A Circuitous Journey into Entrepreneurship with Aubrey | 24

This week’s inspiring teacherpreneur journey is from Aubrey of The Modern Science Class. I loved hearing about how see became a teacherpreneur, her approach to creating digital resources and how she’s starting to market her business as it grows.

Aubrey is a fifth-year science teacher who came into teaching in a circuitous route and earned her teaching credential through an alternative pathway. She has taught both middle school and high school science and loves sharing her passion for science with students to help them explore the world! She started creating resources to use in her own classroom and began selling resources while on unpaid maternity leave. Her favourite social media platform is Instagram because of the ease of use and the amazing connections she has made. Connect with Aubrey on Instagram and tell her you listened to her on the Market, Scale & Grow podcast!

We chat all about her circuitous journey into teaching and entrepreneurship that has led her to create amazing digital resources for science classes that truly support the needs of both teachers and students. One of my biggest takeaways from this conversation is the power of positivity and having trust in fellow educators.

We also talk about how she is marketing her business on different platforms.  Her goal for this year is consistency, which is also something I can totally relate to!

I hope you enjoy this chat as much as I did!

Connect with Aubrey
Instagram: @themodernscienceclass
Pinterest: The Modern Science Class
Website: www.themodernscienceclass.com

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Thanks for listening to this week’s Inspiring Story! If you would like to share your story on the podcast head to www.marketscalegrow.com/journey to apply today. We would love for you to join us and can’t wait to hear about your journey as a teacher business owner.

Episode Transcript:

Intro: Hey there, I'm Jenzaia and this is Market, Scale, Grow. A podcast created for ambitious teacherpreneurs looking to have a bigger impact on the world, achieve freedom, flexibility, and ultimately make more money with weekly strategy sessions and inspiring stories from fellow teachers just like you, my goal here is to help you create a customized marketing strategy so you can grow your teacher business beyond your wildest dreams. Okay, so before we jump into the episode, I am super excited to share a brand new freebie with you. It's my targeting ideas for Facebook ads. If you've dabbled in Facebook ads or you've done them and you've tried them, and you're just looking for some fresh inspiration for your audiences, this freebie is for you. I share my top Facebook ad targeting groups for you so that you can have inspiration and find those people that are perfect for what you have to offer. From warm audiences to cool lookalike audiences, to cold interest-based audiences. I cover all three in this freebie. Head to marketscalegrow.com/audiences to grab your copy today.

Jenzaia: Hi Aubrey. Welcome to Market Scale Grow. How are you doing today?

Aubrey: I'm doing great, Jenzaia. I'm so excited to be here. This is actually my first podcast interview.

Jenzaia: Oh yeah. I remember you saying that to me. I'm glad. Welcome! I'm excited for you to be here and for you to share your experience.

Aubrey: Thank you.

Jenzaia: Do you want to start by telling listeners where you're from and if you're still in the classroom, what you're teaching?

Aubrey: I am, happy to. So I am born and raised in California. I still live here in Northern California and I am currently teaching middle school science. So, this year I taught seventh-grade science, and then next year I'm actually moving to a new school where I'll be teaching fifth through eighth-grade science.

Jenzaia: That's a cool change.

Aubrey: Yeah, I'm really excited. It's a super small school. Their sixth-grade class was 12 students, so it's going to be a big change moving from a big public school where it had 110 students down to, I'll have a total of maybe 70 students. So I'm excited, but I still get to teach science, which is what I love.

Jenzaia: Awesome, and if I remember correctly, the name of your business is the science teacher, the science classroom, right?

Aubrey: The Modern Science Class. Yes.

Jenzaia: So that's everything you do is science.

Aubrey: Everything I do is science. I really believe right in teaching that students that science is all around us. Everyone can be a scientist and everyone can be good at science because it's literally how we breathe and function. It's in our daily lives all around us. So I really just want to help students explore that and incorporate their own interests into the science classroom so that they feel like they are quote-unquote good at science.

Jenzaia: Awesome. I love that. I personally enjoy science, but it's kind of a different spin that you just put on it of like it's everywhere around us. It's not just a subject, it's life, completely, entirely.

Aubrey: Exactly, and I've found that students generally say, "oh, I'm good at art," right? Or like, "I'm good at history." Or then you have the occasional student who's like, "oh, I'm good at science." I really wanted to kind of break down that barrier and just say history can be brought into science and science can be brought into history and all these things and same with arts. So, this year I really worked on making sure that my students felt like they could be good at science and still incorporate their own passions or their interests. So that's my goal in life is to make them, everyone quote-unquote, a good scientist.

Jenzaia: Cool. That's a good goal, especially with your role. Yeah.

Aubrey: Yeah.

Jenzaia: So how did you get to be a teacherpreneur?

Aubrey: I feel like I came into teaching and being a teacherpreneur in a very circuitous or alternative route. So I was an intern teacher in 2017-2018. Then I ended up having a baby and I needed to go on unpaid maternity leave. So I needed to supplement and have some sort of income. So that's how I started to create these resources, as I had no income for my entire maternity leave. I switched schools in order to be closer to home and actually have maternity leave because the other school that I was at wasn't able to give me maternity leave when I needed it. It was interesting. So I just started taking the resources that I had been using in my own classroom that I had. I started with the ones that I really loved. My first freebie is actually on earth science, resource cycles, and earth science, and I was like, oh, I loved that project. I'm going to just start and put it on TPT. It was really successful and then I've just slowly been building. So I started my store in 2019, and it's all focused on secondary science and those science and engineering practices. It's all NGSS aligned, so our next-generation science standards. So it really came out of a necessity. Then when I was on my maternity leave, I was supplying my long-term sub with all of the curriculum. I just was like, this is so fun to like create these things and get her feedback of like, "oh yeah, this went really well" and you know, "I feel like we could modify that for next year." I just really fell in love with creating those resources and then seeing them in the classroom.

Jenzaia: So many people do a very similar thing to what you're saying. They make things that they're going to use in their classroom and then they start putting them up. But I love the idea, and I know you didn't do it intentionally, but the idea of you created something for your classroom, but then you gave it to your sub to do, because when you're teaching your own lesson, you know, what's in your mind, you know, how it's supposed to work, you know, all of that, but giving it to someone else is almost like the perfect test for TPT. Now someone else has to read what you've done and look at all of your things and they can't just stand there and be like, oh, this is what I meant when I wrote that. So it's almost like an even better test of all of what you created. So that's kind of cool that it accidentally happened, and almost even better.

Aubrey: Yeah. I love that feedback. I always feel like I'm going back and revising and recreating things, figuring them out. It was particularly with the transition to online learning where I went back and I was like, alright, these notes need to change, we need to do Google forms instead. My newest thing that I've just finished training on was making digital mazes just to bring in more quote-unquote fun into the classroom, right? Because we're all online and you're like, we can't do a whole lot of pen and paper. Even those students who are in person were still a hundred percent digital assignments. So yeah, I love that being able to constantly progress on something and allow it to evolve. That feedback from my sub was really valuable.

Jenzaia: Can you explain a digital maze for me? What program do you use? What does it entail?

Aubrey: I have to give credit to Lindsay Bowden. She did a free five-day challenge. So essentially what it is, is think of a maze, right? You start with a question box and then there's a path that you will take based on the answer that you choose. So different answers will lead you to different question boxes and you're trying to get to the finish line. Traditionally, you can print them off and students color them in. But she also showed us how to do it in Google sheets, so that students type an answer, and then the pathway is illuminated or highlights once the correct answer is submitted. Think of it this way. There would be 12 boxes and then as students type the correct answer, the path appears to take them to the next spot. I kind of think of it as like a video game, like in Mario, where like you start on one little column and you have to perform something to jump to the next one.

Jenzaia: I know exactly what you mean. Yes.

Aubrey: So that was something that like, I just learned how to do and make it more digital. As I said, my business name is The Modern Science Class and I really want to incorporate those 21st-century learning skills and technology is a huge one of those. I also found that it was really valuable for differentiating. There are some students who I would provide the answers and incorrect answers and they had to highlight which ones. Then, other students, I challenged them to supply the answer and the digital resource will check it. So that's the newest thing that I'm going to be adding to my resources this summer, these digital and printable mazes. So, always learning and growing.

Jenzaia: It's not that you can't do it with paper because you absolutely can give this version to one student and this one to another one, but I just have found that it's so much easier with a digital one. Maybe it's just the way my brain works. I don't know, but when I was teaching online before, I found it so easy to just, okay, these 10 students are getting this one, these 10 are getting this one and off we go, no problem, snap a finger. So that's really cool that you've kind of figured out a way to integrate all of these things.

Aubrey: And it takes time, right? It takes time. This is my fifth year teaching and I feel like you can even see that in my store. The growth and evolution of my own skills and resources. I started to incorporate more scaffolding for differentiation or whatnot. So it's always, always growing. I always say, my personal motto is, 'progress not perfection' because we're always learning and always kind of growing and progressing as individuals, but especially as teachers.

Jenzaia: I remember before, I think I must've been in teacher's college, that I heard something about after the third year of teaching, teachers stagnate and it terrified me. I did not want to be three years in and to never learn anything new, never do anything new, never try anything new with my kids. I'm now in my, this September will be my eighth year. I did spend the last year off on maternity leave, but anyway, that's irrelevant. I think that hearing that before I started gave me a little bit of a fire under me to keep me moving forward and constantly trying for those new things. So I think it's like a really important personality trait for teachers to have of that desire to learn new things and try new things and to not just stick with what they know and what is constantly already working. So it's really cool to hear that you've brought that not only into your classroom but then into your store as well.

Aubrey: I totally get what you and agree with what you're saying. There are some teachers who are constantly progressing and developing themselves. There are some teachers who aren't as motivated or aren't as open to that, but I really think that a lot of teachers, and I would say the vast majority of teachers, especially during distance learning, really challenge themselves to grow and develop as educators. Very few teachers, I mean I think everyone should get a round of applause, but very few teachers learn how to teach online in as you call it, teacher college. That's not a course that you sign up for, you know, 'Zoom with Students 101.'

Jenzaia: It was totally forced on us. The option kind of was if you can retire, find a new something or come with us, let's go. I think I would say the vast majority, I agree. They went with the 'let's go, let's figure it out, move forward.'

Aubrey: Totally.

Jenzaia: Teacher's college isn't something I made up. It's what it's called here. That's just what we call it here. So I kind of assume that that's what it's called everywhere. You know, how your norm is assumably everyone's norm?

Aubrey: Totally. I just love that term. It describes it perfectly. I feel like in the states, there are so many different programs. So I did an online teaching credential program. So I was teaching full time and doing my online teaching credential. So I always feel like I'm just an outlier. I earned my degree in an alternative route. I did intern teaching rather than student teaching. So I'm just like the alternate route person.

Jenzaia: Okay. So you kind of talked a little bit about it, but in the growth and change of your business, what are some of the milestones that you've hit, like really big moments for you, either challenges or really proud moments that you have that have shaped that growth of your business?

Aubrey: Yeah. Wow. That's an amazing question. I think one of my biggest milestones was last summer, I actually created a course for teachers that wanted to make a class website using Google sites because that's what I did kind of in preparation for this 100% online learning year. So I think that was my biggest milestone and biggest achievement, really putting myself out there and designing that course. I would also say in terms of the resources, creating more truly digital resources and I really want teachers to be able to edit my resources. So I upload almost everything as Google slides, Google docs, so that it's really customizable. So I would say learning how to really take those resources and make them really digital rather than just being like, oh, you have the digital file. But no, they're effective for online learning or effective for online or digital work completion rather than just being like, oh, you can edit it and then print it off type thing. So that would be two of my milestones. I feel like I'm definitely in the phase of still growing my store. I am also a mom, too. My son will be two in August. That is just totally changed how I am able to do my business. So it takes a lot of effort, I would say, and more mental energy for me to follow through with all of the steps of creating and posting to TPT and then marketing. So I still am figuring out that balance while having a typical two-year-old running around the house.

Jenzaia: So I have two kids. I have, my son is two and a little bit. He turned two in March and then my daughter just turned one, so they're really close together. But I totally know what you mean, that there is your brain, the focus of what needs to be done and making sure you have quality time with them. Plus you're in the classroom, which adds another layer to what you are trying to balance. So kudos to you.

Aubrey: Thanks. Thanks.

Jenzaia: I do have a question about your second milestone that you said you hit with the total digital-ness of your products. This is something that comes up so often in a lot of Facebook groups that I'm part of, of people offering digital products and the fear of somebody else just ripping them off. If it is completely editable and it isn't a password-protected PDF that your work's not safe. So, is this a mindset shift you had to make, or how have you made that part of your business? Or is it still something that terrifies you and where are you in that? Do you know what I'm asking?

Aubrey: I do. I totally do. So I have to go back and think of my motivation. My motivation was to create resources that supported student discovery exploration and helped teachers facilitate that, and supplement my non-paid maternity leave. My goal was really though to help teachers. I'm a very optimistic and trusting person, and I had to just know that the best way that I could serve people and teachers was to make digital resources because that's what I would want. I know there are teachers out there that are probably recreated a PDF worksheet in Google slides or Google docs because they needed it digital or they needed to edit something. I decided not to be fearful that someone could totally rip me off. But I'm going to put those positive vibes in that and hope for good karma. I also believe in teachers. I think that we're an incredibly altruistic group of individuals who are giving so much of ourselves that selfishness isn't really in our genes. It's something that I choose not to worry about because I would much rather focus on serving my teachers with the resources that they need. I love when people say, "oh, I loved being able to edit this for fifth grade. And I changed the language so that it worked a little bit better for my fifth graders" or "for my ELL students" or "for my gate students" or whatever it was. I kind of thrive off of that and getting the feedback of how much they liked being digital. I choose to just, not try to blind eye, but to trust that people will be ethical and like I said, focus on the positive of those people who are benefiting and appreciating those 100% digital resources.

Jenzaia: You said a couple of things that rang so true to me. I actually teach in a French immersion school and it is getting easier, but it is hard to find quality resources in French. So when I find something that I can edit, if it's in English and I can go in and just change the words to French, it helps so, so much because there, and again, it is getting better. There are tons of really talented French immersion authors out there now that are creating these resources in French. But there was many times that I stood in front of the photocopier with whiteout and having to write something in and then feeling that guilt of like, well, they had it in English and I'm still like, I'm not selling this, I'm using it for my classroom. I purchased it with the, like all of these things, and I know that I'm not really doing something wrong, but you feel like you are. So I love that you're just open to it and it's, 'this is the best thing for everyone and I'm okay with taking that risk.'

Aubrey: A lot of teachers, I've seen in Facebook groups, a lot of people are giving away their own free resources or they're recommending other people's paid Teachers Pay Teachers. Then they're calling people out too. I think it was Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah designs, someone was straight-up selling her resources. There was this amazing Facebook community that went in and reported it and got it shut down. That just shows me teachers value other teachers' work. I want to be on that bus, right? Not this other bus. I totally respect other people who do lockdown their resources, especially if you are using other people's clip art, there are ways to put it in as the background so it is protected, so you're protecting other people's work. I just believe in teachers. I believe that they're gold.

Jenzaia: I've seen that too. What you were saying about when things aren't happening right, that people screenshot it and make sure that the person finds out. So I do agree with you that there are so many more teachers on the right side of the fence and in the end, doing the right thing for the students and the teachers is the best thing, too. So kudos to you. I'm really proud of that.

Aubrey: Thanks!

Jenzaia: Okay. Next question. Where, and I think you sort of answered this, but where in your business growth journey are you, would you say?

Aubrey: Definitely growing. I'm about to switch schools and the school that I'm going to go join is project-based. So I'm really excited. I think it's going to be much more manageable because the classes are going to be so small. So I think a lot of my resources are going to start to be more project-based or hands-on activities. It's going to be a 180 from being 100% digital and less hands-on this year. So I definitely feel like I'm growing in that area. I feel like I'm still growing also in my marketing skills as well.

Jenzaia: Speaking of that, how are you marketing your business?

Aubrey: That's a great question. So, I would say not well first of all. I'm very honest, but I'm trying to highlight how I use them on Instagram. I would say Instagram is my number one social media platform and marketing platform, followed by, I just got started using Pinterest. But I really like Instagram. I love the community that's on there and being able to react to people's stories and then watch their reels and then their IGTVs and their lives. All of these different opportunities for engagement and interaction, that's what I love. I love just sending people DMs being like, I loved this resource. That's such a cool thing. That's probably I think where my growth needs to happen most is probably in my marketing. But like I said, I'm still figuring out how to balance all of this. I don't know how you do it with two kids. It's amazing, kudos to you. But definitely, I love Instagram. I'm on Facebook, but I'm not the best at it. I love looking and reading in a different bunch of Facebook groups. When I'm really good, I try to give suggestions. I do have a Facebook page for my business that I don't do a whole lot with.

Jenzaia: There's not a lot of people that do a lot with Facebook pages these days, Facebook groups are, I was just talking about this with someone else yesterday, but with especially everything going online and these communities forming, Facebook groups have skyrocketed. They were almost dying a couple of years ago, almost. But with this transition to online, they've really gained popularity and become a very powerful place where you can connect with people and potentially depending on the group market and interact and build community. But I agree with you. There's just something about Instagram and being able to DM people and interact with their posts and their stories and their reels. It's really good for relationship marketing.

Aubrey: I'm also a visual person. After this year teaching black boxes, I crave looking at people's faces. So I think that's why I like Instagram more. It's a visual platform. And Pinterest as well. As I said, I'm just starting on Pinterest. So I'm really excited to start to see what other people are doing on there and putting my stuff out there because you can talk a mile a minute, but I think a picture says a thousand words, and that's what I really like. I like doing it.

Jenzaia: Yeah. I am much better at being a consumer on Pinterest than a business owner. I will scroll Pinterest for hours looking for new bedroom ideas, or this, or meals, and inspiring quotes. But I have always struggled as a business owner with getting my resources on and marketing myself on Pinterest. So I'm working on it also.

Aubrey: Yeah. I mean, I think teachers are always multi-tasking. Teacher moms and mompreneurs, it's just incredible. I don't know how everyone does it all. I'm just so, so impressed. I think the comparison is like the thief of joy, right? But I think we all have to just kind of give ourselves the grace of just knowing that we're gonna do what works for us at the moment. And we're all, most of us are all wanting to grow and develop those systems and have more success. I try and keep it real all the time. I do it with my students where I'm like, "guys, my son didn't sleep last night, which means I didn't sleep last night, which means today's class is going to be student-directed because I'm going to drink my coffee" or whatever it is. The same thing goes with social media. We are in the middle of buying a house and I was interviewing for a job and submitting loan paperwork all at the same time, and I was like, oh yeah, I have a new product that I should probably post, but when? All of those things. So consistency is my goal for the 2021-2022 school year, is just being a little more consistent on all platforms. I always feel like I'm saying, "Hi, it's been a while." Then it's silence. Then I'm like, "Oh, hi, it's been a while."

Jenzaia: Three of those in a row.

Aubrey: Like, welcome back. Hi again!

Jenzaia: You didn't go anywhere. That was me, right?

Aubrey: Yeah, definitely. Definitely.

Jenzaia: Because this is my specialty zone, how do you feel about Facebook ads?

Aubrey: I've never tried them. I have seen a lot of teacherpreneurs using them and some of them I feel are super good, like super catchy. I'm like, I'm clicking that. I want to learn more about that. I feel like they've also gotten more personal. I like imperfection. I don't want to see someone who is totally put together because I'm like, I'm never going to be able to meet them where they are. So I like seeing that realness and I really see that in Facebook recently is teachers are being real and being like, this is not about being the perfect teacher. This is about creating systems or about learning how to have a better work-life balance. It's definitely something that I hope if I, I'm going to try and relaunch my course this summer, that I might even give it a go and be like, "Hey Jenzaia, will you check this out or help me with this?" It's nice to have someone who's done it before and who's an expert walk you through it.

Jenzaia: The first time is very, there are so many different things. So I would love to help you.

Aubrey: It would be amazing.

Jenzaia: You said about things getting more imperfect and more personal. I've noticed that trend kind of across platforms, not just in Facebook ads, but also on Instagram, of the importance of just taking a normal picture that doesn't have your perfect filter and there's a mess happening in the background or whatever, just real life. I mean, even still, scrolling Instagram is somebody's highlight reel, but it just makes it more or less depressing when your life is kind of, you feel like it's falling apart or it's just not that highlight reel. To see other people being real and honest, that it is just less depressing. So I have definitely also appreciated that shift across platforms of the ability to be more real and to be more personal and have that

Aubrey: It's more relatable.

Jenzaia: Yes.

Aubrey: More relatable. Definitely.

Jenzaia: Okay. Last three questions, rapid fire. I already know your answer to the first one. I need to change this one. Hello friends who are listening to the podcast. This is the last time I'm asking this question. What's your favourite social media platform?

Aubrey: Instagram.

Jenzaia: What's your favorite tool or software that you use for your business?

Aubrey: Aside from Google suites I would say Canva and Canva pro. I love it when I can sit down and be creative. I use it for making workbooks. I use it for TPT covers. I use it for story backgrounds, even creating my posts. I create them all in Canva. I love it.

Jenzaia: Yeah, me too. Definitely one of my favorites. Then, what advice would you give someone who's just starting on their teacherpreneur journey?

Aubrey: I would say that it's okay to post the resources that you are using in your classroom. It's okay to just start posting those and as you grow. There's a lot of emphasis on posting what your ideal customer needs, but if you're able to do that, great. If not, then post what you're using in your classroom because it's a trusted and tried resource. And you know it's going to be successful because you can talk about how you used it in the classroom. You can talk about a particular student's interaction or success or challenges with it. So I really believe in using what you got in your own classroom. Then, don't be afraid to try and fail. Like we've talked about, you might show up on social media for five days straight and then be gone for another five days. That's okay. Give yourself the grace and know it's a journey, it's a roller coaster. You can still be successful doing it in anyway that works for your own life.

Jenzaia: I really liked that first bit of posting what's working, like what you're using your classroom is working because similar to branding, I feel like people get caught up and can get paralyzed trying to figure out what the perfect shade is or what the perfect font is or what the perfect product for their ideal client is before they've even got started. I think through the journey your brand colors and your brain fonts are probably going to change. That first product that you post may be your best seller and you may create an entire curriculum based on it and have this huge giant $300 product, but more likely you're going to post other things and other things and other things. And you'll, through that, find your ICA and find that actual bestseller and find where you're going, where to take your store. But if you get paralyzed at that moment, you're just preventing yourself from those first baby steps that we all need to take.

Aubrey: Yeah. I even found that I was creating resources that I was using in my classroom. Then as I changed the type of resources that I was using, I was like, oh, this is something I feel like I could make for all these different topics. So find something that excites you. Just because you've got a reading passage for physics, but that doesn't bring you joy, then don't worry about doing it for chemistry or for biology. Just let that be where it is. If making digital mazes brings you joy and you feel like you could do that for hours or for all of your topics, then make that a product line. I think that there's probably enough stress in our lives and we want our business to bring us joy too, right?

Jenzaia: Definitely, 100%. I totally agree with that. Yeah. It's a challenging enough journey as it is. There's no need to add layers on top of what it already is.

Aubrey: Agreed.

Jenzaia: Thank you so much for joining me. It's been an awesome conversation.

Aubrey: Thank you.

Jenzaia: If people want to find you, where can they go?

Aubrey: I would love for people to connect with me on Instagram. So my handle is @themodernscienceclass. You can also find me on Pinterest, if you want to give my small Pinterest account a follow. But please, send me a DM on Instagram and tell me you heard my podcast episode on Market Scale Grow with Jenzaia. I love hearing and connecting with people on Instagram, so find me there.

Jenzaia: Yay. I will make sure that your Pinterest and your Instagram, and then I think you have a website too, right?

Aubrey: I do that.

Jenzaia: I'll make sure all of them are linked below.

Aubrey: Perfect.

Jenzaia: Thanks again for joining me.

Aubrey: Thank you, and have a great summer with your kids.

Jenzaia: You too.

Outro: Thank you for listening to this week's inspiring story. If you'd like to share your story with us, then head to marketscalegrow.com/journey and complete the quick application form. Then, head to our community at marketscalegrow.com/community so you can join our group of inspiring teacherpreneurs who are working on growing and scaling their businesses, too. See you soon.