Subbing in kindergarten

1 The day is routines

In the upper grades a sub day is mostly lessons with routines in between. In kindergarten it is the other way around. Most of the day is moving from one place to another, getting a coat on, washing hands, finding a spot on the carpet and waiting a turn. The lessons are short, and they sit inside routines that the class practiced every day since the first week of school.

That is good news for a substitute. You do not have to invent a way to run the room, because one already exists, and twenty small people know it by heart. If you try to teach your own way of lining up or asking for the bathroom, you will spend the morning untangling it. If you ask them to show you theirs, the day runs itself for long stretches.

Before the children arrive, read the plan for the routines before the lessons. Look for the schedule, the attention signal, the bathroom rule, where snack is kept, how the class lines up, what happens at rest time, and how each child goes home. Those seven things matter more than any worksheet in the folder.

2 Arrival and the carpet

Arrival in kindergarten is a string of small jobs: backpacks hung up, folders in a basket, coats on hooks, a lunch choice made, maybe a sign-in sheet or a name card moved. Stand at the door, greet each child, and watch. Most of them will do the jobs without being asked. The ones who stall will often tell you what comes next if you ask, “What do you do first?”

Then the class comes to the carpet. Many rooms have spots marked by squares, letters or colors, and children know their own. Ask them to sit on their spot, and if there is no marking, ask them to sit where they sat yesterday. Learn a few first names from name tags or the seating chart as you go.

• Use the class's own attention signal if the plan names one. If it doesn't, ask a child to show you.
• Say who you are in one sentence and what is the same today: the same rules, the same jobs, the same day.
• Keep the first carpet time to the calendar, the weather and a song, or whatever the plan lists. The morning board can show the day on the screen if the room has one.
• Tell them the next thing before you move: “After this, we go to tables for drawing.”

What to sayGood morning. My name is Ms. Rivera, and I am your teacher today. Your teacher will be back soon. Today is a normal day, and you know how it goes better than I do, so I might ask you to show me things.

3 The bathroom, snack and lining up

The bathroom

Every kindergarten room has a bathroom rule, and it is one of the first things to learn. Some rooms have a bathroom inside the classroom; some use a hall bathroom with a pass or a buddy; some go as a whole class at set times. Ask the plan, then ask the class. Never say no to a five-year-old who says they need to go right now. Follow the room's routine, and if a child has an accident, call the office or the nurse quietly and follow the school's way of handling it. Keep it calm and private.

Snack

Snack has its own routine: who hands it out, where the trash goes, whether children eat at tables or on the carpet. Check the plan for food allergies and follow exactly what it says. Do not hand out any food that the teacher didn't leave or that the school hasn't approved, even if a child says it's fine.

Lining up

Kindergarten lines often have a fixed order, a line leader and a door holder. Ask the class to show you how they line up, and let the line leader lead. Count heads before you leave the room and again when you arrive. Count at every door: out to recess, back in, to lunch, to specials and back.

• I know the bathroom rule.
• I know where snack is and which children have food allergies listed in the plan.
• I know the line order or the line leader for today.
• I count heads at every door.

4 Short blocks and moving bodies

Young children can sit and listen for a short time, and then they need to move. Plan on about fifteen to twenty minutes of one thing before you change. A change can be small: from the carpet to the tables, from listening to drawing, from sitting to standing up for a song.

If the plan has a long block, break it up yourself. Read a story, then stand up and stretch, then go to tables. A brain break of a minute or two is enough to reset the room. A five-minute timer on the screen helps children see how long something lasts, and it gives you a clear end to an activity.

• Give one direction at a time, and show it while you say it.
• Have the class repeat the direction back before they move.
• Hand out materials after the directions, not before, or nobody will listen.
• Keep a simple backup: a counting song, a drawing page, a story on the carpet.

When the room gets loud, it is usually because a block has gone on too long or a direction wasn't clear. Use the attention signal, wait until it is quiet, and give one short direction. Moving on to the next part of the day is often better than pushing through.

5 Reading aloud

Kindergarteners are learning to read, but most cannot read alone for long. Reading aloud is the best thing a sub can do with them, and it fills a gap anywhere in the day. A story on the carpet before lunch, after recess or at the end of the day brings a busy room back together.

1. Gather the class on the carpet and wait for them to settle.
2. Show the cover and ask what they think the story is about.
3. Read with expression and stop once or twice to ask, “What do you think will happen next?”
4. After the story, ask one question with no wrong answer, like “What was your favorite part?”
5. Let them draw a picture of their favorite part and write or dictate one word or sentence.

If the teacher left books, use them. If not, the read-aloud books can go on the projector so every child sees the pictures. Choose short picture books with big pictures and a clear story. Repetition is fine. Young children like hearing a book again, and many will join in on the lines they know.

Reading aloud also gives you a calm way to manage the room. A child who is wandering will often come back to the carpet for a good story, and the class learns your voice.

6 Rest time and the afternoon

Some kindergartens have a rest time after lunch, and some don't. If the plan has one, follow it: where the mats are, whether the lights go off, whether there is quiet music, and what children who don't sleep may do. Some rooms let those children look at books quietly on their mat. Ask the plan or the aide, and keep to what the class usually does.

The afternoon is often harder than the morning. Children are tired, and the day has been long. Keep the afternoon blocks even shorter, add movement, and save something the class enjoys for the end: a story, a song, a drawing time.

• Start the afternoon on the carpet with a short read-aloud to settle the class after lunch and recess.
• Use tables for one short activity, such as a drawing and writing page or a counting game.
• Leave enough time for cleanup. Kindergarten cleanup always takes longer than you think.
• Keep a brain break ready for the moment the room starts to slide.

If a child is upset or misses home, keep your voice calm and low, offer a quiet spot or a book, and tell the child when the end of the day is coming. If a child is hurt, sick, or very upset and you cannot help, call the office.

7 Dismissal and the note

Dismissal is the most important routine of the day, and the one to get exactly right. Children go home in different ways: the bus, a car line, a walker list, an after-school program, a parent at the door. The plan should say how each child goes home. If it doesn't, ask the office before the end of the day, not at the bell.

• I know how every child goes home today.
• I know where the dismissal list is and where each group goes.
• I have left time for coats, backpacks and folders.
• I count heads before the class leaves the room.
• I release children only the way the school's dismissal list says.

If anyone you don't recognize asks to take a child, or a change in plans comes from a child rather than the office, send the question to the office. Do not guess. It is always fine to say, “Let me check with the office first.”

After the children leave, write a short note for the teacher. Say what you did, what was left undone, who was a great helper, and anything the teacher needs to know. Keep it short and kind. Use first names only, and keep anything private for the office or a quiet word with the teacher.

If you are building your own plan for a kindergarten day, the all-day kindergarten sub plan lays out a full day in short blocks with a read-aloud, a drawing page and a counting game, ready to print.