Instagram Resources
October/November 2024
Upcoming Events
OCTOBER
- Wednesday, Oct. 2: School Custodian Appreciation Day
- Sunday, Oct. 6: National Coaches Day
- Thursday, Oct. 10: World Mental Health Day
- Oct. 14-18: National School Bus Safety Week
- Share a safety tip from a bus driver!
- Oct. 14-18: National School Lunch Week
- Ask students what they're favorite free lunch is
- Wednesday, Oct. 16: Unity Day
- Saturday, Oct. 26: Make a Difference Day
NOVEMBER
- Friday, Nov. 8: National STEM Day
- Nov. 11-15: National School Psychology Week
- Wednesday, Nov. 13: World Kindness Day
- Thursday, Nov. 14: National Community Education Day
- Friday, Nov. 22: Substitute Educators Day
There are points in the year with lots of appreciation or theme days - don't feel the pressure to post for every single one. Pick ones that are important to you or are easy to tie into your school happenings. Theme days are a great way to round out a social schedule and are a way to plan ahead. Schedule your theme day posts at the beginning of the month or week to make managing your account easier!
Trending Items
- Trust Falls: What can you count on at school? Make sure to make this safely! :)
- Gen Z phrases / Gen Z marketing script: How relatable is this with students? "Translate" as they describe their school or classroom.
- Hey: So easy to make - welcoming students on the first day of school vs. welcoming them after the first month!
- Yeah!: Usher's "Yeah!" is making a comeback (but it's always been a jam). Check out this orchestra class and library remix.
- "Break it Down": Since the breakdancing debacle at the Olympics, this trend has been making the rounds. Check out how the Phoenix sewer system made an informative post fun!
- The Rumors are True: Such a fun way to make an announcement.
- Came Here for Love: This is a very simple video to make to celebrate something great at your school. Just spin, caption, and use this music!
Tips & Tricks
How to Edit Reels
This can be a time consuming topic, but you don't need a fancy program to edit. Instagram is the best place to edit reels, directly within the app. Some reels may need a few takes during recording, so I recommend recording from your phone's camera, then bringing in the clips you want in Instagram, rather than recording directly in Instagram.
Check out this helpful video on YouTube (especially after the 4:00 mark if clips are pre-recorded): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yankZL320o8
How to Schedule Posts / Stories
Scheduling both posts and stories can happen in Meta Business Suite, while you can schedule posts directly in the Instagram app on your phone.
In Meta Business Suite, go to the Planner on the left hand side of the screen (the calendar icon), then click the upper right hand corner to create a new post or story.
That next screen has a "Scheduling Options" toggle to turn on. From there, you can schedule any day and time between 20 minutes and 29 days from when you create them.
While on a phone's Instagram app, only posts can be scheduled - not stories. To do this, get to the final step of creating a post before sharing. scroll to the bottom of the page and click the very last option of "Advanced settings". The first option has a toggle for "Schedule this post" and select your date and time. Once set, click done, then click the back arrow in the upper left corner and you'll see that the blue "Share" button has changed to say "Schedule". Click the blue button to schedule it!
- Need to make a change to a scheduled post? On your profile, click the three lines in the upper right corner, and under the "Your insights and tools" title section, there is "Scheduled content". By clicking the three small dots to the right of the scheduled post, you can then delete, edit post, reschedule, or share now.
Tap Through Story
Have a lot of information to share? Consider breaking it up into small, easy to read sections. Don't have a lot of photos to work with? That's okay too. Create stories that as followers tap through, new information appears so that text doesn't move (stays clean!), is engaging, and is easy to understand.
First create a story with your first line of text. Then click the three dots in the upper right corner and click "Save". Then post your first story slide with the first line of info.
Then start another new story. Pull up the image you saved with the first line of text, then add your second line and post. If you have more info, continue to save your most recent slide before posting to your story.
By posting individual stories this way, the previous text lines won't move, will be cohesive, and engaging as followers click through. The example above would be posted as three individual stories for each line to pop up one at a time.