If you have written a children’s book, fiction or nonfiction, it is time for you to think about creating a teacher’s guide for your book. Doing so will dramatically expand the market for your book since you will be in a position to promote your book for use in classrooms.
Benefits
If you have managed to write an entire chapter book for children, writing a 32-page teacher’s guide should not be too much of a problem for you. But the upside is enormous; your book becomes a focus for teachers and parents who are always on the lookout for fresh classroom activities. Your book will be especially attractive since you have already created a teaching plan and additional activities, which will save the educators a lot of time and effort. If you manage to tap into this market, you will not only increase the sales of your book but also create a steady audience because if your teacher’s guide is effective, not only will it be reused but it will also be recommended to fellow teachers.
Design
To understand the task before you, have a look at the teacher’s guides available in the market, especially the popular and fast-selling ones. Check on the types of activities that are used often like puzzles, quizzes, writing activities, research projects etc. Next, decide on the target age group for your book and the academic subject for which you plan to create the guide.
Make sure you research the educational standards and have the correct match for both the age group and the subject. Once you have these basics in place, you should be able to go ahead with the project. If you are still hesitant because you lack teaching experience, get some guidance from an experienced teacher or better still –rope her in as a co-writer.
Promotion
The easiest way to promote and market the guide would be through the book publisher. This would ensure that the teacher’s guide is available in bookstores along with your book. In addition, the publisher can market it to schools and to school libraries. Enlisting teachers to use it in their individual classrooms is another way to ensure that both your book and the guide are in use within the school system.
In case your publisher does not show an interest in getting the teacher’s guide out onto the market, you can look at self-publication as an option. A user-friendly, graphics-specific program (Adobe PageMaker or Microsoft Publisher) can help you to create the guide within a limited budget. You should, however, think about getting the cover done by a professional since appearances are important. You could make the guide available as an e-book or get it printed if you are sure of the demand for the book and have adequate marketing outlets for it.
Now that you know how easy it is and how much you have to gain from it, think about creating a teacher’s guide for every child’s book that you have out in the bookstore.