As always, I have a few things to say before I get to the meat of the post. For those of you who are interested, this is what I have been up to that has kept me from typing out my musings and keeping all of my avid readers (haha) unsatisfied!
First of all, shortly after my last post I went on a mission trip with the Church of the Lakes youth group to West Virginia. It was a great experience for the youth to see what a totally different lifestyle is like and how some people live. While we were there we built a garden for a school that took in the 'undesirables'...yes, even in the poorest areas of the country children are separated. Anyway, the kids worked hard and really grew to appreciate all they have been given.
The very next week I went on a family vacation for a couple of days up to a place called Lakeside, which is on Lake Erie. My fiancee and I spent a lot of our childhood summers there and it was great to walk through the streets and reminisce. The following weekend I drove some of my friends to Chicago to go to a Cubs game and see some of our friends that live in Chicago. This was also a fantastic time, but very draining: I did not get a whole lot of sleep.
That brings us to this weekend. I am in Columbus, but I have some time so I thought I would post the list. This is a list, which may grow, of things for teachers to think about when they have a substitute.
1. Be Specific: The substitute does not know the layout of your room nor your curriculum.
2. Do not use Jargon, or if you must, explain what it is. It was frustrating seeing acronyms that were totally foreign to me.
3. BE ORGANIZED! A cluttered desk and scattered thoughts make a substitute's job much more difficult.
4. Tell where you think the students will have trouble and some hints to help them. I would often find out post-teaching that I was not a failure so much as that was an area that the class had been struggling with.
5. Allow a little wiggle room. I know it may seem hard, but it will make the substitute feel more comfortable and more in charge.
6. Write down expectations. By this, I mean if you only expect them to get through so much, say so. Sometimes I felt like I had to rush through some of the things to get all of it done.
7. Give different classroom management hints that the class will be familiar with. i.e. clapping, counting down, 'magic word', etc.
8. Have a fellow teacher who you partner up with to 'check in' on the substitute. It made me feel more comfortable when another teacher came in and talked to me about the plans and explained any confusion.
9. If there are strategies that your subject uses, explain them. This is similar to jargon. For example: The schools I worked in used 'Everyday Mathematics' which used different methods than I was used to.
10. Make sure you assure the substitute that their best is good enough. I feel that I was most effective as a substitute when the teacher wrote reassuring things. It made me more comfortable and confident.
There is my list, and as I said, it may grow. I think that in order to really take these ideas to heart, one must substitute themselves. This is why I think it is ideal if a teacher can substitute for a semester before they start their career!
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