Martin was also active as an educational speaker and with Sampson, conducted annual workshops for educators called Pathways to Literacy that eventually trained over 50,000 teachers at 30 sites throughout the US. He was one of the first children's book authors to promote his books by touring schools and bookstores. At these appearances he read aloud to the children, often with music and dancing. He believed in instilling interest in children and helping them remember new words through rhythm and repetition. Sampson said: “Poetry allowed him to become a reader - if he could hear it, he could read it. And as a writer, Bill worked with his ear. How his writing sounded was the most important thing. Poetry was his mentor. It inspired and guided him.” During the 1950s he hosted a regional television program, "The Storyteller", and he later produced audiotapes of his books.