Nail that teacher interview with my top teacher interview tips.

Teacher Interview Tips to Help you Land the Job

Interviews… Not just any interviews. Teacher interviews! They can be nerve-wracking! That’s why we all need teacher interview tips.  I had 4 interviews before I landed my dream teaching position. After multiple interviews, I went from recent graduate to soon to be first year teacher! I will be teaching in a 2nd Grade classroom in my hometown. Here are the teacher interview tips that I learned along the way.

First, tell stories and experiences! People love a good story. They show that you are interesting. Why this teacher interview tip is so important is because stories help you be memorable. When they ask about classroom management, don’t just tell your philosophy about it. Tell experiences that you have had! I shared how I created and implemented my own classroom management strategy during student teaching. I explained how it changed the culture of the classroom. I shared details of exactly what I did. It was memorable. It showed that I can manage a classroom without saying, “I’m the best at classroom management!”

Next, be confident! Go in there knowing that you have something to offer to that school. Know that you have done your research for the school. You know what they are looking for. Know that your teaching has prepared you well. Sit up tall and don’t forget to smile… and even laugh! Know that they are partly looking at your personality. So let it shine! They want to see if you will fit on their team. What helped me be confident most was preparing really well.

Next, show that you are prepared! Before the interview that landed me the teaching job, I just went over frequently asked questions. I took a few notes and read them over before going in. But I still didn’t really feel too confident going into the interviews. Everything changed when I created a teacher interview portfolio! I knew the school I was going to interview at was all about classroom management and collaboration among teachers. So I tailored my portfolio around that! I honestly wasn’t sure if I was going to use it during the interview, but it helped me prepare! After think out everything, I created 7 pages just about classroom management. I thought about classroom culture, class incentives, routines/procedures, how I introduce those, and included visual examples. Answering common teacher interview questions and including pages about those those really helped as well. These pages included my ideas and plans for parent communication, technology, assessment, and differentiation.

Bring a teacher interview portfolio! This teacher interview tip changed my interview game for me because it showed the interviewing committee that I went above and beyond. Like I said, I wasn’t sure if I was actually going to use it in my interview. But I did! I opened my teacher interview portfolio up and shared my classroom management plan! Visuals are so much more memorable than just being talked at. This allowed the teachers interviewing me to ask me deeper questions to my plan as well. It felt really natural getting it out and sharing it.

Practice your interviewing skills with these practice teacher interview questions.

Finally, know that there is no perfect teacher or interview. There will always be something in the interview that you hoped had gone better. But that is just life. Move on in the interview with confidence. Also show that you are not a perfect teacher, but that you are teachable and ready to try new things. There was a point in the interview where they asked me what is something I need to work at as a teacher. I told how I wanted to work more on my questioning and discussion in the classroom. I had a page in my teacher interview portfolio on how I would introduce the procedure of “partner sharing.” Again, another visual to show that I have plans to improve and be a better teacher.

Come prepared and confident, bring a portfolio to your teacher interview.

So, what are you waiting for? Start preparing for your teacher interviews now! Practice with these frequently asked teacher interview questions. Click here to get started on your own teacher portfolio for interview. Go out there and rock your interviews with confidence! I hope these teacher interview tips help you greatly!

Need help with classroom management ideas for the interview? Check out my blog post all about meaningful classroom management.