I was asked by EverFI K12 to join them for an Instagram Live on Wednesday 2/9 at 1:30pm Pacific. I was like… how do you join an Instagram Live?! I’m probably showing my age, I bought books with literal records in them when I was a child. So how do you participate in a Live Instagram chat?
Steps to Joining an Instagram Live
The key to joining an Instagram Live is you need to FOLLOW the account of who you want to be live with. If you want to join the chat on Wednesday be sure that you are following EverFi K12 (and I do not think you have to be following me AliceKeeler but it would be nice 🙂
- Be sure you are following the host on Instagram
- At the designated time, get onto Instagram on your phone.
- A notification should appear letting you know this account is going live. Tap on the notification in the Instagram app.
- If you are watching, you can leave comments and show that you like the conversation.
- If you are wanting to be on camera to join the conversation there is a button to ask to be invited.
Sample Instagram Live
I went to the EverFi K12 Instagram page and was able to find an Instagram Live with Monica Burns. She has a lot of great tips and tricks so be sure to check it out. As you can see, after the Instagram Live the host has the OPTION to post the Live to Instagram for followers to check out AFTER it is Live.
Here is the Instagram Live I made this morning. It was pretty easy. If you want to MAKE an Instagram Live click on the plus icon in a box at the top right of you Instagram app and choose “Live.” There are filters at the bottom for you to test out, but you need to click on that first icon (before the filters) that says Live to go Live. Once you’re in the Live you can use the sparkle icon in the upper right to add a filter. BEFORE you go Live be sure to click on the icon on the left hand side to set the title so people know what you’re talking about.
When You Are Live Followers Are Notified
This morning as I was going to go Live I was told by Instagram that 14 of my followers were active on Instagram at that time. Maybe 6am Central isn’t the best time to do a Live chat 🙂 But really that is how easy it is. Once I went Live, followers who are online are notified and can jump over to join the conversation.
Saving Your Instagram Live
This is the NOT easy part. A Live is LIVE. It is just in the moment for your followers who are online at that time. IF you want to SAVE your Live you have to put some effort into it.
After ending the Live session, notice the Instagram TV icon at the bottom. Click on this icon. You will be presented with a few options. The middle option is ARCHIVE. Your live archives only save for 30 days! Tap on Live Archives. Use the 3 dots menu to post your Live to your Instagram feed. It will not happen automatically. You have to decide if you want to save it and add it as a post.
Educational Applications
One of the great things about being a teacher in the 21st century is you are not constrained to your school building. You can connect with educators all over the world. Like Holly Clark! She does a lot of Instagram and TikTok posts sharing tips for teaching. It’s like a free conference you can join from anywhere! So be sure to follow educators who SHARE their tips and tricks and join them if they are doing an Instagram Live 🙂
