Subsitute Teacher Blues: Cancelled Days

As a substitute teacher, you make a lot of your money by relying on the unpredictable. You never know when you are going to get a call asking you to sub. I've gotten calls at 5:30 in the morning and 10:00 at night. You must constantly be on your toes, ready to take that call and get that job.

Scheduling days in advance is really the way to go if you can. However, there is a major problem with scheduling ahead of time: cancellations. Teachers can actually decide to teach on the day you've picked up. This understandable situation can make a struggling substitute quite upset or even irate. Not only has your paying gig been canceled, its often canceled a day before you sub, making picking up other days difficult. Although I'm a very understanding person, a canceled day has often left me feeling quite like this friendly feline.

However, it is a bad idea to get resentful if one of your days gets canceled. This just creates unneeded stress in your already stressful life. I can guess that your life is stressful: you're a substitute teacher! I think that's a fair assumption.

More importantly, though, complaining about a canceled day is simply unprofessional. Throwing a hissy fit in the office or to the person canceling the day makes you look like a spoiled child. They are likely to place you on a "don't call" list, making it more difficult for you to get days.

Instead, simply smile and nod saying that you understand that things change. Politely state that you will be willing to pick up any other days they may need. Accept their apologies and assure them that you understand. Do this even if this isn't how you actually feel. It will reassure the teacher, show off your professionalism and keep you on good terms with the school. This will give you reason to smile.

Canceled days make having a second job nearly a must with substitute teaching. I know many people who recently got their masters degrees that are struggling to find a full time college teaching position. Many of them start out teaching one or two classes at a community college and substitute teaching to fill in the blanks. You may also want to get a weekend job, if you can find the time. For example, I substitute taught only two half days this week. However, with my freelance writing job I've been able to pick up the slack and should make only fifty dollars less this week than I normally make, as long as I keep my writing consistent. You'll need an equally flexible job and this can be quite hard to find. However, if you search, you can find a flexible job that fits in well with your subbing and keeps you happy and well fed.