Sub days

Attitude problems...

Boys who can't sit still...

Common annoyances...

Defiance...

Everpresent whinning...

Frutile threats...

Good intentions destroyed...

Horrific behavior...

I think you get the point.

A teacher's worst nightmare is when her class misbehaves for a sub. I dread the days out of the classroom for many reasons, but the main terror is created when I think about how my students will react to this new "teacher."

I subbed for six months before I was hired at RUSD and I firmed believed then (and still believe now) that the student behavior with a sub reflects on the teacher's behavior and ability to be a "good teacher." I walked into rooms of total confusion and anarchy; immediately I *knew* that the teacher must be horrible. While I know that kids are kids and sometimes behave horrible 100% of the time, I usually only have one (or ten) of these per year.

I threaten and bribe my students into submission for sub days. I remind them days in advance that I am going to be gone, setting up the "reward" early and often, reminding so-and-so that they need to be quiet, do their work, etc... I also remind them of what happens when the class decides to misbehave (write essays on respect, pop test, etc).

Heaven-forbid that I come back and the class has received a "C" on their sub report or that their names were left in a negative way; they see the "mean" side of Mrs. Pfeffer then... the side that scares them at night when they are sleeping, the side that makes them feel so guilty they cry (yes, high school boys do cry because of me). This mean side rarely is seen and once per period per year is usually enough.

Yesterday, I was out for the second time in two weeks. As I walked to my classroom door and put the key in the door, I took a deep breath and walked inside. Immediately, I looked around to make sure there is no major damage. I soon noticed that the desks were crooked, interactive readers were on the ground/on the desks, and my front/center desk was messy (I cleaned it before I left... none of the normal mess should have been there).

Fear filled my heart as I walked over to my blue notebook labeled, Sub Notes. With trepidation, I opened the front cover and directed my eyes to the sub note request form... it was BLANK! "BLANK!" I screamed inside my head, "blank? How am I suppose to do deal with that? What did they do yesterday? How did my room get destroyed?"

Further "searching" found that my attendance scan sheets were still on my desk... and a trip to the office confirmed that my sub cancelled at 7:55 am (a mere 2 minutes before the first bell rings to get students into classes) and I had 5 different subs all day.

First period arrives after I've managed to clean up and a trusty teachers pet informs me that not only did they stand outside for 15 minutes yesterday morning, but when they got into my room with a campus aid, I had no electricity. The aid took the class to another room and they had "free" time for the period. Good news=the teacher's room they invaded said they were great, calm, and very respectful.

Second period (my usual naughty period) then reports the same thing and the next teacher reports they were "fine" as well.

Third-Fifth actually met in my room; the trusty teacher pet (I LOVE these kids) in each period told me about their behavior and it seems like, although my room was a mess, the day was fine.

But, man, did I fear for the worse when I opened that door this morning.