Last updated on November 27th, 2023 at 05:08 pm
Psst! If you’re a substitute looking for ideas for handling negative classroom behavior, this article may help!
You’ve returned to your classroom after a time away, pushing past slightly misplaced chairs and crunching down on various runaway pencils and shavings littering the floor.
You’re muttering prayers that the class was alright in your absence.
You heave your teacher bag– the sheer weight and variety of the items contained in the thing could rival the equipment of an Appalachian Trail hike– under the desk as you sink yourself into that familiar, creaky chair and pick up the letter waiting for you.
It’s not good. In fact, horrible and out of control were among the words the substitute used to describe the day. You sigh, estimating that this negative sub experience further widens the chasm between you and a normal life of being able to peaceably leave the room from time to time.
You wonder: What can I do?
Support substitutes so they can support teachers
The primary role of the substitute, as I see it, is to support the classroom teacher.
I like to pick up the classroom where they left off (as much as possible) and to hand them back seamlessy, as much as possible. Ideally, there would be no major blips or bumps in the transition from teacher to sub to teacher again.
So if you receive a note about negative behavior from the substitute? My simple answer is to support them.
You can preserve the vast swath of a school ecosystem by supporting subs. A common student behavior strategy being touted nowadays goes something like “Relationships first” and “Focus on the love, man.” Or something.
While I’m not discounting the power of rapport-building and genuine respect in interactions with students, I’ll point out that there are many school staff members that are constrained by time and setting to form relationships.
People like crossing guards, bus drivers, front desk staff, administrators, school psychologists, and cafeteria personnel may have only a moment with any particular student, but they have the important duty of keeping each child safe. To do their jobs, these figures must be respected.
This goes for substitutes as well.
You, as the classroom teacher, can help bolster the authority of substitutes in these days when it seems to be far too often withheld. You can help stand by substitutes, who in turn will stand by you.
You can help build credibility for the substitute. This helps the sub if she or he comes back. If that particular sub doesn’t return, it will still ease the job for the new one. The students will know that their teacher is working together with the sub to keep them accountable.
Consequences after a bad substitute report
After receiving negative feedback on student behavior, the students will need a reminder of the expectations. Determine if this needs to be the whole class or just certain individuals.
Do this as early in the day as possible. I find immediacy an effective factor in administering consequences, whether they are positive or negative. Even if you were gone on a Friday and have to wait until Monday morning, address it first thing.
1. Firmly and clearly remind students how to act with a substitute
I’d go for a short but direct speech. Consider distilling what you expect of them to 3-5 rules and recording them on an anchor chart to be displayed in the room. If there are certain problem areas, reteach those specific procedures. Have students practice. Reinforce that you expect them to perform the procedure exactly like modeled, whether you are here or absent.
Example:
The substitute remarked how the students had a really hard time lining up for recess. They were pushing and shoving, bouncing soccer balls up to the ceiling, one student “accidentally” touched another’s butt, and someone got a black eye.
That’s a procedure you’re going to want to nail down. Get down to the minutiae, model it as you want, and have them practice until they get it right– even if you have to skip math. That’s my recommendation.
(Also, as a side note, it helps to line elementary kids up in a certain order– I always did it alphabetically and called it “line order,” to have them be able to line up in that order themselves. Not only is it far less chaotic with a sub, but also if there’s an emergency, the sub can quickly get them assembled and ask the students who is missing or ascertain that by ticking down the roster you have, I’m hoping, left them. It’s not realistic for a sub, a complete stranger, to waltz in and magically know all your kids.)
So my first and foremost suggestion when faced with a negative behavior report is to talk to the class or individuals about it first.
Be firm in going over what exactly is expected of them.
I wouldn’t start with “what did you do?” or any sort of asking the students. It’s hard to get an accurate depiction that way. Besides, that undercuts the authority of the sub, which already is extremely lacking. Establish consistency between you and the sub by backing them and taking their report seriously.
This doesn’t mean you have to lecture or yell at the students. Lecturing isn’t all that effective, in my opinion. They’ll start to tune out. It does mean you should address the problem directly and as soon as possible.
2. Decide on a consequence
Sometimes a clear review of expectations is all that’s needed. Sometimes.
Let’s say a reported misbehavior ranked somewhat low on the scale on misbehaviors. “The class was too chatty during reading,” the sub note might record. I wouldn’t necessarily bring the hammer down on that one, but that’s just me.
I will say, though, that misbehaviors are probably underemphasized. It seems to be a current practice, at least in my experience, to leave as sunny a report as possible. I don’t try to nitpick. I try to handle behaviors myself.
So if a misbehavior gets precious space in that note, know it’s severe enough. While not all subs are the same, it’s likely quite a few share this philosophy. We try to keep it positive and as much off your plate as possible. But know when I write something like “Sue needed several reminders today,” I definitely mean Sue was constantly off task, and I was at my wit’s end.
All that being said– you need to decide if the misbehavior warrants a consequence in addition to a review of expectations. It will depend on severity. Decide if this will be a whole-class or individual consequence.
Immediacy is also an important piece to giving a consequence effectively.
Examples of consequences
For individuals, you can use a gamut of consequences you already use in the classroom.
If the behavior was severe enough, perhaps a phone call home is warranted. You can still put a positive spin on this serious case. You could tell the parent or guardian: “I wanted to let you know that _______ really struggled with our substitute yesterday. I want to make sure guests in our classroom see all of the great qualities in _______ that I know he/she has– how can we work together to ensure this happens?”
Other individual consequences: Maybe that student should lose a privilege. Maybe he or she should be required to get the work done that they didn’t the day you were gone. Operate within an existing system if you want.
For the class, there are several consequences you can give. Again, you can carry on with a system you have in place.
Other ideas include: Whole-class loss of a privilege, a whole-class email or Class Dojo announcement to all of the parents, completion of work unfinished due to behavior, etc.
What to do if you disagree or aren’t sure about the sub’s version of events
A substitute is their own person. They aren’t going to be an exact copy of you, and that means they’ll handle things differently.
As long as there were no flagrant misdeeds on the part of the sub, try to cut them slack.
This person was a stranger navigating a whole new world– your classroom– in all of about five minutes’ preparation time. As much as you may have tried to relay through the sub plans, details may have slipped through the cracks. The students, trying to be helpful or otherwise, may have given this person an incorrect version of classroom events.
It’s a tough gig, that usually even teachers confess they wouldn’t want to attempt.
If you’re concerned about the accuracy of the sub note’s content, it doesn’t hurt to do some investigating. Investigating works best when students don’t necessarily know you’re sleuthing. You can pull a few trusted students aside and ask for their perception of the incident in question. Limit this to only a few witnesses, who as much as possible don’t know of your questioning, so they can give an accurate report instead of time to develop a story.
If you disagree totally with a sub’s actions (it depends greatly on the actions), it’s up to you where to head.
If you think a sub is exaggerating, it’s worth at least bringing up to the class. You can still review the expectations of behavior with a sub without it turning into a courtroom trial.
It’s possible the sub didn’t have good classroom management practices (or any type of management!). You won’t know exactly how the day went, because you weren’t there. In any case, take the report as information and try to weigh it wisely.
How to move on with your class after a rough day with the sub
It definitely stinks to get that negative report. You may even feel a personal sting as a result.
The best way to move forward, in my opinion, is to take this information not as an indictment but as another teachable moment for the students. Review expectations. Don’t preach or lecture, just handle it matter-of-factly. Administer a consequence if appropriate. Just don’t–please, I beg of you– do nothing.
Support the ecosystem of subs, teachers, students, and other staff. Except maybe in extreme cases, support subs. You’ll want them to stick around to support you in turn.
Of course, when receiving positive sub reports, it can be appropriate to reward or at least thank and acknowledge the students for their efforts. I find that being responsive to the information given by the sub, whether it be good or bad, is one of the most important steps in maintaining a united teacher-sub connection.
Thanks teachers and subs for all you do!
