Teacher Cover Letters That Get Noticed

Don't miss these teaching cover letter writing steps and tips with example statements to get your noticed and land an interview.

Are you asking, won't a cover letter just be repeating what's already in my teacher resume?

A typical question enquired about the necessity of writing cover letters to accompany the resume. If you write a proper cover letter, it should add new information about and re-enforce your resume, but never, just repeat it.

Critically, the cover letter for a teaching position is your formal introduction. Avoiding this formality could be considered paramount to refusing to shake the interviewer's hand.  

Unique character in crowd of people

Steps to Write a Teaching Cover Letter for an education job

More and more job candidates are trying to cut corners and write a line or two in an email. The email is the medium of communication; it should never compromise your message. By sending off a quick email, you could risk being perceived as lazy and lacking ambition.

Follow these teaching cover letter writing tips and steps and introduce yourself properly to your potential employer.

Presentation Is Vital to Grab Attention

Most job search experts would agree that typically, a first impression of someone is formed within 8 seconds. Even scarier is the concept that once a first impression is formed; it's very unlikely to change. If the chair of the selection committee opens your resume and discovers that you haven't bothered to include a cover letter, your application could end up in the recycling bin along with the envelope it came in.

Failing to dot the i's and cross the t's will be frowned upon, especially if you are introducing an English teacher CV or resume. Spelling or grammatical errors are unacceptable in a cover letter for any teaching job application; so, make sure you have your letter proofread.

Once completed, even if submitting resumes online, your letter of application should be printed out using a formal, but simple font style. The font needs to match your resume and be printed on resume bond paper.

Have copies on hand just in case you need to forward your resume to the hiring representative at the school where you are interested in teaching.

Make sure that you spell the name of the school principal, superintendent, and the school or school district correctly and include your full name and contact details.

The letterhead should match the resume, and both include all your contact details. Structure your cover letter for more results.

Being Specific About the Reason for Writing a Cover Letter

The first paragraph of your letter should include some important details:

If it is a mass mailing, the opening needs to be very catchy. However, be aware that one carefully crafted personalized cover letter is more likely to get you placed on the potential hiring list; you may asked for an interview when a job becomes available in the future. A generic cover letter is more likely to end up in the "not to be interviewed" stack.

If you are sending a school administrator resume, state elementary or high school if you are only willing to change jobs for this specific position.

Do not make the hiring manager search the resume to find out why you are contacting them. At the same time, you want a captivating introduction.

Despite the dull, formulaic introductions to many cover letters, these two objectives are not incompatible (see the examples of compelling cover letter closings below).

Note the different positioning between a math teacher cover letter sample and the emphasis on hard teaching skills in this art teacher cover letter sample.

Research the School to Learn What to Include in the Teacher Focused Cover Letter

It's important to show in your application letter that you have information on the school or school district to which you are submitting your candidacy for consideration. A teacher cover letter should be tailored to each school district, if possible. If the school has a website (most do), this can be a great starting point to find details about their philosophy towards teaching and the values they share with the district and community.

Learn as much as you can and make a point of explaining why you are specifically drawn to that school district. If you are an education specialist, for example, communicate what your value proposition is to that position.

Top Teacher Cover Letter Writing Tip: Uncover and Communicate Your Value

Knowing details about the school will make a difference to writing your letter, thus making an excellent impression Explain in the letter why your skills, abilities, experience, and attributes would benefit the school. What contribution could you make?

Write information about you that is relevant to the school and the position.

If you are in a non-traditional teaching role – instructional assistant, learning coach, education specialist – provide a detailed explanation of how this role will fit into the school's curriculum. If the position does not exist, it may not be obvious.

An Excellent Cover Letter will Let Your Personality Shine Through

When teachers provide honest and meaningful accounts of their teaching philosophy or reading program, their commitment and dedication shine through.

Many teacher cover letters read like a template, don't let yours be one of them.

Which teacher are you going to interview? Before writing your teacher cover letter, clarify your key messages regarding:

Make the Closing  in Your Cover Letter an Attention Grabber

View our packages and pricing

The closing paragraph is the section of the letter most likely to lose the reader's attention. 50 to 90 percent of the content is repeated across many resumes. Original, personalized content gets the reader's attention. Rather than repeat the same old phrasing, close with a captivating ending. Here are some examples of closing paragraphs in a cover letter:

Please find a short link to a video of me teaching the new ABC Math Program to primary school learners. As this video shows, student engagement in the math lesson increased by 50 percent. I would be pleased to deliver similar performance improvement in the math teaching program at XYZ school. I welcome the opportunity to meet with you to discuss how my math program, and skills and experience can benefit your school.

Please follow this link to my class records. They show improvement in reading and math scores for the five consecutive years in which I have been teaching. I hope to have the opportunity to meet with you and further discuss the teaching approach behind these district-leading performance improvements.

Please follow this link to my 'LinkedIn Teacher Awards Wall.' Here, you will find my teaching awards, and recommendations from supervisors and parents. I am proud to have been the only teacher in my district to be a two-time winner of the XYZ Teaching Award for my innovative use of mobile technology in learning. I would welcome the opportunity to discuss how technology can transform the learning experience of young students.

Do not leave your most impressive accomplishment to the last line of the cover letter or resume, but do save some good stuff for last – even expanding on highlights already provided.

One of the biggest benefits of a cover letter is that it's personal to you. It's a chance for the selection committee to get a glimpse of the authentic you – your personality and passion. Don't underestimate the influence of a tailored and unique cover letter.

Most people know when they are reading a second-hand template. The clone will be obvious to the person reading it and you'll come across as lazy and unimaginative. Injecting some personality into your letter of introduction doesn't mean filling it with irrelevant anecdotes, but it does mean putting some thought and creativity into what you write. Try to make a connection with the reader and let your personality shine through what you say.

For ideas on how to personalize your cover letter, review our teacher resume and application letter examples.

To walk through teacher cover letter writing steps, follow our blog posts on teacher application writing tips.

Our guidance on how to write your academic CV curriculum vitae has helped thousands of teachers find jobs.

Learn more about Candace Alstad-Davies by reviewing the about us page. From that page, you can review testimonials and frequently asked questions.

Need some writing help making a stellar teaching application letter, cover letter, resume, or CV curriculum vitae?

Take the time to review and order one of our resume packages or individual services.

Have questions, please connect by sending an email to Candace or call toll-free at 1 877 738-8052. I would enjoy chatting with you.