Finding Participants
Our Learning Circle Promo Kit contains flyer templates, icons, patterns, and tips for collaging images in Google Slides.
In addition to flyers and online promotion, you may want to reach out directly to your partners, neighbors, and constituents through email or social media. Below are some template messages you can use or modify to advertise your learning circle:
Got a mailing list for your organization? Here's a starting template for finding potential learners:
Are you interested in learning about [topic] but don’t want to study alone? Why not join our learning circle and study face-to-face with your peers?From [date] to [date] we’ll be meeting at [venue] to work together through a course on [subject] in a supportive, peer-based group. We won’t have a teacher—we’ll use the online course and our personal experiences to learn together.There are no prerequisites for the course, but access to a laptop and some experience of using the internet would be helpful.For more information, visit [link to website or sign-up page] or send an email to [email] for more information.
Are there other organizations in your town that would want to know about the learning circle? For example, local historical societies will have members who are interested in history courses and after school poetry clubs might be interested in creative writing learning circles.
If your learning circle takes place in a venue that has a schedule, public calendar, or newsletter, ask the administrators if you can add a notice about the learning circle.
We thought you might be interested in a learning project taking place in your community. We are going to be hosting a learning circle, a free, peer-led study group for learners who want to take online courses together in a public space. Each week, learners will meet for approximately 90 minutes to work through learning materials about [subject] together.The learning circle will take place at [venue] and run from [start time] to [end time] on the following dates: [dates].Interested people can learn more and sign up at [sign-up page link]. Please pass this message on to anyone in your community who you think might be interested, and get in touch if you have any questions!
Does your community use Facebook? If so, try this post as a first step. Remember, people get a lot of information via social media, so to be really impactful, post reminders to Facebook about once per day. Remember to tag any individuals, projects, locations or groups who you think might be interested in joining your learning circle.
Interested in __(course subject)_? Don’t want to do it alone? Join a #learningcircle at __(venue)_ to meet each week and work through an online course together. The Learning Circle starts __(start date)__. For more information and to apply online: _ (link to website) _.
If your community uses Twitter for sharing information, then you can use the two template Tweets below to get started. To really get noticed, you should tweet these messages at least 3 times per day, and come up with a hashtag so people can search for the messages (we recommend using #learningcircles). Remember to add the link to your Learning Circle website, too!
Learn [topic] with others at [venue]! #learningcircle start [start date]. Learn more and sign up: [sign-up page link]
In #[city]? Want to learn new things with your peers? Join #learningcircles at [venue]. Sign up: [link to website or sign-up page]
Learning circle facilitators share some ideas and best practices for promoting learning circles in their communities. Here are some of their key recommendations:
- Advertise using as many platforms as possible! Consult our templates for email, Facebook, and Twitter above
- When flyering, find walkable locations nearby as well as areas that are a natural fit for your desired audience (ex: posting flyers in a hospital to advertise a learning circle about infectious disease)
- Library staff at reference and circulation desks have built-in opportunities to connect with patrons, and they can share information about upcoming learning circles and provide online signup assistance to those who need it
- Invite local experts for a Q&A session during a learning circle session and include them on promotional materials
- In the weeks leading up to the learning circle, ask participants who have already signed up to invite other learners in their community
With contributions from:
- Wendy Pearson, Kansas City Public Library
- Kalela Williams, Free Library of Philadelphia
- Martha Yesowitch, Charlotte Mecklenburg Library
- Qumisha Goss, Detroit Public Library