It’s well known that I wanted to be a teacher my whole life. And I was a high school chemistry teacher for four years, but left when I was pregnant with Lily, for a myriad of reasons. Mostly, I was already feeling burned out and it didn’t feel right to try for so long to have a baby just to go back to work when my six weeks was up. So, I took a break.

I did some subbing in a local school district for a bit, and then when Steven started to work for Hyperlite, I no longer could do that, which was fine. So around Christmastime, I saw a post on FB and someone had mentioned they work for VIPKID and they really like it. I was really intrigued because I was starting to miss teaching, but knew I wasn’t ready to go back to a public school anytime soon. So, I looked into the company and learned a little bit about it and was hooked.

All this time, I had no idea that you could teach English online to students in other countries, but now that I’m in it, I’m realizing just how many companies there are like this out there!

So, I put in an application and went through a super thorough interview process and was hired at the end of January. Here is the lowdown on VIPKID and what I do.

• I teach ESL to students in China using an online platform. It’s sort of like skype, but it is a classroom where students and teachers can write in a chatbox, draw and write on the screen, and use slides that have been created for the lesson.
• VIPKID does ALL the planning and content creation. I simply open up the lesson the night before to see what props I’d like to use, and then lay them out for my morning classes. Such a nice change!
• There are a ton of incentives when you work for VIPKID, such as an extra $1 per class you teach, just for showing up on time and teaching. An extra $1 per class if you teach more than 45 classes a month. If the class was booked with less than 24 hours notice, you get an extra $2 for that class. Incentives ALL over the place! haha.
• I am starting to get some regular students now and that’s super fun to be able to have more conversations with students each time because I’m building that relationship!
• I choose my own schedule. I was working 6:30-8:30 M-F, but this is the first week I’m going down to just 6:30-8:30 T-F instead! I have the freedom to open up more slots if I feel like working on the weekend or in the evening, but this is what I open up consistently each week.
• The parents are the ones who are booking the classes, not VIPKID.
• I attend workshops every now and then  (online) and they’ve been really helpful as I grow in this company!
• I’ve mastered the art of yawning while smiling.

Because the parents are the one booking the classes it can be a slow start to making money. It took me almost 90 days before I really started to get consistent bookings, and others will get them within just a couple of weeks. There’s not much rhyme or reason to it, unfortunately, but once you start getting bookings it really takes off!

For full disclosure, in Feb I made $35, March, $57, April $92, and for May, my goal was $500 and I well exceeded that goal. $500 a month is what I’d like to make each month, so that’s what I’m focusing on.

I always knew I’d find a way to teach again in some capacity, and I’m so happy to have found VIPKID! I wanted to share this because I’ve gotten some questions about what it is I’m doing! If you’re interested in a way to make money, and have a Bachelor’s degree in anything and have some sort of experience working with kids, this could be a great option for you! If you need a way to make money NOW without waiting for bookings to roll in, I know of a couple of other companies that schedule the classes for you instead of parents so it’s a quicker start! If you’d like to know more, reach out! I’m happy to answer any questions!

Linda is a Boston-based photographer specializing in weddings and creating family legacies. You can see more of her work online at lindabarryphotography.com, on Instagram, or on Facebook. If you want to reach out directly: linda@lindabarryphotography.com. To sign up for the monthly newsletter full of encouragement and real life, click here!

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