Notes to Self: How to Be a Super Sub

The Night Before

Clothes

Not knowing if I was working the next day kinda bugged me when I first signed up to be a sub. Then one night when I laid out my clothes for the next day, I imagined I was a firefighter. Then the idea that I could jump in them and rush off seemed like a fulfillment of a brief and abandoned childhood career dream.

Pictured Left - Eric Hagman, a real firefighter. In fact, he's the chief. Congratulations, Eric!



It's all in your perspective.

Coffee

Premeasured, cup out on the counter, pan ready to cook water - I can sleep well when I know coffee is waiting at the other end. 

Phone

Put it on the charger. And while you are at it, check for a text - you might have a job tomorrow...

Bug Out Bag

List:

• 550 Parachute Cord (50′)
• Cotton Bandana.
• Duct Tape (25')
• Sunglasses.
• N95 Face Mask.
• Sewing Kit.

STOP! Wrong list. That's my disaster survival bag

Here's my sub bag list:

• Pack gym shoes, workout clothes & a whistle. Then say a prayer that the gym teacher is out. This is theologically questionable behavior, but she does have the best job in the building and needs to share once in a while.
• Kitchen clothes - stuff that can get soaked when washing dishes or that you don't mind splattered with ketchup or barbeque sauce. I have yet to encounter a behavior issue with a lunch tray, I always say yes to dish duty. And you get cake.
• Layers - some classrooms are cold, the building is weird like that.
• Binder with sub info (curious? see binder section below).
• Non-toxic Hypoallergenic Kindergartener Repellant Spray - this will keep them from stretching your tops out, pulling on your arms, or trying to jump or sit on you. It does not exist yet, but I will invent it and be stinkin' rich. Don't steal this idea, I had it first!

The Morning Of

Add to your Bug Out Bag the following:

• Phone
• Food
• Water
• Recess gear

I'm half a century old and I still forget my lunch when I go to school. Sigh. Slow head shake.

You should leave 15 minutes early so you can amuse your retired neighbors huddled over their first cup of coffee watching you out their window. Run back inside several times before trying to drive away from your house. Make them really yuck it up by driving out the driveway then stop and set your transmission to reverse. Go back to look for your coffee which is miraculously still on the roof of your car. Dope slap yourself in the head. If you are going to put on a show, go all out.

Giving yourself extra time for such amnesiatic shenanigans allows you to expel some self-effacing laughter and a enjoy the stress-free good feeling of knowing even though you are an airhead, you will still make it at least to the parking lot by 8:00.

Don't forget to sing along with the radio while drinking coffee eating a bagel and reaching outside to scrape ice off the windshield with your fingernails. You can do it!

Start the Day

8:00 Arrive and Prepare

Walk in slowly taking time to make eye contact and say hi to people. Your job is comparatively easy, don't pretend you are stressed or under pressure like everyone else, you're not! So shut up about it. Be the nice person who listens. Your role is to help everyone and it starts now.

Make sure you learn the names of all the staff kids walking in early with their moms and dads. Make a connection - find out something interesting about that student that they can talk to you about.

"Oh, I think I saw you at my daughter's lacrosse practice."
"Do you have one of those solar systems on display down there?"
"I heard your dog had an earache, I hope he is feeling better."
"Did you see the latest episode of Stranger Things?"

The moments you spend here will come back to you in a powerful way either today or at another time. Relationships with these students and their parents are fun to build. Do it for that reason. It is also smart. When you have friends all around the building in classrooms, maintenance, kitchen, library, specials, and especially the computer guy, you know who to go to when you need it - and they won't mind helping you because they know you are not some big jerk. There is not one person in this building that you will not need at some point this school year. So, walk slow and enjoy the people.

Go right to the office and fill out a time card. If you skip this step, you will not be paid. That would be silly.

Start to fulfill your assignment:

1. Determine and confirm your assignment for the day
2. Find out how to unlock the room
3. Make sure you have a lesson plan but don't read it yet
4. Do a room walk around and get a feel for the place - the personality, the layout, resources, things that these people do in here... Hmm... Notice the projects - look for something special about the students you are about to meet.
5. Read the "Ages and Stages of Youth Development" from UNH Extension and see what age appropriate behavior might look like for your class today (binder)
6. Read your "Teaching with Love and Logic Notes" (binder)
7. Now pick up the lesson plan and read it out loud - really

Planning

Read the entire plan without giving a thought to any of it, just read it.

Next, GET TO WORK!!!! TICK TOCK!!! What are you doing wandering around making chit chat, reading the walls, and talking to yourself? You are running out of time!

• Check for when you have your first planning period, draw a line across the lesson plan. You have just delineated either the first period (hockey) or first quarter (basketball) or first half (soccer). You need to bring your A team out for the first part of this game, so get ready to start well if you are going to win
• Read carefully and deliberately. Put a square or circular check-off thingy in the margin for everything you need to do. Hey, when the kids get there, reading (or thinking) will not be an option soon, so turn this lesson plan into easy-to-find bullets (some teachers are verbose, do this just for the first section if you are running short on time)
• Underline the pertinent and keywords:  attendance, lunch count, collect homework...
• Make sure you know how to do arrival time, this will set the pace for the day
• Get your self super ready for the first set of classes - objective, materials, hook, evaluation
• Run around and ask questions of other staff before the kids arrive - ok to rush now

School Day is Here!

Arrival

8:30 Welcome to Arizona, The Grand Canyon State!

Welcome every student into the room. Especially Mondays. Some kids have two homes or just crummy stuff going on. Be there for them.

Pictured left, Ben Stein demonstrates eye contact not happening, don't do this.

Make eye contact and connect with every child. Of course, you won't be able to reach them all, but it's fun to try. Students are the honored ones in the building, the reason we are here. We meet their educational needs and to do that, we must connect. Besides, they are our future, help them out and maybe they will be nice to us when we are old. 

Arrival requires lunch orders and attendance plus sometimes collecting various things. Usually, there is a task or an ongoing activity students do during arrival. This can be chaotic and you might make mistakes, so get help. As much as possible, get a student helper or two. Pick a student you feel needs to make a connection with you. If that's too much to think about, what is the most obnoxious thing happening in the room? Right there - pick that kid. It's usually a he, but there are those remarkable girls who fit the bill, so I'll go with this kid being a guy for my next sentence. It has not failed yet that that that boy who was doing [insert normal age appropriate obnoxious behavior] will continue to help me all day if I take the time to humbly ask him to help me. Loud kids are asking for attention and inclusion, give it to them.

Pictured above, students demonstrate the correct procedure when meeting their new teacher. They line up, step forward one at a time and say their names... um, this never happens. Oh, but they do give the wrong name to subs. Other kids usually rat them out, but it doesn't matter. I just use whatever name they give me and eventually, it annoys them back. It's easier than fighting it.

Always ask first. You are a guest in their room, not the other way around. Ask before you use the teacher's smart board, computer, markers, etc. Show them you are respectful. Ask them to verify procedures and protocols for the morning meeting. Say please and thank you. You are not the boss, you are a sub. The more respect you show to the absent classroom teacher, the more likely your chances of being seen as respectable.

Introduction

Name & Rules

Every time - every time - every time - even if you had them yesterday - every time you begin a day in a classroom or a class with a new group, make sure you get to introduce yourself and repeat the rules. You may not need the refresher on your name, but you do need to be reminded of the rules (and it won't hurt for the kids to hear them too). Not doing this... not good. Do it.

Name

Start by giving all students options of how to address you. If you have one, use an outside title -- and then give them your name. For me, it goes like this:

• Coach
• Coach Edmonds
• Coach Indra
• Ms. Indra
• Indra - for those who know me outside of school, just don't use that one around Mrs. Lano because this drives her nuts - and she's right BTW
• Mrs. Edmonds
• Hey You
• Hey... Hey... Hey
• and then there are some who forget and call me "mom," I don't mind. I make it clear students are not to be made fun of if they do this, I won't tolerate meanness.

Rules

Announce that you have three rules. The numeral three is only beaten out in brevity by two and one so they will be grateful for... just three

1. I will listen to you

2. I will respect ___________ (teacher)'s lesson plan and classroom. I do not know all the classroom rules and work in so many places throughout this building; I'm going to break a rule. Please be patient and speak to me with kindness.Thank you.

3. I will defend every student's right to an education here in Strafford school.

It took a while to develop these rules. On the first day that I tried out this combination of words and ideas, a boy raised his hand - "Are you a student or a teacher?"

"I am a substitute teacher and thank you," I answered and quickly moved on.

The reaction to this type of "rulemaking" is varied. While working in the room of a particularly remarkable sixth-grade class, after rule three, they broke into applause. That was strange... but nice.

The Lesson

The "Set Up" for the lesson is as important as the lesson. Like a good joke, timing is everything.

Let's set it up.

The objective of the lesson

State clearly the object. Students need to hear the words, see the words, and be shown a sample of the finished product. Use visuals - white board, smart board. What needs to be done by the end of the class must be very clear as well as the options when done early. The rest of the details about the lesson are not as important. 

Standard of behavior

Let students know they can work any way they want as long as their actions do not interfere with another student's right to learn and that it is within classroom rules and the parameters given in the lesson plan. Do this early and move on - don't field questions about this now.

Materials
Make sure you go over materials with the class.

If you have not prepared the materials, you deserve what will happen next. Don't get mad at the deviants who take advantage of this huge opportunity to (fill in the blank with whatever they do while you scramble). If you lose this round to missing materials, be a good loser. Also, don't be too down on yourself, learn from this and come out fighting in the next round.

Assuming you can find and talk about materials, make sure you include how and when to put them away (or you deserve the mess at the end of this lesson). Get a bossy kid to remind everyone when it is time to clean up and get that obnoxious kid to be in charge of getting materials put away. There.

Communication

"Questions? Comments? Observations?"

Here are some more words, just read this aloud if you can't remember, it's GOOD STUFF:

"For now, we can talk. If we need to have a quiet room, I might ask for you to communicate with writing. Be ready for both. Regardless if we are in talk or write mode, all complaints must be submitted in writing and will be read when I have free time. In case of a life and death emergency, you should always shout clearly and get right to the point."

Execute
Make a big deal of saying "Go"

Be funny. Yell "Bake!" or "Geronimo!"

Learning should be a good journey. If you make them smile or roll their eyes and shake their little heads at a nerdy learning-loving sub -- it is a good thing.

Planning Period

Write a nice note to the teacher.

First, find something they have done that is unique and effective. Write a compliment.
Second, be clear on what you were able to cover -- even it is was "not much"
Start this note now, finish at the end of the day.

Writing this note will focus you.

Now finish putting boxes on the lesson plan, checking materials, and getting ready for round two.

Don't forget to pee.

End of the Day

#1 Kids need to get on the right bus
#2 Kids need to have their stuff
#3 Kids need to leave feeling good about their education

We are a fast-paced society and seldom take time to reflect.

Ways to reflect:

• have the students seated and raise their hands to say one good thing that happened that day
• allow students to remain seated and talk to their neighbor
• allow students to move around and talk during dismissal

If you allow movement or talking, remember you need to listen to what the students are up to. Bullying or bad talk at the end of the day can erase gains you and your colleagues worked so hard to accomplish today. Be careful, end strong.

Sponge Spy. Circulate around the room cleaning horizontal surfaces. Listen as you go. If you are the "cleaning lady" they will ignore you and keep talking. You can monitor their conversations and keep them on the right track. Sounds sneaky? Ever want to be a spy as a kid? Like Harriet Tubman in the Civil War? Well, there you go.

That one kid who really needs to talk to you about their day really needs you to listen. Ask him or her to walk and talk so you can move around during dismissal. 

You are there to defend every student's right to an education. Don't drop the ball at the end of the day.

When the students are gone, end your teacher note with another compliment - say a good word about a student who helped you, something great about the lesson, something about the classroom that looks neat and works well.

Walk slowly from the building - eye contact, listen, be a good person.

My Binder

Your binder might look like this:

Or this:

Or this:



Or this:

But not this, not ever.

Whatever era you came of age in, use that mode of container/transport to keep this information readily available to you while you are in the building.

My binder has:

1. Information from Strafford school:
Get the handbook copied or read the e-version. Read it. You should know what the rules are before you play any game. Beyond the policy book, there are procedures. Keep notes. Before you ask a question, write it down. When you get an answer, keep it so you don't have to ask again. People's time is valuable.





2. Ages and Stages of Youth Development
This handy one page (front and back) guide to grade level behavioral expectations really works! Ever wonder why kindergarteners act like six-year-olds? Does it amaze you when middle school students make unrealistic choices? Hmmm. Click on this link for your pocket guide to age-appropriate behavior - and it's free:

UNH Extention Ages and Stages of Youth Development



3. Notes from Teaching with Love and Logic. I used the Parenting with Love and Logic book to help me make changes in the way I was parenting. It was also quite hysterical - I loved the anecdotes. A friend loaned me her teacher edition and I used it to work on one thing at a time about the way I behaved in a classroom. The teacher one is Jim and Charles Fay's Teaching with Love and Logic. It was - very teachery, but also got the job done in an enjoyable way. Either book is money well spent:

Hey - read my book report (and buy the book)

My Book Report Teaching with Love and Logic