Qkids Review: What is qkids?
Qkids review By Teacher Lena
In this Qkids review, find out about Teacher Lena’s experience so you can decide if Qkids would be a good fit fro you.
Qkids is a company based in Beijing, China, and is designed to help Chinese students between the ages of 4-12 years old connect with teachers in North America in order to learn English. The lessons are prepared for the teachers to use and, therefore, there is no lesson planning needed by the teacher. Classes take place in the online classroom through an app so that the teacher and the students can remain in the comfort of their home.
The classes are fun and entertaining for the students, as well as, the teachers because the animations and games are lively and engaging. After you teach a class with Qkids, you will agree that their curriculum is like none other because it is so unique!
My Teaching Background and How I Started at Qkids
My journey in teaching ESL online began with this amazing company, Qkids. But, let’s start with my life before I began teaching ESL online.
I was and am a mom of 3 children and I taught kindergarten in a brick and mortar school for 15 years. As a teacher, I was looking to make extra money during the summer when a family member told me that I could get paid to teach English to children in China. So, I Quickly did an internet search and that is when I discovered Qkids! At that time, I did not know anything about them but I am so glad that they were the first company I got hired to teach ESL online with because they were a perfect company for beginners getting started at teaching English online.
Qkids review
It’s a pleasure to write this Qkids review because the company has been a pleasure to work for! Their staff is very friendly and helpful. They respond to your questions and concerns in a very timely manner and it is rare you will wait more than 24 hours to hear back from them. They assign you a mentor/coach who will advise you on your teaching performance when you are first hired and continue to be available to you when needed. The pay is always on time and accurate.
The teaching app functions great and has incredible animation ability. This makes the classes a lot of fun to experience and helps you to have all you need to help the students understand and enjoy the lessons.
When I began to teach ESL online, I did not know what TPR was and had to learn how to do it as I gained experience. Qkids really helped me to ease into learning TPR and they called it modeling. They wanted me to model actions or words to the kids as I taught the lesson. As a new teacher, this was much easier for me to understand how to do. The content in the lessons and the animations are very helpful for communicating a new vocab word, concept, or action. As time progressed, I was able to add more TPR gestures and expressions into my lessons to help enhance them. I really appreciate Qkids for making our jobs as teachers easier and very effective.
Qkids pay and bonuses
Qkids offers very competitive pay that will allow a teacher to make up to $20 per hour. The base pay is $8 per class. You can earn $1 attendance bonus and $1 performance bonus per class. To earn the attendance bonus you must teach 15 classes in a week and not have an unexcused absence. To earn the performance bonus, you must teach a class without any complaints from the parents or staff.
VIPKID VS QKIDS
Qkids is different from VIPKid in many ways and here are some examples. You get classes at Qkids based on the availability you provide for them. VIPKid allows parents to choose their teachers and book their own classes.
Qkids expects teachers to provide a minimum of 8 hours of availability each week unlike the lack of minimum required time for VIPKid. The number of students in each class at Qkids is up to 4 but the classes at VIPKid have only 1 student.
Class time is 30 minutes with Qkids with 10-minute breaks between classes. Classes with VIPKid are 25 minutes with 5-minute breaks between classes.
Qkdis does not require a profile page with pictures and an introductory video but VIPKid does. Qkids has different lesson plans to offer students but you are not required to pass a certification test in order to teach them; VIPKid does have different levels to teach that require a different certification for each.
Qkids application process
When I applied, I was able to complete the application process in less than a week. I was determined and able to respond immediately every time I heard back from them after a completed step. Because I did this, I was advanced quickly through the process.
I used my cell phone to make my introductory video and I read the book “I Can Do It All By Myself,” by Mercer Meyer. I love reading that book to children because you can get very animated and have a lot of fun reading it. Reading it for my video really helped to show off my playful side. I was able to upload my video onto YouTube and then I added the link to my application.
When you decide to apply, you will apply on their webpage here with all of the required materials. You will have the Initial screening where you provide a 1-2 minute introductory video in which you will introduce yourself, where you live, your educational background, and any experience teaching or working with kids. Then tell or read a children’s story. You can use a YouTube link, Google Drive link, or a video file to share the video. Then you will proceed to demo Interview 1&2 where you will demonstrate your knowledge of the teaching platform and answer some questions to help the staff get to know you better. You will teach 2-5 trial classes and get feedback from the families. Lastly, a background check will be performed before you sign your contract.
Qkids Requirements
- Resume
- Availability of 8 hours weekly
- Eligibility to work in the US or Canada
- Bachelor’s Degree and ESL Certificate (get one here).
- Experience with children
- Stable internet connection
- USB headset
*Required computer specs: Minimum upload speed of 2MBPS. Minimum download speed of 4 MBPS
Qkids Lessons
The lessons at Qkids currently consist of three different types: general, phonics, and science. The general lessons start at level 1 and continue through level 12. The phonics lessons have 3 levels and the science lessons currently have one section. These lessons are always being improved upon and added to for a better learning experience.
Qkids Jobs
There are no secondary positions at Qkids but they have a nice referral program. As a teacher with Qkids, you can refer new teachers to teach for them and this will earn $100. Sometimes, they have an incentive bonus that allows you to earn up to $20o for each new teacher you refer to them. You are given a referral link to provide to prospective teachers and this will add them to your personal referral tracker. On the referral tracker, you will be able to see your new recruits in real-time and what their progress is. Then, you will see when to expect your bonus once your recruit has made it through the process.
Qkids Coach
I feel so fortunate to have the opportunity to work with Qkids and love helping others to discover this company and acquire the same opportunity. I enjoy mentoring and coaching prospective teachers for Qkids and I will provide support throughout the application process and beyond. This means that I am available for any questions and provide helpful materials to help others get prepared and succeed in the process. If you’re interested, please contact me TeacherLenaLife@gmail.com and you can use this link to apply . Or visit my website at TeacherLena.com
Related Blog Posts
Does qkid book you with students or do you have to wait for families to book with you? I would love any tips to work for the company.