Educators’ Top Communication Tips of 2022: A Look Back

It's Best Of List time! So, we turned to the experts -- educators -- for the best school communication tips of 2022. Here's what they said.

Kara Stern, Ph.D. | Director of Education Content | Smore

A veteran educator, I've been a teacher, principal, ED @ www.mathforamerica.org, head of school, and now Director of Education Content @ Smore. Ph.D. in Teaching & Learning. I ❤️ my Libby app :)

More posts by Kara Stern, Ph.D. | Director of Education Content | Smore.

Kara Stern, Ph.D. | Director of Education Content | Smore

16 Dec 2022 • 5 min read

Educators’ Top Communication Tips of 2022: A Look Back

🎁 Busy? Here's the TL;DR

We asked educators for the top communication tips in 2022
They shared a set of best practices we all should follow:
Consistency is key, whether it's delivery, style, or voice.
Use images, GIFs & emojis to keep folks' interest.
Respect folks' time, language needs, & schedules.

Want to get everyone communicating consistently?

As 2022 comes to a close, we decided to make our own “Best of” list:

Best School Communications Tips of 2022

To compile the list, we turned to the experts in the field – educators! From their suggestions we boiled it down to three core tips.

Let's take them one at a time!

Top tip # 1: Consistency

Almost all of the experts who weighed in pointed to the importance of consistency, although in different ways. For some, it was frequency:

Consistency is key! You have to keep the line of communication open and never be afraid to communicate on the regular. There’s no such thing as over communication 😊
— Cori Shea (@Chocolatte224) December 16, 2022

For others, it's about maintaining a consistent cadence:

Thanks to @SmoreNewsletter my staff receives weekly newsletter that provides PDs, ideas, updates, celebrations and more. Parents also benefit from newsletter they can switch to their language without needing a translator #k12
— Evylyn Quiñones (@evyabel) December 15, 2022

While other educators pointed to the importance of maintaining a consistent style or design identity (in addition to communication frequency):

Oh, man. Best tip? It's a toss-up between "Consistency, Consistency, Consistency" and "Make sure your messaging has a distinctive design/feel". In either case, the goal should be that your audience knows it's from you the instant they see it.
— Ryan (@RyanMayers0205) December 12, 2022

Top tip #2: keep it lively

All the consistency in the world might not matter if you don't communicate in a way that captures folks' attention. Using visual signifiers like emojis, GIFs and memes is just plain fun. Big added plus? It makes you look on trend!

Why not:
Best Netflix: Stranger Things 📺
Best Albums: American Heartbreak, Zach Bryan 🎧
Best vacation spot: my bed 🛌
Best communication tips: using @SmoreNewsletter in beta mode adding my favorite GIFs & 😎🙌👨🏽‍💻weekly to update school community
— Jason Taylor (@jnbtaylor) December 13, 2022

You can tell emojis are fun to use, because even in sharing the tip, these educators are using them! And notice, the visual addition makes their contributions pop. Like this one:

❄️ Use a theme for your newsletter.
📸 Use as many images as possible.
📚 Add emojis or gifs.
😆 Be funny!@SmoreNewsletter
— 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚 𝐓𝐨𝐥𝐯𝐚 𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐨𝐭𝐭 📚💙 (@MonicaTolva) December 13, 2022

Top tip #3: be respectful:

Folks, this is an important one, so we saved it for last. When you're crafting your school newsletter, keep front of mind who will be receiving it. For starters, not everyone absorbs information in the same way:

Use multiple modalities to share information - remembering your audience has varied learning styles!
— Linda Hyde (@hydel_HRE) December 16, 2022

Great point! It's also hard to absorb a whole lotta info coming at you at once:

Keep it short and focused! That’s when I’ve gotten the best responses to my newsletters for teachers. If I try to cover too many things or make it too long, it doesn’t have the same impact.
— Geri (@geri_smith06) December 15, 2022

And as @evyabel pointed out above, not everyone reads comfortably in English, so language translation is a must. Lastly, another essential way to be respectful is of people's schedules, by considering carefully when you send information – whether it's to parents or to your team:

I can't stress enough the importance of the schedule email feature. It's the #1 way I've tried to be respectful of colleagues' "normal" working hours. Do everything you can to help with that work/life balance! #schoolpr #suptchat pic.twitter.com/Bh7bKw2dtA
— Joëlle Doye (@Rockshot_Joelle) December 14, 2022

So, the Best School Communications Tips of 2022: Be Consistent, Be Stylish, Be Thoughtful.

See you in 2023!