Tips for Substitute Teachers

by Rachel P. Ricucci

Wouldn't it be helpful if a Substitute could be handed a printed black-and-white sheet of all of the teachers' photos in the school, first and last names, subject, room number, etc. (kind of like those framed photos of doctors that you see on hospital walls, categorized by practice). This way, the Sub can get an idea and put a "name to a face" when someone says "Oh, you have to Sub in Mrs. McCan's class today." Well, I only know her as Peggy...you see my point. It takes all the work out of it. Memorizing names is hard; memorizing two names, Mrs. McCann and Peggy and knowing when to use them (politically correct) in different settings is difficult and occupies too much space in anyone's precious mind. I could use that space for other things, people!

Frank Facts

To a second grade class---I was trying to make a point by saying something like this: "When you're done with the assigned work, please come up for a worksheet that any Bob or Mary can do when they're done." In this class, certain students did certain assignments; all were not at the same level. One student piped up and said (puzzled, but serious), "But, we don't have a Mary or a Bob in this class." :) Moral: You have to be careful what you say--the simpler the better. Don't use cliches, phrases, outdated expressions or any talk of that nature. This can be funny, but we have to try to avoid confusion with the elementary grade students.

The "Video" Day: Clever Ways to Keep Students "Interested" in a Video

1. "Act" extremely interested/curious about the video. Watch it carefully yourself.
2. Tell the students that this is an "interesting" video and ensure them they will like it. Tell them to "enjoy it" after you've pushed the play button.
3. Make interested "faces" throughout the video. Mild laughter is also acceptable during certain adult segments/humor. Some observant student will see you doing this and think there must be something worth catching if the teacher is engaged.
4. Take notes on the video (lots) and tell the students that you did just this (show them--they get very impressed that the "teacher" did the class work, too). The idea is, they will try to compete with you and keep busy and thinking. See if they can come up with a few points about the video (at least 5-6) and write the points in full sentences. Or, have them go to town and come up with unlimited information and tell them this will count as "extra credit." Make it a challenge...a game. Fun and learning is sure to happen this way!

Classroom "Class"

It's very true that classrooms are much more sophisticated these days. When I was fairly new to subbing, I would try to think back to when I was a student and how the teachers treated the kids and reacted to various comments, behaviors, and situations. Unfortunately, that was all I had to go by, and for me, well, that was almost twenty years ago! A perfect example: One day, I reprimanded a student for having made a paper object, which looked somewhat like an airplane or something. He seemed to be toying with it. He looked at me like I was crazy, and said that he was doing research on this paper decoration which is called "origami". Boy, did I feel foolish...from annoying paper airplanes (completely unacceptable) to crafting tricky origami designs (perfectly acceptable). I guess I needed to "get with the program!"