The Best Side Hustles For Teachers

Teaching English is a great career choice for those of us who like to live a flexible existence. 

Even as full-time TEFL teachers we might work mornings and evenings, or four days a week, or finish mid-afternoon every day, while still earning a solid income. 

Teaching English online is even more flexible, with the possibility of teaching early mornings and late nights. You can work *just* as much as you want to and not a minute more, or you can work hard so you can play hard. The choice is yours. 

Read more: Teaching In-Class Or Online: Which Pays More?

How to make extra money as a teacher

Which gives us ample time to involve ourselves in a passion project or two, if we feel so inclined. Happily, a little side hustle is a way to channel our creative energy, but also earn some money. 

And who’s going to say no to a little side cash?  Not us, that’s for sure!

So let’s look at some of the best ways  for TEFL teachers to make money on the side, to keep you busy in your free time, and to boost your savings account.

Teaching English online as a side hustle

This first one is the obvious one. If you’re not already, teaching English online is an easy and convenient way for you to earn some extra dollars. 

As qualified teachers, teaching English online is a fun way to improve on our  teaching skills and glow-up our CVs. Online lessons are fun, engaging and flexible.

Online teachers earn from $15 to more than $50 an hour. 

Read more: How To Maximise Your Earnings As An Online Teacher

And if you’re not yet a teacher of English as a Foreign Language, upskill yourself with a TEFL qualification. There are more EFL students online than any other language – so there’s no shortage of students. 

Tutoring as a side hustle

If you already teach in another capacity, tutoring is something you can do in your spare time. 

Tutoring is generally done one-on-one, online or in-person, and can be on any subject. Many teachers tutor students in their spare time before test periods or exams. 

Besides in-demand subjects like Maths and Science, English teachers can upskill themselves with a course to teach a specialisation, such as Business English, English for Exams or English for Medicine. 

Read more: What Is English For Specific Purposes And How Do I Teach It?

Teaching on summer camps as a side hustle

Another one for those of us who love teaching!

As teachers we often get summer holidays, which can mean weeks of freedom and relaxation – or time you can use to make money! 

Teaching on summer camps is such a fun experience. Teaching is really only half of the job. The rest of the time you’re doing arts and crafts, playing sports or socialising. 

As a bonus, often your accommodation and food are provided for the duration of the camp – so you can save even more!

Online side jobs for teachers

Other money-making ideas involve other projects online:

• Selling lesson plans and materials
• Self-publishing
• Online coaching
• Blogging
• Writing, editing and proofreading

Selling lesson plans, materials and courses

As teachers, making lesson plans and materials is second nature. Why not utilise this talent to earn some extra cash on the side?

Think about the common EFL lessons teachers have to teach. Consider which of your lessons and materials on those language structures or topics have proved successful. Write up the lesson plan or re-create the lesson materials, using a program like Canva to make sure they look pretty. Sell your lesson plans and materials on websites like Teachers Pay Teachers. 

If there is a topic you are particularly knowledgable on, it can be a good investment to develop your own course. These days courses cover everything from water colour painting to search engine optimisation to preparing for the IELTS exam. There are a number of different platforms which can host your course.

This is exactly what TTA alumna Lorraine did:

Since July, I have been teaching online English speaking classes via the virtual classroom of the up-and-coming Hong Kong education website called Key Educations Leaders (KEL). Not long after I added my latest credentials of attaining a Level 5 TEFL qualification to my online resume on LinkedIn, I was invited to join the KEL community to design and teach online classes for students in Hong Kong. With the chance to teach English online, even when I’m currently living overseas in Germany, I poured my heart out and created a course titled “Expressing Yourself in English with Confidence”, which I, as well as my students, are really happy with.

Self-publishing

English teacher by day and author by night was the life of J.K. Rowling. Before her books sold billions of copies worldwide, she was a TEFL teacher. True story! If you have a passion for writing and storytelling, consider self-publishing your work. 

Kindle Direct Publishing is a popular resource for getting books published fast. You can earn up to 70% of royalty on sales to customers in over twelve countries. As the author, you have total control over your work, pricing, and publishing. You very well could be the next worldwide best-selling author!

Online coaching

If you’re a natural motivator, why not channel this strength into life coaching? Becoming a certified life coach can be done with a relatively short course, as much of it relies on your lived experiences. Teacher Nomie, who teaches in Vietnam after completing her Level 5 TEFL course with The TEFL Academy, is also a Life Coach.

Blogging as a side hustle

Enjoy writing down your thoughts and capturing your experiences? Have a way with words and an eye for photos? You could be a blogger!

Teaching abroad provides brilliant opportunities to become a content creator in the travel industry. But travel blogging is not your only option. If you have the time and the dedication you can blog about anything – books, beauty, even birds. 

Writing, editing and proofreading

For those teachers who are wordsmiths, a fun way to make some extra cash is signing up to freelance platforms like Upwork. Using these platforms you can advertise your services as a writer, editor and proofreader. The beauty of this side gig is that you only need to commit to as many projects as you want. 

There you have it – a whole bunch of the best side hustles for teachers in their spare time. Let’s go earn some money!