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Substitute Teachers
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here to see our selection of Substitute Teachers.
 Substitute
teachers can have it very hard. They are supposed to fill-in for
teachers that have already spent the year earning their students
respect. When a substitute teacher walks into the room, students
see it as a chance to do whatever they want. After all, their real
teacher is not there. It can take months for a teacher to earn the
respect of his or her students, but substitute teachers must do
so within a few moments of entering a classroom
Here are some tips for substitute teachers to make time
in the classroom at least a little easier:
• Dress well. Wear a tie if you are a male or a skirt if
you are a female, etc. Show the kids that you are not a force to
be reckoned with from the very first moment that you step into the
classroom. Look professional. Intimidate the kids with your appearance,
if you must. Do not give the students anything to make fun of about
your appearance.
• To make it through the day as a substitute teacher, you
should lay out some ground rules. Do not walk into the classroom
first thing and act like the classes’ friend. Make sure you
gain their respect first.
• Once you have stated your rules, and if you have frightened
all of the kids into submission, then you can start to be nice…
until they give you reason to enforce your rules. Make sure that
you do enforce your rules – otherwise the students will just
walk all over you.
• Have a “gimmick.” Make yourself fun and memorable
to your students. If you are going to have younger students, you
can act like a character from their favorite movie. For older classes,
you can maybe bring candy as rwards.
• Make your own hall pass. Make sure that you have your own
hall pass, because you may not be able to recognize the stapler
“hall pass” that the regular teacher uses.
• Know your subjects well. The better you know a subject,
the better you will be able to fill in for a teacher that teaches
that subject. Students will respect you more if you can ask a question
and you can come up with the answer.
• If you do not know the answer to the question, involve the
other students ask them what they think.
• Know and follow the school rules
• Do not think of the students in your class as another teacher’s
students, think of them as your own students. Just because you are
a substitute teacher does not mean that you are not a teacher.
• Make sure that your students have something to do. If the
teacher did not leave you with enough work to keep the students
occupied, be prepared to give them a new assignment.
• Have a back-up plan.
• Respect the students and they will respect you.
Substitute teachers are just as prone to good days and bad days
as other people are. So, remember, that just because your first
day as a substitute teacher went poorly, it does not mean that your
next day will. Besides, substitute teachers do have at least one
blessing that regular teachers do not have – if a substitute
teacher does not like a certain class, so be it! A substitute teacher
will not have to return to that class again!
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