How can a substitute teacher maintain control of the classroom without being an absolute tyrant?

Question

I really want to be nice to the kids and it sincerely hurts my feelings to have to threaten or raise my voice, but the full-time teachers tell me I MUST threaten and yell.
Aren't there better ways to keep them on task?
Am I just not cut out for being a substitute?

Answer 1

I don't believe in raising my voice in the classroom because that's what the students want you to do. I would first start of with you attire. What are you wearing in the classroom? Do you look like them? Example, I am a young teacher and I look younger than my high school students, so I wear lots of business skirts/attire and heels to show a distinct seperation between us. I would give the students their work and come up with some reward for them if they finish on time. I would also have them to participate in groups to finish the work, conduct a game to finish the work, or after the work is complete then you will allow social time or a n organized game/discussion.

Answer 2

As a teacher, I have found that not all classes of students are the same. Some classes are just highly concentrated with earnest, well-behaved kids, and others have way too many hooligans who encourage the rest of the class to act and speak freely. There are also some grades that are "better" than others. It really just depends on a lot of things.

With particularly rowdy classes, it does NOT help to be their friend, but yelling doesn't work either. That's what their parents do. You just need to be firm and businesslike. Lay out the rules and the consequences and follow through with them consistently. The consequences should be something they care about, if it's within your power.

How you dress makes a difference too, especially if you are young. Don't wear a blouse that shows any part of your chest. Don't wear a skirt that goes above the knee. And certainly don't wear anything that shows any skin between your legs and your chest. Kids will not respect an authority that dresses like a kid.

Answer 3

As a fellow substitute, I would have to say that yelling is not the answer. Yelling and displaying temper shows weakness. If you threaten to give a punishment you must follow through. No ifs, ands, or buts! If you do not follow through with it, they will do worse and they will know that your threats are empty and meaningless.

I decided on a different approach, I made myself a little "substitute teacher report" which I leave the teacher at the end of the day. I keep them in a padfolio (Staples sells them for under $20) where you have a sleeve for the pen, a pocket to keep the report and a pad of paper which comes with it for free.
I introduce my form as a warning and if they test me I make like I am writing something in it and they all see me and they immediately say to each other "shhh he is writing down stuff to the teacher". The idea is to keep them guessing when you are really writing something down or bluffing. Make sure they never see the inside of the padfolio if you do no have a completed report or else they will know youre bluffing.


I have recently done some "old school methods" by giving out written punishments ranging from 100 - 400 times (the number ranges on severity of the disturbance). I was known for being a nice teacher who was fun and always had a briefcase full of games. puzzles, several lesson plans and things for extra work. I was often lenient. It does hurt my feelings that I give out punishments but this is what tough love is about!

Below is an idea of my form for the report



Substitute Teacher Report

Subs Name Date

Regular Teachers Name Grade/Period#

The class... (check off which was done)

followed classroom rules was courteous and helpful

didn’t feel well today was disruptive

Comment Section:
______________________________
______________________________
______________________________

Answer 4

First of all, you must have the proper tools to be a sub. And this is something you have to request from the teacher. There should be attendance sheets, seating charts, and assignments that keep them on task. I hate it when teachers leave a sub in charge and tell them, "Oh, just give them a studyhall..."

Use that seating chart and call the student by their name. If they are in the wrong seat, the other kids will probably snicker and you'll know that they are in the wrong seat....

Respect the kids... yelling only takes you down a notch in their eyes. You DO have the option of sending a kid out of the classroom.... contact the principal's office and tell him/her that you will not tolerate this behavior in your classroom this day.

Get YOUR feelings out of the equation... you are not there to make "friends" - you are there to execute the teacher's lesson plans.

Some teachers will give homework that is due "tomorrow." NO. Tell the kids if they choose to put the homework away and talk or goof off, you will make the homework due at the end of class. If they try to say, "But the teacher..." Tell them that they can take that up with their teacher when he/she returns...but that administration put YOU in charge and this is YOUR rule for the day.... they will "hate" you and grumble... but they'll get on task and do the work.

Lastly - they will try to pull the old "can I go to the bathroom" trick on you. You can let one go... but tell the next one he/she has to wait until the first one comes back. Nine times out of ten the 2nd kid will give up and forget he has to go anywhere....

Good luck... don't stop being a sub. We need you!!! You'll have to be firm... and can be nice about it... but remember, ultimately, YOU are the adult in the room. Act like an adult, respect them by establishing YOUR boundaries early... and don't try to be their friend.... they have LOTS of friends.... and you're too old to be in their "crowd."

Answer 5

Threatening and yelling at students conveys the Message loud and clear ,that you are not in control of the situation.So stand back and take a deep breath if you are silent they will be puzzled ,this also means their natural curiosity has been roused,Be armed and ready with your lesson plan,be determined but remain calm, it is not about competing with a ghost teacher, this is your class and you are in control .Project the lesson and involve the students ,ellict information from them and ask a leader student to write down information on the board for you . Create buzz groups within the class and (4 per group) ask each group to choose their own leader give them a choice of 1 project each.When in buzz mode, rotate the groups every 5 minutes to enhance their groups knowledge.Plan 1. Buzz mode , rotate 1 student every 5 minutes ,group discussions ensue with increased knowledge in each group.Rotate students, so all the students have changed groups. Final line-up, ask one person from each group to project their work to the rest of the class.

Answer 6

Students must find some incentives to keep them interested in the lesson/discussion going on in the class. Asking questions, making lesson interesting with help of teaching aids, jokes, stories, memory retaining tips, relating study material to real life application, making most talkative students sit to the extreme front or at the extreme back, standing near most talkative ones etc helps, making them write often, rewarding the most attentive student etc helps. However, you do not always have enough jokes, stories, tips, rewards, aids to last an year.
Sometimes, I attract their attention by saying that "This is the topic, that even your seniors dont understand and they often keep making mistakes(this gives them an incentive to outperform their seniors).
If there is a lot of infraction, we have to threaten, punish or scold them. Yelling is never the solution. We are not used to yelling and our voice sounds shaky, hoarse and awful. Students find it amusing rather than threatening. If you dont want to be harsh try stroking talkative students' back gently and ask what were they discussing? Is there something I could help? Students are soft at heart and dont like annoying the teacher who is kind and lends them an ear.

Answer 7

If you want to maintain control of the classroom you will have to earn the kids' respect. If you're a jerk, they will treat you bad. If you are fun and relaxed they will make things easier for you. But don't be to relaxed because if you are they will walk all over you. There is a fine line.... You'll figure it out.

Answer 8

think of yourself as a ¨relief pitcher ¨ you´re there to finish the inning. you must be prepared with one or many activities your know fist hand the students will enjoy. you should be the puppet master of the class and let the students have all the fun and credit while you simple watch them. as a relief pitcher you must be prepared for and at any moment. you´re not a prison guard or a baby sitter. the activity should leave the students wishing for you even after their teacher has returned. as i said ¨you must be prepared because if your aren´t , you will certainly lose the students even before putting a foot in the classroom. you can find lot of topics of interest in teenager magazines, once you find one, adapt it to the students´ needs.

Answer 9

I shall answer this with the assumption that it is a short term sub position.

1. Don't walk in there with a negative attitude, demanding/forceful tone etc... this could be an instant turn off and may spark anger in some children, thus making it more difficult to work with them.

Instead, be neutral. Smile and be pleasant. Don't be too nice (I want to be your best friend type) but don't be mean either. Appear approachable but not someone a student could take advantage of. Neutral is the key word.

2. Before you start anything! Get to school early and determine what the plan is. Does the teacher have a schedule or did she leave you high and dry?? Understand that a successful classroom often follows a very strict routine... straying from the routine can lead to chaos. Knowing the routine will prevent students from taking advantage of you. If there is no routine mentioned... talk to the principal or other teachers (in that grade). You need to know when snack is.. recess.. lunch.. etc. When do they do math? etc. A good teacher will leave you great details.. but.. often that is not the case. But find out as much as you can.

If you are allowed to know... find out if there are any students you need to be aware of. I once taught in a classroom where a boy had extreme anger issues. If you disciplined him for something in a way he did not agree with he would erupt in anger, throw chairs, throw desks, hurt students, and hurt teachers. A sub that is simply trying to discipline a chatty student may not know the consequences of such actions. Keep in mind, however, that schools may/should keep certain information confidential so you may not know this. So again, positive reinforcement over negative reinforcemnt may be the wya to go. And calm is good.

If there is no plan or work left for you, you better have work.. the day can not be filled with mundane tasks or play. Students need to do as they normally would... so having activities that stray from the norm may also result is chaos.

3. As soon as you meet the students ensure they are seated and quiet. If you are having difficulty getting them quiet I often wait and stare at problem children in silence until they get the clue. The point is you want to establish a moment to speak without much distraction. BUT you don't want to cause trouble the minute you start... don't pick any battles the minute you walk in the door (sending a chatter in the hall the minute the morning bell rings) because you will automatically appear as the evil sub.

Once quiet establish strict rules. Write them on the board. Review the plan for the day (this is especially good if it follows their regular routine - that way they won't think they can get away with lying about other activites... claiming their snack time is 45 minutes... etc...). Take attendance and greet each student by their name... show them respect. Explain to them that you require respect and that you plan on respecting them. Let them know that their behavior, assume they will be good, will be forwarded to their teacher.

Outline the day's plan on the board so it can be referred to as a strict guideline that needs to be followed. This way studetns can not change your course by offering excuses/tall tales.

4. During the day don't let the students get too loud. Don't let students get up out of their seats too much or get too chaotic. They key is to prevent any problems before they even appear to be starting. You may feel like you are nipping things in the butt a bit too early..... quieting down a group that isn't terribly loud... but this early intervention prevents big problems and big challenges.

Again, do this in a calm respectful way. Follow the rules you outlined and apply the rules/consequences of the classroom that they are already used to (if you know of them). Stay on course and allow for no exceptions.

If a student sees that you do not follow through on your word they will take advantage of that.

If you find that studetns try to argue with you or whine/beg this is the best solution.... state your answer/decision firmly but not in an angry tone. Repeat a 2nd time if they whine/beg/re-ask the question. After the 2nd same response simply stare at them - showing them that you do not intend on continuing the conversation and that the decision you made is something they can bargain with. A silent calm stare with the occassional head tilt will show the students you are done discussing.

5. Reward good behavior. Praise the students. Seem genuinely interested in what they have to offer and what they are doing. (though you shouldn't SEEM... it should simply be how you feel). Mention how you plan on telling the reg teacher about certain good behaviors. Small prizes (good with elem... probably not helpful/relevant for high school) like pencils, erasers, cheap notepads, stickers... are good ways to reward good behavior. I would be wary of candy in case you have diabetics.... or angry parents that you let them eat sugar at 10 am.

Answer 10

Be firm and serious about what you're doing. As a student myself, I know my classmates like picking on the substitute teachers. Give them work when their voice level starts to increase. They might not like you for that, but you're their teacher, not friend. And if you give them tons of work when they start talking, it's not threatening or yelling, so you're not doing either. ^-^