Remote Summer Job Ideas for Teachers

According to the National Education Association, approximately one-third of teachers get a second job during the summer. In the past, this often meant labor or unskilled jobs, such as babysitters, movers, or landscapers. But with the advance and increased interest in online job opportunities, teachers now have the opportunity to work from home. If you’d prefer to sit in the comfort of your home to earn some extra cash rather than sweat in the dog days of summer, check out these remote summer job ideas for teachers.

Remote Curriculum Developer or Educational Content Developer

You’ve already put together lessons plans, syllabuses, tests, homework schedules, and more. So what if you could do it on the side without the hassle of grading or following up with students? That’s just what you’ll do as a content and curriculum developer for educational websites.

Your expertise and experience in creating lesson plans give you insight into how to develop content and curriculum. In this role, you’ll put together every aspect of the curriculum. Oftentimes, the developer concentrates on a single topic such as math, humanities, or science. For veteran educators, this remote summer job idea for teachers will seem almost second nature; it’s just like getting paid for doing something that comes to you with little effort.

If you don’t have much experience or you’re in one of your first years of teaching, you can still become a content and curriculum developer to help you mature and evolve your skills. Then, you can then bring the skills you learn from this summer job into the classroom in the fall. That’s a win-win situation that can save you time and build your resume.

Remote Tutor

Although COVID derailed the professional and social lives of people around the globe, it did push remote tutoring into the public eye with newfound popularity. Following a year or more of remote schooling, getting a remote tutor has become more accepted by parents and students. As a result, it’s a top remote summer job idea for teachers who want to keep their teaching chops without taking on the responsibility of multiple students at once.

Another upside to tutoring is that you don’t have to bring a jack-of-all-trades approach like you might have to with teaching. Just pick a topic or subject that you’re passionate about, and tutor in only that subject for the summer. It takes some of the hassles out of the job, and you won’t have to tutor in something that you’re far less interested in.

Remote Freelance Writer or Blogger

Freelance writing and blogging have become two of the higher-earning remote summer job ideas for teachers, or at least for teachers that have a decent command of the written word. What makes this business so lucrative is that you can literally write about whatever you want. If you love to travel, start and monetize a travel blog. Or if you want to contribute content to other online businesses, you have that possibility, especially if the content is education-focused.

Becoming a freelance writer or blogger may take some time to monetize, but it’s far more promising than ever before. In the past, you would have to find your own gigs, network, and promote yourself to find the next gig. But due to the advance of remote work, freelance writing jobs — temporary, seasonal, full-time, and part-time — have become commonplace.

Remote Resume Writer

If you’re not cut out for the world of blogging or content writing but you still love writing or helping people achieve their goals, consider becoming a resume writer. As a resume writer, you’ll prepare clients’ resumes, adding in the action verbs, rearranging sections of the document, and making it readable and scannable for hiring managers.

If you find resume writing enjoyable, you can even take your summer job to the next level by gaining certification as a resume writer. This will give you more clout, better negotiation with regard to pay, and credentials that competitors or other job candidates may not have.

Remote Translator or Interpreter

One of the fastest-growing online jobs is also one of the best summer job ideas for teachers: translating and interpreting. If you’re a foreign language teacher or you’re fluent in English and another language, this online position can put your skills to use.

An intriguing aspect of this job is that you can choose to pursue a more professional approach to translating and interpreting, or you can go toward a more informal route. Technical, literary, and educational translating and interpreting will utilize more professional-sounding verbiage and speech while things like blogs or informal articles can use slang or a more relaxed tone. Both styles have their places in the remote world; it’s simply a matter of choice or preference which one might work better for you.

Remote Website Developer or Designer

Website development and design aren’t some of the prototypical remote summer job ideas for teachers. But that’s not to say certain teachers won’t have the expertise to pick up some cash by creating or designing websites. With the advent of drag-and-drop interfaces and other plugins, getting into the web development and designing industry is easier than ever before. You won’t be able to do high-end designs like those who do this job full-time, but there’s certainly a niche for designing once you get the basics down.

The best place to start is with drag-and-drop website designers. GoDaddy, Wix, and Squarespace all offer this type of design, and you can often teach yourself how to use them. YouTube is an invaluable tool to make some major upgrades to websites, even if it’s your first time doing so.

If you want to use a program that’s a bit more involved but can present more professional-looking results, take a glance at Elementor. This plugin works similarly to a drag-and-drop interface but with more customization options and the ability to add custom coding and CSS.

Or you can go the traditional route of learning programming and coding. Udemy, Coursera, and Khan Academy all offer free or low-cost courses to boost your skills.

Remote Researcher

If you have a constant thirst for knowledge or you’re always the first to find information on Google, you may want to become a researcher. In this role, you’ll fact-check and look up information to ensure that a website is entirely factual or that blog posts are accurate. Analytical skills are also important in this role, as well as the ability to make decisions on what content should be included and what should be omitted.

To become a skilled researcher, you should not only understand the basic ideas of search engine optimization (SEO), but also what to type into Google to extract accurate and reputable information for a variety of mediums. Great researchers also go beyond simple Google research, using additional search engines and other materials to put together cohesive, thorough information and accurate fact-checking.

Remote Test Scorer

Do you get some sort of excitement from grading tests? Do you love to see what creative essays or answers your students give? If so, you might find that an online test scorer job appeals to you. In this remote role, you grade exams and tests using a scoring rubric or other tools as presented by your employer or the testing association. You may also administer or become an online test proctor as part of your role as an online test scorer.

As an online test scorer, you can focus on a particular topic or you can choose broader tests to grade. In many cases, those with a specific expertise are chosen to grade tests. This is especially true of tests that have very specific essays geared toward a specific subject. If you don’t have a particular expertise, you may still find work grading grade school or high school tests. Once you gain more experience, you can move up to college-level test scoring or scoring for specific certificates or credentials.

Hone Your Skills

You don’t have to dedicate your summer to work. In fact, remote summer job ideas for teachers may not even fall anywhere on your radar. Instead, a better use of your time might be honing the skills that you lack or developing skills that will make you a better teacher overall. Continuing education classes are ideal for renewing your teaching certificate or learning more about trending topics or emerging ideas in the educational industry.

If you teach a specific subject, you can also use your summer to learn more about that particular topic. Some ideas are to take classes at an online university, study toward a certification, or even take a class in a new subject at the local community college. In the best scenario, you can use the knowledge you gain in the classroom. But even in the worst case, you’ll just have a bit of extra knowledge about something that interests you.

Now’s the Time To Do Something You Love

Just because you have experience teaching doesn’t mean that your summer job should just be doing more of the same. If you want to broaden your horizons or experience another type of role, summer is the perfect time to do so. Furthermore, don’t think that you absolutely have to take a job over the summer. Sure, the extra income is nice, but don’t feel guilty to take some time off or just use the time to build your skills and credentials.

Teaching the youth of America is a taxing job, and summer is your time. Whether you decide to take a remote job or just soak up the sun, it’s you’re prerogative. Maybe doing a bit of both might be the perfect answer to your summertime blues.

Do you have any remote summer job ideas for teachers? Have you had any online jobs in the past over the summer? What was your favorite? Connect with Virtual Vocations on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube to share your thoughts and questions. We’d love to hear from you!

Based on original content by Kimberly Back