Tale End - November 10

Substitute teachers are a vital part of the profession and public education, supporting student learning when classroom teachers are away. Here, substitute teachers from across Alberta share some of their top strategies for success.

This year, prior to the school year, I prepared freezer meals and snacks and placed them in a school freezer. When I get called in last-minute, food is covered! This is also an idea I used when I was teaching full time to help get through especially busy days.
—Monique Trudel

My sub strategy was to always build a positive relationship with kids before class started by being present in the halls and talking to the students!
—Suhail Bawa

Dress professionally and come in calmly and with confidence. I also tried to dress in black and white or calming colours. Having a sub is a change and instantly dysregulating for the students, and how you are sets the tone for them. 
—Lana Kuntz

My best hack is having a stack of paper-and-pencil activities for students who say they have everything done. Suduko, KenKen, word search, minicrosswords, dot to dot. I sub for K–12, so I have age- and subject-appropriate activities.
—Beverly McNutt 

My go-to strategy is, after introducing myself, to ask the class to tell me the class rules. I have a general idea of what is acceptable, but by them telling me [the rules], they are telling me they know expectations. It also provides an opportunity for me to reference back to stated rules so they are held accountable.
—Darryl Snook

I always take time the night before to read through sub plans (when plans are given in advance) and try to work in a Thinking Routine (Project Zero) in at least one of the teacher’s planned activities. It provides students a chance to dialogue, think, reflect and process information in a different way, plus the teacher has a formative piece of student learning should they choose to use it. They are quick and interactive. 
—Darrin DeForge

I bring Lego and hide it in the room. When the students go outside for recess, I change where the Lego is hiding. The kids are really eager to come back to class to spot the Lego! I also start every class off with two truths and a lie so the class can get to know me. 
—Rachel Siderius

For elementary school assignments, always have a few picture books to read aloud. Students enjoy hearing a special book that you brought for them. 
—Karen Eitzen

I made graphic organizer sub note forms that I can complete as I go through the class. I actively note things like attendance, behaviour or things about our day, things we completed, things we didn’t get to complete. Adding to this page as we go through class helps at the end of the day. All I need to do then is review and revise as needed.
—Vikki Presakarchuk

I always start by saying today might be a little different than with your teacher. Please be patient and be ok with differences.
—Yvonne Toney

My favourite hack as a sub is finding some Kahoots in the subject and grade level before I go in (especially junior high!). If they work well for the first half of class, we can take the last ten minutes to play a game and still stay on topic. The kids love it and are so good at keeping each other on track—really helps with classroom management as a sub!
—Shannon Gingras

One of my go-to strategies for subbing, especially in junior high, is to not be in the classroom when the students enter, but hovering near by. That way, they don’t know there is a sub today and will sit in their designated seating plan instead of trying to sit with their friends because there is a sub, and she won’t know. 
—Teresa Dimopoulos

Stickers! Any age, any grade, any type of classroom or school. Students from little to big will appreciate stickers! Use them as rewards, incentives or even better, just to brighten their day! 
—Leah Durrant

I made raffle tickets with my Bitmoji (so they couldn’t be duplicated easily—middle school kids are wily!) and handed them out liberally. At the end of class, I picked some to win a prize (Jolly Rancher, lollipop, water bottle sticker, eraser, whatever I had). The better behaved, the more tickets they earned and the more I would choose at the end of class.
—Lisa Clarke

For me, an essential strategy is to arrive at my school early. I hate rushing in the morning. The extra time prior to the commencement of classes allows me to find everything I need for the day, test any tech I will be using, deal with any challenges that pop up, find my way around should I find myself in a new school, and locate my emergency exits in case of a fire drill or other evacuation. I set up the class in preparation for the students in advance, which affords me the most important first activity of any class, welcoming the students as they come in. This is my first connection with students and sets what I hope to be a positive tone for the time we will spend together. 
—Shaun Alsford

Wear a wristwatch in order to model digital citizenship. In the same vein, keep all guest teacher plans on paper attached to a BRIGHTLY coloured clipboard with your name taped to it (so you can find it easily anywhere in a room). Many schools ask that plans be kept confidential and shredded at the end of the day for legal reasons.
—Andre Lalonde