Too Much Free Time

Today is the 2nd day in a row where I have been unable to aquire a substitute teaching job.

My district uses Aesop, an online sub placement system. The requirement to become a substitute teacher is to have 90 or more college credits, however some schools in the district do requrie a teaching certificate. This means that any college students searching for education experience can get it before they graduate through Aesop.

In my opinion, there are pros and cons to this system.

Pros:

• It gives new teachers, like myself, a chance to prove themselves in the class.
• It streamlines the system. I do not have to individually register with schools or districts to sub in them.
• Teachers can request individual subs – I made a good impression last week, and as a result have a job lined up for this coming Friday.

Cons:

• Experienced subs probably don't like Aesop because younger punks like myself take away their seniority.
• It seems like there are a billion other subs out there competing for the same jobs. While good for schools, its tough for subs. An opening became available last night. I knew the teacher, school, and subject material. Within 5 seconds somebody else got the job.
• There is no longer the 5:30am phone call. To get jobs, I need to leave my computer on through the night and have Jobulator ring when a position opens. While its a good way to ensure a job for the coming day, it makes for very poor sleep.

Overall I'm happy with it, however it is frustrating that I am unable to work steadily. My presumption is that as the school year progresses, a couple things will happen:

1. Teachers will take more days off - unless its an emergency, most teachers are probably going to be at work for the first two weeks of school.
2. There will be less sub competition - I'm betting subs are likely very eager to take jobs right now. As the year progresses, I assume this will fade, especially as some of those 90 credit college students realize this job may not mesh with their schedule or stress intake.
3. Teachers will request me - When I do get jobs, I focus on making a great impression. I follow the plans, try to build rapport with students, and chat with the secretaries and neighboring teachers. Most importantly, I leave a detailed sub report on letterhead that gives my personal contact information - all of this with the hopes of getting called back in the future.

I realize this is just part of the trade, and not every day will be filled. It's frustrating, but as the weeks go by, I'm sure my body and frame of mind will adapt.

This free time has given me a lot of opportunty to search the web! Here are some great resources (teaching and otherwise) that I have stumbled upon:

• Two Writing Teachers: inspired teaching strategies that focus on how to successfully bring writing into the classroom
• Cool Cat Teacher Blog: A wide spectrum of engaging material, from the newest research to proven methods and ideas
• Education Week – Politics K-12: The most current news and analysis in national education
• This Is Indexed: Venn-Diagramming the social world on an index card. Sometimes hilarious, sometimes heart-wrenching, always interesting. (Also great to throw into your Bag of Tricks!) Here is one of my favorites:

• Reflection Of Me: Highly entertaining, because a picture is worth a thousand words.

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I invite you to contribute by sending in questions, personal stories, thoughts, and articles about substitute teaching. Thanks for stopping by.

First Day of Subbing on the First Day of School

Calm. Cool. Collected.

That was my strategy yesterday, and it worked great.

First days of anything are generally always intimidating. The first day of first grade; the first day of college; the first day in a new city; the first day at a new job.

I guess I should have figured the same for my first day substitute teaching as well. And it wasn't just my first day subbing – it was also the first day of school. I knew that going in.

But then the curve ball: it was also my first experience where the teacher left no lesson plans. On the first day of school.

There was absolutely nothing. No textbooks, syllabus, or classroom policies. No first day activities, no hint of what the first assignment was going to be. There wasn't anything in the classroom. All desks were sloppily lined in rows like it had just been cleaned. There were no posters, books, or papers. There was no teacher's desk, and there were no files or folders. A teacher had never come in to this classroom to set anything up.

Calm. Cool. Collected.

Amazed, I walked next door and asked another teacher if she knew what was going on. She didn't, but recommended I check the teacher's mailox. I did and found nothing there either. Word spread quickly among the teachers in the department about the debacle, but suprisingly none of them knew what the deal was (or, unsuprisingly, they did and kept their mouths shut).

A very helpful fellow teacher provided me with a “get to know you” game that she uses on the first day of class. I thought quickly how to fill the rest of the period. I wrote the Kurt Vonnegut quote on the board, and planned a current events discussion that would bring together the topics of Labor Day, teenage unemployment, and President Obama's upcoming jobs speech.

Calm. Cool. Collected.

The first class of students came walking in, 10th graders. I stood at the door welcoming them, and let them know they were at the right place (they were expecting a teacher with a different skin color, gender, and age). Instructions were on the board:

1. Take out a half sheet of paper
2. Write name in the upper right hand corner
3. Wait for further instruction

The bell rang and we jumped right in to the quote. I asked two questions about it to encourage independent upper level thinking, and then discussed. Maybe not the best strategy for most first-days, but it worked for what I needed: getting kids quiet and focused.

Then came the game, where kids got to learn names. Then the discussion, which went over way better than I thought it would. Then the class left, and the first 1/6 of the day was successful. Win!

Calm. Cool. Collected.

The same teacher who provided the first-day game came by and commented on how relaxed and confident I looked. I didn't feel stressed, but regardless this comment came as a big compliment. Later she asked me if I was available for specific dates this month for filling spots in her schedule. Win! I promptly gave her my contact information.

Other daily highlights:

• 2nd hour was AWESOME. 11th graders for African American Humanities. More on that tomorrow.
• 4th hour the principal came into the class and asked to talk with me in the hall for a minute. Apparently word spread very quickly about the situation in room 209, and he came by to make sure everything was running smoothly. My mantra (Calm. Cool. Collected.) worked like a charm as the kids were quiet and on task. Always helps to make right with the principal. Win!
• 5th hour helped me realize how immature some 10th graders can be. My mantra got me through that one. Whew.
• 6th hour had five students in it, probably to some scheduling glitch. My mantra didn't work so well in this class. With no first-day activities or information provided by the teacher, it was more akward than anything. Time was mostly consumed by talking about school sports and playing hangman.

So I guess all that racket about a Bag of Tricks really is important. Without it, yesterday would have been far more of a struggle.

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NOTE: At the end of the day I tried learning about the teacher situation. I wanted to find out 1.) if I could sub tomorrow, and 2.) in case there was an issue with the position, I could be considered as a candidate.

But there was no info to be found. The office was unsure of the absence, and could provide no advice for securing another sub position. Other teachers said the same. I tried to find the principal, but it is a big school and he couldn't be tracked down.

Q. What do you do to ensure another sub position?

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I invite you to contribute by sending in questions, personal stories, thoughts, and articles about substitute teaching. Thanks for stopping by.

The Substitute Teacher's Infamous Bag of Tricks – Part 1

As I prepare for my first days of substitute teaching, I must face the inevitable Substitute Teacher's “Bag of Tricks.” What are your tricks, you say, and why do you put them in a bag? Well, what will you do if:

• the teacher didn't provide any plans?
• the lesson ends with 20 minutes of class left?
• you are subbing in for the AP chemistry teacher's 3rd consecutive absence and the kids are so totally lost they can't do the work?
• The lesson plan is so awful the kids won't stay on task?

That's where the Bag of Tricks comes in. This is a two part series. Today we will look at the bag itself and one of the ideas to put in it. Tomorrow, we'll continue with more ideas to fill it up.

What goes into the bag?

So its not literally a bag. I mean I guess it could be. But more importantly its a source of tools. Some of them are in my brain, some are in a folder, some are in my pocket. The fact is, you have to have something.

The web provides a host of recommendations: Nerf balls, crossword puzzles, games, magazines, etc. While these work great for elementary grades, I'm a little timid of trying to play “Heads Up Seven Up” with High School kids. After much searching, I'm left to my own imagination and strategies. And so far, here's what I've got planned for those days when I'm alone with 30 or so teenagers and nothing but my own tact to get me through the next 50 minutes.

News and Current Events

There's an extra 15 minutes at the end of class, and despite your pleas, students are still noisy and off-task. Fuel their fire - build a discussion around something engaging and exciting.

• Relevancy – students get involved in class discussions if it has to do with their lives. While I personally could talk for hours about classic Cinelli bicycles, I don't think high schoolers would really care.
• Passion – you have to be knowledgeable and interested in the subject as well. Don't start up a discussion about the high school football team if you've no idea about their rankings or who their competition is.
• Timelessness – yes, we're talking about “news,” but be on the lookout for articles or data that can be used for months, rather than days. This will make it more convenient to put in your bag.

A tip on finding good content. Blogs are an excellent way to find really cool, new, and interesting items to share with the class. Take some time to find ones that interest you personally. Use an RSS reader to stay up to date. Here's some of my favorite blogs that I take snippets from to put in my bag:

• Freakonomics – the hidden side of everything
• Economix – explaining the science of everyday life
• Dangerously Irrelevant – technology, leadership, and the future of schools

Recently I just read an intriguing post on the Freakonomics blog that suggests colonial Americans were more literate than today's population. Ok, so maybe it sounds boring. But I can just imagine it taking off in a history or literature class: making it relevant to their lives by discussing their literacy and culture, sharing Payne's verbose and archaic prose, and probing students to think of factors that may skew the data.

Remember – the idea is to find the right content for your teaching style!

Tomorrow we will continue with the Bag of Tricks, and take a look at other possible methods I'm considering to fill it up for empty days.

Q. How do you promote class discussions in your teaching?

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I invite you to contribute by sending in questions, personal stories, thoughts, and articles about substitute teaching. Thanks for stopping by.