Bluebird Teaching is much more than a simple materials sharing site. While we provide teachers access to shared resources within the community, we also provide a better way to store and organize your own teaching materials that will save you time, frustration, and energy many times over when you are no longer looking for “that Structures of the Cell” graphic organizer or "that Imagery and Sensory Language Project.” Bluebird Teaching members can choose to share selected materials from their private storage with the Bluebird Teaching community. All members have access to our shared "Discover" space. In "Discover," users can browse original instructional materials shared by other members of the community for instructional use in their classrooms. Users who select materials shared by others can save them to their files to retag for their purposes and revise to tailor the material for their particular students. These shared materials are included as part of the Bluebird Teaching subscription: users do not pay extra and there is no money exchanged among members on the Bluebird Teaching platform. We also provide an inclusive social community, where you can come together with other teachers to share ideas, concerns, and even collaborate on lesson planning and other ideas for the classroom. Bluebird Teaching is on a mission to create opportunities for authentic self-care by making the day-to-day work of teaching better. We truly believe that Together We Thrive. It is our goal to be an useful, practical, and enjoyable part of teachers' daily routines. We have plans to expand beyond our current services as we grow, so join us — and take your time back!

Subscribing and creating an account on Bluebird Teaching gives you all-access to everything we offer on our site : "My Files" - cloud-based storage so you don't have to navigate a maze of folders any more. Tag once and find forever in seconds. “Discover” - a space where community members share lessons and materials that can be downloaded by other members and saved to their files (to modify or use "as is") included as part of the subscription - no extra charges. “Connect” - a supportive social community that allows members to get to know each other, share best practices, get answers or advice, join groups, collaborate on lesson plans or other ideas, and just enjoy a moment to relax and chat with encouraging colleagues.

Your Bluebird Teaching subscription fee is charged monthly to your credit card on file. Your subscription allows us the capability to offer members access to all of the advantages of the platform. There is absolutely no commitment! You can cancel your subscription anytime.

The long-term value of the Bluebird Teaching platform to teachers is in its consistent use. Our monthly subscription rate is as low as possible. We cannot pause subscriptions, but you can cancel your subscription and then use the same email to reestablish it at the then-current subscription rate when you are ready to return. You will need to re-upload and re-tag your files. However, all files you shared with the community while a subscriber will remain active — they cannot be deleted once they are in the Discover space.

If you decide to leave the Bluebird Teaching platform by cancelling your subscription, any file that you’ve stored privately under “My Files” is deleted from the system; however, due to the nature of sharing, anything that you’ve shared with the community will remain available to members. Any shared material that has been downloaded by others will remain within their storage and the Bluebird Teaching Platform.

Your personal information is absolutley safe with Bluebird Teaching, LLC! We do not sell your information to third parties. Third parties may have access to limited necessary information as part of our service offerings in order to better perform platform-related tasks for our members.

We encourage you to view and read carefully both of these important documents. They are located on the bluebirdteaching.com website in the footers of each site page. For your convenience, you may also simply click the link for our Terms & Conditions and/or Privacy Policy.

All of the important information related to your account subscription is available on the Bluebird Teaching Platform. Simply click on the little circle with either your initials or profile picture (if uploaded), and a dropdown menu of options should appear, including ‘“Profile,” “Support,” and “Log Out.” Under “Profile” you can specify your content area pre-sets, grade level, add a personal or favorite quote, and even upload a favorite picture of yourself to display in your icon. This is where you will also find information about your subscription plan and directions for cancelling your Bluebird Teaching Account. “Support” is where you will find access to tutorials, these FAQs, issue report form(s), and a Contact Us form — clicking "Support" will link you back to the Bluebird Teaching website. To log off your Bluebird Teaching session, simply select and click “Log Out.”

You can store most types of files that you use for everyday instruction, including: .doc, .docx, .pdf, .xlsx, .pptx, .pages, .jpg. You can also store GoogleDocs, just be sure to use "Get Link" to share the link and that that the setting on each GoogleDoc file shared with the community is set to "everyone with the link can View." Your storage is private, so you can store all your materials, including copyrighted materials you have purchased for your own use. However, you MAY NOT SHARE copyrighted materials in the Discover space with other users. Just be sure to select "private" when you store copyrighted work.

Uploading movies, video, and music files is not supported by the Bluebird Teaching platform in order to maximize the efficiency of our members' file storage. We recommend that members upload links to these types of files instead — an elegant solution that works!

Each member of Bluebird Teaching is allotted 30GB of storage. This amount will cover a lifetime of storage for virtually all of our members. We've got you!

No! As you upload materials, you make the ultimate decision on whether something should be PRIVATE or SHARED. If you select PRIVATE, the material will be stored in your “My Files” section for only your eyes to see, including copyrighted materials you have purchased for your own personal use.

Our storage is unique in that we use a simple and unique tagging and filtering system that rids users of the need to remember “which folder I stored that worksheet in.” As you upload materials, you will tag the material using specific prompts, such as content area, grade level, and keywords. These same tags are used to filter through your storage. So, for instance, if you upload a poetry unit and tag the materials as poetry, when you start that unit, simply look up “poetry” under keywords or Unit Name, and these materials will automatically populate! Cool, right?

Yes, you can STORE this material on our platform, but you must choose the PRIVATE setting that honors your purchased material agreement to keep the material for your own private use. Users MUST NOT share purchased/copyrighted materials in the Bluebird Teaching community.

Yes! You have the ability to store and share a Google link. Just make sure you follow the directions on the site if you’d like to share Google material with the Bluebird Teaching community. You will want to make sure that you select “Get Link” and that you select “Anyone with the Link” can View. This way, you will not be bothered with requests for access. Again these links must connect to work you have created youself if you choose "Share" when you upload.

Yes! Simply click “Add More Files” on the first upload screen until you have selected all the files that share common tags. This will save you time tagging closely-related materials.

Keywords are words related to the skill or subject matter that your material is used for. For instance, if you upload a worksheet for one of Emily Dickinson’s poems, example keywords may include: poem, poetry, Emily Dickinson, figurative language, meter, imagery, etc.

As long as the material is your original creation it is up to you! Our focus is on quality of instruction over decor or aesthetics, so your material does not have to be perfectly designed and fancy-looking to be considered for upload. If you found the material useful in your classroom with your students, and you feel another teacher might benefit from using that material, by all means share it. This can be anything from a project or test to a simple homework assignment. Our membership culture is focused on helping each other find good instruction that works in classrooms. It's not a competition to get paid, so we all end up saving money — and time. Members who download materials will likely need to modify them to suit the needs of their own students anyway. Just remember, copyrighted materials you store for your own provate use may not be shared with other users in the Discover space.

In the final step of the tagging process, you will simply click on “Share” and select all relevant relevant grade bands. You can also click to enable the material to be availablie for multiple content areas if applicable. You also have the option to briefly describe how you used the material with your students. Then, click “store” and the material will automatically be shared with the community. So easy!

Yes. This is a professional teaching platform, so materials should be related to instruction and appropriate for student use. You should only upload materials that belong to you or that you have created. If you would like to review copyright and Fair Use, we have linked (and cited) an incredibly helpful article when you select Report a Material from the Support dropdown menu on our platform or on our website under Support/Report an Issue/Report a Material. You'll also find directions for reporting inappropriate content, copyright violations, and other material-related concerns. If you use a material created and shared by another Bluebird Teaching user as inspiration for creating a significantly modified new material, you may share that with the community. Do not reshare materials that you have modified in minor ways such as design or customization for your particular student group.

Easy! Simply click on “Save to My Files” in the dotted drop down menu to the right of the material, and it will save to your “My Files” section. Then, go to your “My Files” section to tag and store the material. We are currently working on document previews to help improve the user's browsing experience.

After clicking “Save to My Files” return to your My Files. Most recent saved material will appear at the top of your stored materials list. You will be able view, tag, and store your newly-saved materials for future use.

No — this choice is always in your hands! During the uploading process to tag and organize your materials, you will have a choice presented to keep a material private or share it. You can change this selection at any time if you change your mind.

No. There is no money exchanged among members on the Bluebird Teaching platform. Our mission is to create a true, teacher-crowd-sourced, professional community for all teachers. Members always decide which, if any, of their original materials they want to share with the community. If they choose to share a material, they can also add helpful Suggestions for Use in the classroom to add context, share tips for success, or describe outcomes. Members do not receive money for sharing, and they do not pay other members for access to their shared items. The emphasis here is on a supportive community sharing helpful classroom materials that work to make our professional lives just a little easier and less stressful.

There is no limit to the number of groups you can join in Bluebird Teaching Connect. Join the groups that appeal to you by simply clicking “Join.” (P.S. You can leave by clicking “Leave.”)

Similarly to joining Groups, simply click “Follow” beneath that topic and you will receive notifications about posts related to the topic as they appear. There is no limit to the number of topics you can follow.

As stated in our Terms & Conditions, “Bluebird Teaching is developed to be a supportive, respectful, enjoyable, positive, and helpful environment where teachers come together as a collaborative community to organize instruction; share materials and expertise; and save time and money in an encouraging and empowering space. To accomplish this goal, there are shared agreements to which Users must adhere as participants in the community. The essential expectations are that Bluebird Teaching Users: respect self and others, demonstrate integrity, abide by laws and principles of fairness, and embody kindness and civility.” Bluebird Teaching is committed to creating a positive, professional platform for all teachers.We reserve the right to remove content that is disrespectful, argumentative, and otherwise detrimental to fostering a positive social community without notice. In general, when posting, commenting, or sharing thoughts, ideas, and material, members should consider the big three questions: Is it true/factual? Is it kind? Is it necessary?

Yes! As with other social platforms, you can send individual messages through Bluebird Teaching Connect to someone you would like to get to know or engage with for questions, discussion, or collaboration.

If you encounter a material that you think may violate our policies or infringe on a copyright, you are encouraged to make a report. Simply select Report a Material from the Support dropdown menu on our platform or on our website under Support/Report an Issue/Report a Material. You'll find easy directions for reporting inappropriate content, copyright violations, and other material-related concerns. If you would like to review copyright and Fair Use, we have also linked (and cited) an incredibly helpful article as part of the Report a Material directions.

Please fill out our “Report a Technical Issue” form. You can also access this form anytime by clicking "Support" in the header of our website at bluebirdteaching.com and then selecting “Report a Technical Issue.”

You can always send an email to info@bluebirdteaching.com with any questions, ideas, or comments. You can also communicate with us using our “Contact Us” form. You can also access this form anytime by clicking "Support" in the header of our website, bluebirdteaching.com and then selecting "Contact Us."