Lessons for a Substitute

Hey everyone!

   Just had a thought on my mind from last week. And it's something I have to get off of my chest. What, not a happy post? I'm real and this is a real subject that I need to bring up. I was roving for a few days, which means I usually have 2-3 classes each day that I sub for. The first day wboth had sub plans. The second day they both had plans, but were completely different. One was detailed , which I love (and since she may now be reading this blog since I've been outed, love you J!) lol ;) and the other was less detailed.

   And tying in with this, Laura Candler shouted out one of my sub binder freebies a few weeks ago. It got an amazing amount of views and almost 100 shares (I'm still shocked). But I was sad to read some of the comments. The teachers were talking about not making plans for their subs. Or subs not following plans.

   Which leads me to my thought today. Ok yes, some subs don't follow plans (I know a few). But what about the rest of us that do? Should we be punished with no lesson plans? It's hard enough coming into an unknown classroom, unfamiliar schools and kids, and then there are no lessons for us to teach with?  That's setting us up for failure. And I'm sorry, our goal is to teach the children.

   Some subs would then decide it would be a movie, color, free choice day. Sorry, that's like babysitting and I'm not being paid to babysit. I am a teacher and I'm being paid to teach. I can teach content lessons. I can teach math skills. I can do reading groups (I know some of you don't know your subs, so wouldn't be comfortable having them do this).

   What do I do if there are no plans? And yes this happens several times through out the school year. Some of my schools don't require emergency sub plans or basic ones. Thankfully I have my own sub plans that I sell on TpT and carry some copies with me. Hopefully there is a schedule on the board that I can follow. I try to act like there were plans all along and don't let them see me stress. I swear they're like sharks circling and smelling fear (not so much the kinders, more the older grades).

    But what if a sub isn't as prepared as I am? What if they are new? Or it's their very first sub job? I hope that there is someone in the building that could help them. Or maybe even another sub that helps. That's why I love this 'other job' of blogging and creating on TpT. I get that chance to help out those that might not have that support. I love when new substitutes message me and I can help them out, even if it's just a little thing.

What can teachers do? I know some of you amazing teachers and I know that you spend an hour (or two) on creating sub plans. I don't know about the other subs, but I'd be happy with even a basic outline. Worst case scenario, the kids do old math centers. Or do reading activities that may be last week's focus. But at least they are learning and being productive.

  Final thought...substitutes deserve respect too. We have what is sometimes a thankless job. I'm fortunate that my main district has amazing teachers, secretaries, and assistants. And that I have the best blog buddies a girl could ask for.  I hope that each one of you has somebody that you can lean on!