Where in the World Isn't Bob Saget?

Songbird76

Well-Known Member
Wow that sounds pretty nightmarish. And too bad A couldn't celebrate his birthday at school. Happy Belated to him.

We don't have to cover other teachers classes a lot. One year I and another teacher had to cover the band and the choir teacher's middle school classes often during our prep. Both the band and choir teacher were having a lot of health problems and seemed to schedule their dr appointments in the afternoon, if a sub couldn't be found we were asked to cover. In our contract it says that they can only ask us to cover another teacher's class once a semester during our prep time, but non of us want to be a jerk and say no to our secretary who has to find coverage and we do get paid. The year I and the other teacher had to keep covering for band and choir we would just rotate and take turns.
Well, A did get to bring treats the day BEFORE his birthday, but they also usually get to pick what they do for the last hour of class on their birthday. They usually choose to have an extra hour of PE, but the PE teacher has been sick, so they haven't been having regular PE anyway. His school is different, since it's all kids with Autism. It's more like an elementary school set up. They have their regular classroom teacher or 2, but Art, PE, and Social skills have separate teachers. Only right now, since the regular teacher got a different job and they haven't found a replacement, they just have different teachers for everything but Art, PE, and Social Skills. Their Social Skills teacher was out for a few weeks, but I think she's back now, but she's not there every day....I think that's a once a week class. PE is twice a week, but right now they just go to the gym and shoot hoops or go outside and play 4 square because the teacher's not there right now. So he was disappointed that he couldn't celebrate ON his birthday, and that it wasn't the way it usually is because the PE teacher is out, and they don't have a regular teacher...routine is out the window for now.

That's good that you get paid extra if you have to take another class! And it sounds like they try not to do that if they don't have to. In most secondary schools here, at least standard ones, not special education like A's, if a teacher is sick, they just cancel that lesson for the day and the kids have a free period. Sometimes they'll try to get another teacher in that subject to cover if that teacher is free during that hour, but if not, they just cancel the lesson and the kids have that hour off. E is ticked about her schedule on Thursday this week. She always has 6th hour free on Thursdays, but her 7th and 8th hours are also canceled, but then she has one class in the 9th hour. So she has 3 free periods in a row, but has to stay there for the one period. So she's at school until 4:35pm, but with 3 hours of nothing. And the worst part is it's her English class, which for some reason they divide and have twice on Thursdays. So she has English class at noon, then has 3 hours free, then goes to the same class again at 3:45. They aren't supposed to have more than 2 free periods in a row. Some kids have to bike for over an hour to get to school....it's really unfair for them to have so many free hours and then come back, because they don't have time to bike home and then bike back for that last class, so they have to just sit there for 3 hours and do nothing. We only live a few minutes from the school, so she COULD come home for those hours, but once she's home, she doesn't really want to go back, and it really doesn't make sense to have the same class twice in one day. Why not just have a double class period then? Why split them up with other subjects in between? It's really wonky.
 

Songbird76

Well-Known Member
I had to cover for art last year, too, except I had to teach the art lesson, and I didn't get paid. A couple years ago my teammate's dad passed away. One of the days she was gone, they couldn't find a sub, so her class got split between the other three first grade classes for the day. None of us got paid. I know there are other times I've covered, too, but those are the two other times that stick out. This is the first time I've ever gotten paid for any of it.

Now that I'm seeing what a good principal looks like, I'm understanding how bad our leadership has been over my first four years. I mean, I knew it was bad, but it was worse than I thought because that's all I knew.
I'm sorry it was so bad before! So do they usually get subs for a teacher who is sick? I taught as a sub when I first got out of college because it was flexible and I was taking care of my mom while she went through Chemo, etc. So I couldn't work every day, but being a sub gave me the freedom to just say "Sorry, I can't today. I have to take my mom to her chemo." But there were very few days that I DIDN'T get called, so I had a pretty steady income. Over here, subs are not really a "thing". Someone else will take your class if you can't unless you have longterm leave. A's teacher in 5th grade was gone because she had just recovered from cancer herself and then her mother AND mother-in-law died two weeks apart, right before school started, so he never actually had that teacher. That was the year that the bullying got so bad he wanted to kill himself and we had to pull him out of that school in October and he was at home for several weeks until we got him into the special ed school. The teacher was out for months and they had a new teacher fresh out of school who had no experience yet. Super nice, and probably really good at the actual teaching, but really no idea what she was doing with classroom management. The teacher he was SUPPOSED to have would have been perfect. E had her the year before and she was great. She was a strict teacher who had high expectations and didn't tolerate bullying or nonsense. E LOVED her because the classroom was always quiet and everything was organized, which would have been perfect for A and we were really happy he got her. But then she ended up not being there for the first few months of school and it was disasterous for A. So then they actually had to get another teacher to take her class until she came back. But in general, if it's just a day or two, they get the counselor, or since the teachers don't generally work every day, they ask the other teacher to come in on the other teacher's days until they are back.
 

PUSH

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I'm sorry it was so bad before! So do they usually get subs for a teacher who is sick?
They usually do. More often than not, you can get a sub, but on days where there are 7 or 8 teachers out, they might have to prioritize. They'll move some staff around if needed.
 

PUSH

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
If anyone isn't watching the Bills and Patriots, it is crazy windy. You literally can't throw or punt in one direction. The Patriots punter just sent it up in the air, looked like it was a rocket. All of a sudden it stopped and went backwards and out of bounds.
 

JenniferS

Time To Be Movin’ Along
Premium Member
If anyone isn't watching the Bills and Patriots, it is crazy windy. You literally can't throw or punt in one direction. The Patriots punter just sent it up in the air, looked like it was a rocket. All of a sudden it stopped and went backwards and out of bounds.
Are they playing in Buffalo? I’m not far from Buffalo, and it is crazy windy here too.

Ski had a nap after work (common thing on Mondays) and he woke up to a winter wonderland. He came up to heat up some leftover pizza, looked outside at the snow, and at the wind buffeting items down the street, and said bad words.

Not cool! It was 50° at 1:00 am last night. That was lovely. Right now, not so much.
 

Songbird76

Well-Known Member
They usually do. More often than not, you can get a sub, but on days where there are 7 or 8 teachers out, they might have to prioritize. They'll move some staff around if needed.
Is there a shortage of subs right now with Corona? We have a teacher shortage here, which is why A's class still doesn't have a teacher. They can't find a qualified teacher to take his class and is available when they need them to be. It's rather worrying. I hope we don't go through this whole school year without a teacher!
 

PUSH

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Are they playing in Buffalo? I’m not far from Buffalo, and it is crazy windy here too.

Ski had a nap after work (common thing on Mondays) and he woke up to a winter wonderland. He came up to heat up some leftover pizza, looked outside at the snow, and at the wind buffeting items down the street, and said bad words.

Not cool! It was 50° at 1:00 am last night. That was lovely. Right now, not so much.
Yes, it was. It was really windy here yesterday, too. Consistent winds in the 30mph range.
 

PUSH

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Is there a shortage of subs right now with Corona? We have a teacher shortage here, which is why A's class still doesn't have a teacher. They can't find a qualified teacher to take his class and is available when they need them to be. It's rather worrying. I hope we don't go through this whole school year without a teacher!
There's always a sub shortage, regardless of covid. Covid surely doesn't help, but the positive is we hired full-time subs in our district to help handle covid last year. They kept a few this year, which has been really nice.
 

Songbird76

Well-Known Member
There's always a sub shortage, regardless of covid. Covid surely doesn't help, but the positive is we hired full-time subs in our district to help handle covid last year. They kept a few this year, which has been really nice.
How does that work....full-time subs? When I was subbing, they just had a pool of people in the district who were hired to be subs, but there was no quota of hours or anything. They'd just call you at 6am and ask if you could take a 5th grade class at this school, or for the English teacher at that high school for the day. Or if the teacher knew they were going to be gone, they'd ask if you were available on these days. When the music teacher at one of the elementary schools had major surgery and was going to be out for a month, I was the only music qualified sub in the district, so they asked me if I'd teach music for that month at that school. When she came back to school, her husband had been transferred with his job and she wanted out of her contract, so she asked if I'd take over her contract so she could move before the end of the year. So I became the music teacher for the rest of the year. But there was no full time subbing because they never knew when they would need a sub...it was always just a whenever they needed you, though you could pretty much work every day. There was always SOMEONE who needed a sub, even before I took the music class during the teacher's surgery and recovery. Does a full-time sub take over a specific class or do they go wherever they are needed?
 

JenniferS

Time To Be Movin’ Along
Premium Member
Yeah that was a fun day - the show was fantastic and as I recall we had Carmine's for dinner? Or was that the time we went to Michael Jordan's steakhouse in Grand Central Station?
Michael Jordan’s was my birthday. Carmine’s was before Frozen; and then again with just the menfolk while I stayed at the hotel, before Billy Joel.

After the Rockettes, we went to a Mid-Town pub - 2nd floor. (I probably had bangers and mash.) 😂 It doesn’t appear that I kept the pics though. You paid.
 

PUSH

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
How does that work....full-time subs? When I was subbing, they just had a pool of people in the district who were hired to be subs, but there was no quota of hours or anything. They'd just call you at 6am and ask if you could take a 5th grade class at this school, or for the English teacher at that high school for the day. Or if the teacher knew they were going to be gone, they'd ask if you were available on these days. When the music teacher at one of the elementary schools had major surgery and was going to be out for a month, I was the only music qualified sub in the district, so they asked me if I'd teach music for that month at that school. When she came back to school, her husband had been transferred with his job and she wanted out of her contract, so she asked if I'd take over her contract so she could move before the end of the year. So I became the music teacher for the rest of the year. But there was no full time subbing because they never knew when they would need a sub...it was always just a whenever they needed you, though you could pretty much work every day. There was always SOMEONE who needed a sub, even before I took the music class during the teacher's surgery and recovery. Does a full-time sub take over a specific class or do they go wherever they are needed?
They are employed full-time by the district and show up to their contract hours just like teachers. They get benefits and everything. Since there is always a need for subs, they always have a job. But if they didn't have a placement for the day, they would help out with other things. But if a teacher needs off, the full-time subs are automatically placed somewhere. Then if more subs are needed, they go with someone who is just filling in for the day.
 

PUSH

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
So I woke up today to……………………..nothing. Not even flurries!

Not that I’m complaining!!!
We have some freezing rain coming tomorrow morning, around commute time, but I'm hoping it'll hold off until I'm at school. Then Friday afternoon/evening and into Saturday it looks like I'm far enough south that I'll get just rain. But if it shifts 30 miles, I could get a good chunk of snow. Then next Wednesday our high is 63. :oops:
 

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