Working with Staff

Checklists

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Assistant Teacher/Aide/Paraprofessional Job Description Checklist

_____ Allow them to use their abilities and talents; give them the chance to make and try suggestions.

_____ Let them see that you appreciate initiative. Make sure they realize that they are essential to the success of the students with whom they work.

_____ Treat your aides, paraprofessional or assistant teachers as “second teachers” in the classroom.

_____ Encourage them to look around, see what needs to be done, and do it.
However be very aware that liability issues may arise if the children are left with an aide, paraprofessional or assistant teacher who is not a licensed certified teacher. If a child gets hurt or problems arise while you are not in the room there could be problems. Meet with your supervisor and discuss this matter to see what your guidelines and responsibilities are in these cases.

_____ Make the aide, paraprofessional or assistant teacher aware of the IEP goals for each student. These individuals will acquire personal growth when you trust them and appreciate what they do.

_____ Short written notes of thanks are a really good practice such as “I want to thank you for being so positive when talking to the students.

_____ First-year teachers seem very unsure of how to use their aide. If aides are idle, resources are being underutilized.

_____ Aides and teaching assistants perform numerous duties including assisting with grading and duplicating worksheets.

_____ Working with students, however, whether individually or in small groups is their most important function.

_____ If problems arise with your aide, paraprofessional or assistant you may want to meet with the school psychologist, your coordinator of special education or the principal to determine a way to resolve the problems. It is advisable to act promptly in these instances, the longer you wait to talk about a challenging situation, the more difficult it often becomes.

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Teachers Checklist for Substitutes

As soon as feasible:

_____ Ensure the materials the front office provides to the substitute teacher upon arrival are accurate and complete, e.g.:

• Indicate whether or not the substitute teacher should check and pick up items from your mail box (e.g., in the teachers’ lounge), e.g., attendance sheet
• Times, room #’s, course titles, etc. for all classes
• Map
• Key(s) for all necessary doors, cabinets, lockers, etc.

_____ Explain to your students that whenever a substitute teacher is assigned, you will ask the substitute teacher to give you the names of students who misbehave and which classes were best and worst behaved

When requesting a substitute teacher:

_____ Try to leave a short message with the phone system assignment, e.g.:

• Where to find the lesson plan, attendance sheets, materials, etc.
• Specific titles of the classes
• Your home phone number
• The web page address for your classes and/or the school
• Any special requirements, events, etc.
• Brief description of planned activities

_____ Avoid addressing it to a specific substitute teacher – the job might end up being offered to someone else

_____ Provide a detailed lesson plan, e.g.:

• For applicable items, give the substitute teacher something to read to students verbatim and/or to write on the board
• Whether the TV needs to be turned on for the Pledge of Allegiance, announcements, etc., and, if so, how to operate it (e.g., is it operated through the computer?)
• How to take roll, any unique pronunciations, where to put roll sheet when complete
• Try to give the substitute teacher options, e.g., if the substitute teacher feels comfortable, let the substitute teacher teach portions of the lesson plan
• Try to indicate how long the substitute teacher should spend on each part of lesson plan
• Try to let the substitute teacher know why students are supposed to do things or prohibited from doing things, e.g., no new shop materials today, no shop work today
• Specify whether the students need to turn anything in to you, e.g., homework, assignments, projects
• What to do if a student shows up late or has to leave early, e.g., if they need to take a test
• Your goals for the course and for that period
• Any homework the students are responsible for
• Whether a second roll should be taken at the end of class, etc.
• Whether there are any teacher’s aides and/or instructional aides and if so, what they should do
• Names of students who can be trusted to provide assistance
• Names of students who tend to misbehave
• Names of students who have special needs

_____ Provide detailed instructions and information, e.g.:

• How to operate heater, air conditioner, etc.
• How to use the phone and who to call for help (e.g., unruly student)
• What students are and aren’t allowed to do, e.g., listen to music on headphones, go to the bathroom (one at a time?), get a drink of water, change seats, eat/drink in classroom, use phone, sit outside classroom quietly, use computers in classroom, go to Media Center, play music out loud in classroom, play games on computers
• Any areas, cabinets, drawers, etc. students should not enter (e.g., by the teacher’s desk)
• Whether or not to answer the telephone(s) and whether letting it ring will transfer the call to the teacher’s voice mail
• How to tell if there’s a message (voice mail) e.g., red light on phone, whether to retrieve messages, and, how to retrieve messages
• Nearest rest room(s) for teachers
• Location of extra supplies

If you’re asking the substitute teacher to show a video:

_____ Explain where and how to get a TV and VCR (if not already in room)

_____ Explain how to work the TV and VCR (e.g., are they operated through a computer)

_____ Let the substitute teacher know how long the video is

_____ State whether students need to take notes, what they should get out of the video and if there’ll be a quiz on the video

_____ State whether the video should be rewound or left where the class stopped watching it

If you’re asking the substitute teacher to have students complete a test, worksheet, etc.:

____ Keep test keys and originals separate from the copies and mark them well so that the substitute teacher doesn’t accidentally pass them out

_____ Specify when students should start and finish them, and whether it’s okay for them to finish them later

_____ Specify whether students can use calculators, textbooks, notes, etc.

_____ Specify whether students can write on the test or worksheet, or, if they should use separate paper

_____ Specify whether scratch paper should be used and/or provided and whether it needs to be turned in with their name on it

_____ Specify whether you’d like for the substitute teacher to grade them

For periods when a quiz/test is given:

_____ Consider having a worksheet that the students pick up when they turn in their quiz/test and start working on – have it so they can finish it for homework – or just have an assignment out of the textbook for them to work on

For block periods:

_____ Do the students get a break (e.g., 5 minutes) halfway through the period to get up, stretch, talk, etc.?

Other:

_____ Ask other teachers to introduce themselves to the substitute teacher and offer to help/advise

_____ Provide materials in the classroom for the substitute teacher, e.g.:

•  Teacher’s edition of textbook(s)
• Tests, quizzes, answer keys
• Worksheets
• Calculators
• Hall passes
• Referral forms (to refer misbehaving students to front office)
• An extra copy of the class roster(s) – substitute teacher can use it to make notes about individual students, e.g., when they go to the bathroom
• Scrap paper
• Places (e.g., folders) for substitute teacher to put completed tests, assignments, etc.
• Blank report for substitute teacher to let you know how things went, who was absent, etc.

_____ Put agenda(s) on the board

Adapted from Checklists.com

Download a PDF Version of this Checklist – CLICK HERE

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Substitute Teachers Checklist

Substitute teaching provides a flexible schedule, exposes you to a wide variety of subjects and teaching environments, and, can help you decide if you want to become a full-time teacher.

Well before your first teaching assignment:

_____ Prepare blank cards to help you take down all of the necessary information when you receive a phone call for a substitute assignment

_____ Develop a system for keeping track of your assignments, e.g., a calendar

_____ Collect materials to be able to use in the event a lesson plan and/or sufficient materials are not provided to you

_____ Keep teaching materials in your car, organized by subject and/or grade level

_____ Obtain a large bag, folder, notebook and/or briefcase to hold your teaching materials

_____ Keep street maps in your car to locate schools with which you are not familiar

_____ Prepare, and make copies of, a blank generic form on which to write a report to leave for the regular teacher, including:

• Your name
• Your phone number
• Your email address
• Procedure and/or code for teacher to request you as a substitute in the future
• Blank lines

Items to consider taking on assignments:

_____ Blank forms on which to write report(s) to teacher(s)

_____ ‘Show and tell’-type items, e.g., from your travels, work experience

_____ Scratch paper

_____ Pencils

_____ Chalk (several colors)

_____ White board markers

_____ Post-it’s

_____ Paper clips

_____ Clipboard

_____ Hat

_____ Sunscreen

_____ Tennis shoes

_____ Whistle

During periods when you expect to receive phone calls for assignments:

_____ Try to be available to answer the phone yourself

Night before teaching:

_____ Organize your wardrobe for the next day

When accepting an assignment:

_____ Obtain:

• Name of the school
• Date(s)
• Start and end times
• Subject
• Name of the absent teacher
• Confirmation number (if given)

Upon getting an assignment:

_____ Consider checking the teacher’s web site

_____ Consider trying to contact the teacher to clarify his/her instructions

On the day of the assignment:

_____ Plan to be at the school at least 20 minutes before school starts, even if the assignment has no first period (you may be assigned related duties during this time)

Take:

_____ Lunch or cash for lunch

_____ Water bottle

_____ Snacks

_____ Information about the school and/or district you’ve been assigned to

_____ Materials appropriate for the grade level and subject you’ve been assigned to

_____ Also see above: “Items to consider taking on assignments”

Upon arrival at the school:

_____ Determine if there’s a significant difference between your watch and the school’s time

_____ Have a place (e.g., loose sheet of paper) to write down things to report to regular teacher, e.g., problems encountered, good students, bad students

At the front office:

_____ Ask if you are required to have a parking pass

_____ Fill out a time card

_____ Pick up:

• Keys
• Copy of any appropriate bulletins
• Folder, etc. provided for you by the regular teacher (it might be on file in the main office, on the teacher’s desk or cupboard)
• Map of the school (if copy not available, review posted map of the school)
• Information sheets regarding yard duty, supervisory assignments, emergency drills, special events, etc.

_____ Determine:

• Whether you should check the regular teacher’s mailbox, e.g., to pick up attendance sheets, daily bulletin
• How to report absences
• If there are any students with special needs
• Whether a student teacher, parent aid or teacher’s assistant is assigned to the room and, if so, what your working relationship with him/her will be
• Location of rest rooms, etc.
• Name and location of the Department Chairperson – in case you have questions regarding the lesson plan
• Whether it’s okay to leave the classroom (e.g., between classes) while students are in the classroom
• When, where and how to get lunch, e.g., whether you should order your lunch in advance
• Procedures for making copies, if needed
• Whether you need to turn on a TV for the Pledge of Allegiance, announcements, etc., and, instructions for turning on the TV (e.g., is it operated through a computer in the classroom?)
• Options for regulating the temperature in the classroom(s)

On the way to classroom:

_____ Check regular teacher’s mailbox for attendance sheets, daily bulletin, items to pass out to students, items to read to students, etc.

_____ Put your lunch in a refrigerator, e.g., in teachers’ lounge

_____ Use the rest room

Upon arrival in the classroom:

_____ Keep the classroom key(s) on your person – so you won’t get locked out, you won’t lose them and no one can take them

_____ Find the lesson plan and attendance sheets

If you can’t find them:

_____ Contact another teacher nearby, the front office and/or the regular teacher

_____ Put your things (including your food and drinks) in a place where you won’t forget them at the end of the day and where students won’t have access to them

_____ Secure your purse and/or other valuables

_____ Put tests, answer keys, etc. in a safe place where students won’t have access to them

Before students arrive:

_____ Review all of lesson plan(s), noting important portions and things you should do right away, e.g., find and/or set up materials

_____ Locate textbooks and necessary supplies (e.g., textbook(s), tests, worksheets, large sheets of paper, markers)

_____ Review items in the substitute teacher folder

_____ Determine the methods of taking attendance (e.g., seating chart) and record-keeping

_____ Review homeroom announcements and/or other daily communications

_____ Note how the plans for the day may be affected by the time and place of special activities such as auditorium or student body programs, television schedules, sports events or visits by special personnel, such as the nurse or other support persons

_____ Write your name on the board

_____ Be prepared to have the students begin to work immediately when they enter the room, e.g., have an assignment on the board and/or the overhead

_____ Regulate the classroom temperature, e.g., open the windows, set thermostat

If time permits:

_____ Set up audio-visual equipment if its use is suggested in the teacher’s lesson plan

_____ Write assignments on the chalkboard

_____ Duplicate needed materials

_____ Distribute necessary supplies

_____ Do as much as possible to avoid the need for students to ask questions

_____ Get acquainted with neighboring teachers

_____ Determine which students must leave early for various reasons, such as to serve as cafeteria helpers, learn their times of departure and return to the classroom) and determine how alternatives are appointed in the event that students who perform service functions are absent

When students start to arrive:

_____ Stand at the door and greet students when they enter

When first bell rings:

_____ Check the classroom clock to see if it’s on time, fast or slow

At the beginning of the first class of the day:

_____ Determine if the TV should be turned on for the Pledge of Allegiance, announcements, etc.

_____ If the daily bulletin is not read over the public address system, offer to review the daily bulletin for the students

At the beginning of each class:

_____ Point to your name on the board and introduce yourself briefly

_____ Explain that you will help the students continue their work while the regularly assigned teacher is absent

_____ Explain that no two teachers or students do things in exactly the same way and that your procedures may vary in some ways from those used in the regular program

_____ As applicable, have students sit in their assigned seats (perhaps just for taking roll)

_____ Take attendance (can be performed quickly by using a seating chart if available) (in upper grades, a student may be designated to take the attendance) (changes should not be made on the permanent seating chart)

_____ Provide students with an overview of the work for the day or class period, e.g., read applicable portions of regular teachers lesson plan and/or instructions to you

_____ Establish expectations regarding student behavior, etc.

_____ Address questions to specific individuals – to avoid simultaneous responses from more than one student

Before leaving a classroom, e.g., between periods, during periods to take the class somewhere:

_____ Close and lock windows and doors, as applicable

_____ Secure valuables, tests, etc. or take them with you

_____ Consider leaving a note on the door saying where you’re going and when you’ll be back

Throughout the day:

_____ Reread the lesson plan(s) to ensure you’re doing everything necessary

_____ Show enthusiasm

_____ Follow the plan suggested by the regular teacher as closely as feasible

_____ Include your own material for enrichment (as time and conditions permit)

_____ Help students to review and reinforce basic skills rather than introducing new skills or concepts unless definite instructions have been received from the regular teacher or principal

_____ Give one instruction at a time

_____ Be clear, concise and consistent

_____ Follow through on instructions

_____ When appropriate, circulate in the classroom to help individual students or members of small groups

If any students are disruptive:

_____ Make a note of their names and details of their behavior

_____ Warn them of possible consequences, e.g., detention, referral
If disruptive behavior continues

_____ Consider assigning detention or filling out a referral form

If someone brings a call slip to your class:

Before letting that person leave:

_____ Check to see if that student is currently in the classroom

If student isn’t in classroom:

_____ Determine whether person delivering slip should take the slip back to the office

If you’re giving tests, assignments, etc.:

Before passing out a test:
Depending on regular teacher’s instructions and availability of time:

_____ Consider giving students some time to review

_____ Consider having students move desks so they can’t cheat

_____ Explain the rules, e.g.:

• Work independently
• How much time they’ll have
• Whether they can write on the test
• Whether calculators, rulers, etc. can be used
• Whether pen or pencil is required to be used
• Whether graph paper should be used
• Take off hats

_____ Write on the board the time they have to finish by

During tests:

Immediately after the students start the test, to keep students from cheating and to notice if a student has a question:

_____ Regularly scan all the students

_____ Regularly walk around room

_____ Mostly stay in positions where you can see where students are looking and where they can see that you’re watching them

_____ Be prepared to staple or paper clip the pages of each student’s test together

_____ Regularly advise students how much time they have left

If you answer a student’s question about the test:

_____ Consider mentioning (and/or writing on the board) the question and your answer to the entire class

Collecting tests, assignments, etc.:

_____ Ensure student’s name is on their paper

_____ Ensure student completed all of the test, assignment, etc.

_____ Note the name(s) of anyone you noticed cheating or trying to cheat

_____ Consider stacking them in order received

_____ Place tests, etc. where students can’t access them

When all students have finished:

_____ Tell class that everyone has finished

_____ Have class start next assignment or activity as appropriate

After each intermission in the day’s activities:

_____ Consider rechecking attendance

Before students leave:

_____ Evaluate the activities of the class period with the students and review what they learned

_____ Remind students of homework assignments

_____ Have students pick up trash and straighten the room

_____ Dismiss students only at the scheduled or legal closing time, unless specifically directed otherwise

_____ Assure that the students leave the room in an orderly manner

After students leave each period:

_____ Erase portions of board, as applicable

_____ Write down notes about that class, e.g., whether everything got down, students who misbehaved, behavior of class as a whole

During any free periods:

_____ Check with the school secretary to see if you’re needed in another classroom

Before leaving the classroom at the end of day:

_____ Write a report for the regular teacher which:

• Summarizes what has been accomplished
• Explains in detail the behavior of disruptive students
• Details any significant events or occurrences during the day

_____ Leave the report and materials (e.g., items collected from students) in a conspicuous place

_____ Return materials (e.g., lesson plans, roll sheets) to where you found them

_____ Return materials borrowed from elsewhere on campus, e.g., VCR, TV, books

_____ Leave an orderly desk and room

_____ Lock windows and doors

_____ Ensure you take all of your belongings

If attendance sheets haven’t been picked up:

_____ Take them to the attendance office

Before leaving the campus:

_____ Report to the office to check out

_____ Return keys and other materials to be left there

_____ Fill out and sign a time card

_____ Confirm whether or not you are needed for the next day

Adapted from Checklists.com

Download a PDF Version of this CHECKLIST – CLICK HERE

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Forms

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Communication to Classroom Teachers at the Beginning of the School Year-From Resource Room Teachers

If you are assigned to an auxiliary setting (e.g., resource room) or will have students in a special learning disabilities class who will be partially mainstreamed , one of your most important responsibilities after assisting your students with is to communicate with his/her classroom teachers. Your major role with the child’s classroom teacher will be to assist in adapting curriculum, monitoring modifications, preparing adapted materials to use in the classroom, provide information and suggestions on the child’s disability, and provide alternate curriculum materials suited to the child’s skill levels (Pierangelo, 2004).

If you are a new teacher to the school, you should first place a letter in the teacher’s mailbox introducing yourself, offering some background information, and listing the name/s of the children you wish to discuss. An example of this letter follows:

Resource Room Letter-First year teacher

Dear :

My name is ___________ and this school year I will be working with ______(First and last name of child) this year in the Resource Room. _________. (Child’s first name) has been assigned this service according to his IEP for a minimum of once a day (Designate the time period for services).  These services are being provided to him/her for the following reasons:

(State reasons-usually weakness areas determined by an evaluation or IEP team)

In order to collaborate on the services I would like to meet with you to discuss ______(Child’s first name) program, scheduling time, parent communication and modifications that are required as a result of his IEP. I will be stopping down to your room to discuss a convenient time for this meeting and look forward to speaking with you or if you prefer I can be reached at ______(phone and extension) between the hours of____ and ___. My room number is ______.

I look forward to meeting with you.

Sincerely yours

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Download a MS Word Document of this Form Letter – CLICK HERE

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