Interview tips- how to stand out at teaching fair??

[Pembroke_Corgi]

I am attending a teaching fair next weekend and really hoping to get hired or get an interview for a teaching position for next year. Every district in the metro area is facing HUGE budget cuts (to the point where one district may charge students to ride the bus), so the competition will be tough because of reduced hiring. The event is limited to 600 people, and I have no doubt there will probably be 600 people there- competing for the same 30 jobs!

Does anyone have any tips on how to maximize my chances for a job?

I have a suit, and I'm going to print many copies of my resume as well as some letters of recommendation. If you want to keep your fingers crossed for me I wouldn't mind either!!

[boomersooner]

Fingers crossed....I haven't been to a teacher fair in a long time.....I would talk to as many people as I could....be very positive, energetic, talk about high expectations for the kids, maybe be aware of state assessments and other things the teachers in this district are required to use....GOOD LUCK!!!!

[lizbud]

Sending positive vibes your way, They would be lucky to have you.
Tell them I said so. Best of luck.

[Karen]

Hmm, how creative is one allowed to be? I've never been a teacher, but have some ideas ...

You could bring apples with you - and say "instead of the old-fashioned 'apple for teacher,' here's an apple FROM a teacher."

You could bring homemade goodies, but that's more risky, in terms of allergies, etc. ...

Wear a corsage of (nice) silk flowers, and keep extra flowers and safety pins in your bag to give to prospective interviewers?

Study the state map and memorize something about each town likely to be there, so you have something to discuss that's strictly local?

Wear rainbow striped socks with your suit? Or are you not looking for elementary school jobs?

Jingle bells tied to little ribbons to spread the music around?

[jennielynn1970]

be prepared for a lot of questions about where you stand on NCLB and how you would benefit their school. Differentiated Instruction. Know this topic!! There is so much going on right now in education, you need to know about the technological issues as well as the strategies for instruction. They might ask you to come in and teach a lesson on the spot. be ready to do so.

I lucked out with Library Science, there were a lot of openings in my field. Right now, we need science teachers and math teachers.

Big topic right now is children's privacy on the computers. Right here where I live they found out that a district was using the 1 to 1 apple computers to spy on the kids at home!!! They could access the webcam and everything remotely. It is bizarre. I guess they filed complaints against the students who were not sticking to the acceptable use policy, and it got turned around and the students/parents are going to be suing the district for invasion of privacy.

[Pembroke_Corgi]

Thanks for the tips a well wishes! I'm sure they will help!

I heard about the webcam issue on those computers on the news. That is so weird! It's really creepy that someone at the school was potentially spying on students in their homes.