4 Best Lighting Options for an Online Classroom

Hey hey teacher friends! I hope your summer is as bright as your online classroom is about to be. Sorry, I couldn’t help myself! But, on that cheesy note, this week on the Simple Tools for the Online Teacher Podcast, we are talking about the lighting in your classroom. If you were like me before teaching online, you honestly couldn’t tell the difference. When people would post selfies saying something along the lines of “I had to document this great lighting!” I honestly had no idea what they meant. That is…until I started learning, researching, and growing. Now I can tell the difference. It’s almost like a curse sometimes! So, Allyson, why is lighting so important if it’s just for selfies?” is probably what you’re asking yourself right about now. Here’s why. As teachers you are probably teaching language learners – after all – even our youngest native speakers are still language learners. How important is it that they clearly see how you form sounds with and within your mouth? How important is it to your lesson that each student can see your props or resources you hold up? How important is it that each and every one of your students can clearly see you or what whiteboard, poster, anchor chart, etc thats hung up behind you? THIS is why lighting is important. With improper lighting, you will experience shadows, glare, and reflections that will make these things hard for your students. Are you convinced now, teacher friend?

How to grab the goods…

Your future is so bright, you need shades. Yeah, I know you’re probably rolling your eyes, but I still can’t help myself. There are 4 different ways you can improve your lighting in your classroom, and we’re going to explore them today from cheapest to priciest. There is a solution for every budget! Like I said last week, I was working on a tight budget when I first started, so I can understand the necessity, and the desire for the best of the best. Remember, all of the technology, lighting, setup, and more and listed for you in a free PDF download. You can grab it here, or click the pic of one of my favorite online classroom setups below.

Natural light

Let’s start with the cheapest option. How does the price of FREE sound?? Yeah, it’s music to my ears too. Can you guess what it is? If you guessed natural light, you are right my friend! Natural light is almost always the best light. Let’s explore our free option first before we dive into other alternatives. The best way to achieve natural light is to set up your classroom to be facing a window. My best pro tip for this? Make sure your blinds are up. You don’t want lines of shadows across your face! Also consider the time of day you will be teaching your lessons, and where the sun is headed. How terrible would it be to watch shadows literally move across your face as the sun rises or sets? Or, what happens when the sun comes straight into your window, blinding you and completely whiting out your background? None of these would be fun or helpful, so take them into consideration before finalizing your classroom setup. In my at home classroom, my desk is positioned next to a window. It’s directly to the left of me. So, I often leave my blinds shut. When I do open them, it causes the left of my face to be differently lit than the right side, causing that shadow effect. I also find windows pretty distracting. I’m a people watcher, and the outside is just so peopley. So take that into consideration as well.

Floor Lamps

Other lighting options can be relatively cheap (or free if you’ve already got ‘em), and can eliminate some of the elements you are at the mercy of when relying on the sun (like a cloudy day). Lets first explore floor lamps. If you have extra floor lamps, now is the time to break those babies out of storage. If you don’t, I suggest recommend buying the cheap ones with multiple, moveable arms. This will allow you to customize your lighting as needed with very minimal work. I also highly recommend buying at least 2 – one for the right and one for the left of you. Whatever lamp situation you choose, those positions are likely the best. Directly in front of you is worth a shot too if they are high enough. Otherwise, you run the risk of straining your eyes against harsh lights. While we’re talking about floor lights, let’s also talk about light bulbs. Most of the bulbs now days aren’t very bright. They won’t be much help. What will be a great help is investing in what are called daylight bulbs. I was completely oblivious to this option when I first started out! Daylight bulbs help give the effect of daylight inside of the house, and are easy to find at your local hardware store or even amazon. It could be the simple and relatively cheap solution your classroom needs.

Ring lights

Moving on up in the price range, let’s explore ring lights. Ring lights are a small, lightweight way to pack in a ton of lighting. They range from relatively inexpensive, to pricey. A ring light is shaped like – you guessed it – a ring or a circle. The ring pivots back and forth and is mounted on an adjustable height stand. I started out with a cheap ring light I found on Amazon. I found a deal and got it around $40. I placed it directly in front of me and had it adjusted so it was as high as possible. But, the light KILLED my eyes. So, I stood it on top of the box it came in so it was pointed down on me instead of right at my face. Ring lights can be bright, and hard on the eyes. It was very hard on mine! However, ring lights also usually have a few different light features and can be quickly dimmed. A solution for the bright harsh ring lights is to place something like press and seal in front of it. It will help soften the light while still allowing light through. I told you, I’m all about making what you have work on a budget! While you are shopping for ring lights, you will also see clip on portable ones for your phone and cameras. Their price range makes these very tempting, but most online teachers say they don’t work very well for them.

Box lights

Let’s move right along and higher up in the price range into box lights! These are by far the most expensive, and bulkiest option, but are probably the best choice. I want you to take a minute to think back to school picture day, or to family photos you had done in a professional studio. You probably remember seeing big box lights, and probably an umbrella. That’s exactly what these are. They can be easily found on Amazon, but they have a pretty hefty price tag attached to them. Box lights are also pretty bulky, so you need to make sure you have the space for them. Box lights provide the bight, even lighting you are looking for, without the harshness of ring lights. They are much softer and easier on the eyes for all day use. Again, if you’re working on a budget, try looking on Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist before you invest in brand new ones. You can often find them lightly used for a much cheaper price! Again, I recommend two of these, both in front of you, on your right and left hand sides. This will help cancel out any shadows coming from the other side to clearly display your face and your classroom to each and every one of your students. 

Location, location, location…

Once you’ve chosen your lighting of choice, it’s time to make adjustments. Place them directly in front of you in a few different angels. If you have one that is above you, try it at different heights? If you can get a friend to help while you watch yourself on the computer camera, this will be the quickest. As you move each light source, take note of any dark areas on your face. Take note of any glares in your background. Take note of any strain on your eyes and remember, what you feel now will be amplified by all day use and the high energy task of keeping your online learners engaged.

Ok teacher friends, that’s it for today! I hope after today’s post you feel equipped to take on the task of perfecting your lighting. Remember, its a work in progress, and you’re not a professional studio. Your sweet wonderful students know you are working at home, or under the fluorescent lights in your classroom. They know that you are trying your best, and in the end, that’s all that really matters. A few shadows in unimportant places won’t break your lesson. But, I do suggest you try your best to keep the shadows off the things that will matter most to your lessons. Ok teacher friends. That is it for today. Remember, all this information is written out for you in a free pdf download you can grab today at onlineteacherallyson.com/setup. This information will help you get started on the right foot and in the right light. And with that final dad joke, I’m signing off for today. I hope you have a great week. I hope you are finding time to care for yourself and your passions again. I’ll see you next week!