streaming topic ideas and a handy dandy printable to go with it!
Let’s focus on getting you to be confident enough to scope regularly, too! I’m going to make it very easy for you and give you that list of topic ideas so you are running out of excuses to join the Peri-Party!! Nobody is interested in having a bunch of copycats broadcasting. No “Stepford Wife Periscope Life!” If you are authentic and true to yourself then you will draw people in!
To use another movie analogy, “If you build it, they will come.” Well, if you scope it, they will watch! It takes consistency though. I’m not good at that sometimes myself because I’ve got excuses for days. Do you feel like scoping is out of your comfort zone? Well, I sure like to stay in mine but sometimes you have to just take a big leap and go for it!! I talk about stepping out of your comfort zone here!
Here is a list of some very basic, general topics that you can use as a guide to figure out some things to scope about (or live stream on other platforms) at first! This is a mix of personal and teachery-topics. Of course, I’m compiling a list based on advice from lots of people (mainly Sheila Jane Teaching and Jessica Martin aka The Whimsical Teacher). Once you get more comfortable, you will find your scope style and you can throw this away haha. I took the tips and made them into this freebie as well! Click on the picture to take you to the cheat sheet:)!
10 Tried and True Topics
1) Your Hobbies/Passions– If you feel strongly about it, your best self will shine through when you talk about it. I love American History! I do scope about Science stuff I do in the classroom sometimes, but when I go into geek mode over Social Studies there’s no stopping me!
2) Re-purpose Social Media Content-Go back and peruse your blog for topics that got a lot of engagement. Or maybe your posts that didn’t get much attention. If you scope about the topics contained within those posts with enthusiasm, people will go back and read them! Not a blogger? What about Facebook Posts that got lots of likes? So on and so on with all the bazillion social media platforms.
3) Classroom Happenings-Did you try a new strategy or do a really cool science experiment? What about fun math games you’ve created or used? Veteran teachers have TONS of creative ideas! Talk about what you’ve got going on in your classroom!
4) Websites or Technology Tips– Do you have a favorite website or app? Don’t assume everyone knows about it! Lots of times, I hear about so many great sites I don’t even get to all of them. Or more likely I completely forget! I appreciate the reminders! Tech tutorials and TPT product creation tips are extremely popular topics!
5) Sales/Purchases-You know teachers love a good deal and we love school supplies and crafty stuff. If you want to just talk about what subscription box you got in the mail or what you bought at Target, you will get viewers!
6) Special Events– Sometimes people just show a wedding, a concert or guest speaker snippet, or party without even any dialogue!
7) Overcoming a Challenge-Sometimes talking about tough stuff like a problem at school or personal life can be cathartic. Viewers can relate and may be a great support system for you. Obviously speak in general terms and don’t get too personal!
8) Books-Teachers want to know about great books! Ones for big people and little people alike!
9) Recipe-Healthy recipes or meal shortcuts are pretty engaging topics any time of year!
10) Inspiration from Another Scoper– I’m not saying talk about the exact thing the same way. Maybe you saw a scope where someone talked about how they do station activities in their classroom. Well, scope about how you do them and say at the beginning you were inspired by so-and-so to share your take on…or your spin on….fill-in-the-blank topic.
I hope this list helps you!! My bet advice in terms of live streaming is still #justdoit. Press the red button. Everyone has a story to share.
Check out the other posts in the blog series here:
Part 1 Power to Periscope: Confidence!
Power to Periscope Part 2: Even More Inspiration!
Part 4 Power to Periscope: Pericope’s Rising Stars of 2016 Recap