Substituting-- All in a day's work

To date I have performed two substituting jobs: one in high school speech and one in first grade. I must say, substitutes do not get paid enough. More have been available, I just haven't taken them.

To those of you who may think otherwise-- substituting is *hard* work! In my opinion, it is easier to be the regular teacher than a sub. This is not what I originally thought. I thought subbing would be great:

• no grading
• no planning
• no pressure to produce

However, I have found that sometimes the lesson plans are difficult to understand (or even read!), or the students are openly defiant and disrespectful. I had one tell me to my face that he was going to "tell them it was the crazy sub. You'd be suprised how often that works." Geez!

But, as many people start to feel the crunch of 'recession' and are looking for work, I can tell you from experience and from all of the teachers around me who keep telling me, they are always looking for substitutes. If you have a degree, you'll get paid better, but even without you could be paid about $60/day. That's the going rate around here, anyway. Degreed/certified teachers are paid up to $80/day (that's the highest I've found) and up to $110/day if you're in a long-term position. Hourly it doesn't break down to much, but it's better than nothing!

I don't want to give up on substituting, since I think spending time in a classroom regularly will keep me sharp and give me an edge on the job search. Plus, hopefully the more I do it the better I will be.

So, for all of you job searchers and stay-at-home-moms (SAHMs) out there, you might give substituting a try. Just don't take my jobs, please! :)