In every studio and every dance school in the world there will be a moment when a sub is needed to cover a class. Yet very little attention is brought to subbing despite the fact that a sub is going to be responsible for keeping a class alive and moving forward. The sub helps the regular teacher to be able to miss a class if there is no other alternative knowing that their students will not be abandoned or lose a class. This also keeps the parents happy because they still feel that they are getting their money's worth and also doesn't disrupt their schedules which in turn will help to keep the studio or school owner happy because business continues as usual.
How do you become a teacher who subs and what do you need to do to become a better sub?
Well first of all let's establish what the benefits to being a sub are. The most important benefit is financial because you will be able to earn more money if you establish a reputation for being a reliable and well informed sub. Another benefit is that you will increase your circle of studio or school owners who know about you and that could perhaps be very helpful to you in the future. Once you have established yourself as the "sub to go to" in your area you could find that you are at the helm of your own very profitable business as a teacher and sub!
The great thing about subbing is that you parachute into a class, teach it and leave. Usually everyone is grateful to you for saving the day! There is always a need for you because sooner or later a teacher will have a professional engagement or become temporarily ill or will just need a day off for whatever reason. This is where you can step in. It is definitely a challenge and students can be difficult sometimes but it can also be very rewarding when you succeed in giving a class that everyone enjoys.
In order to be a great sub it is helpful to be able to teach as many dance styles as possible. Perhaps your strength is Ballet but imagine how many more classes you could sub if you also taught Lyrical Jazz, Jazz, Modern and Contemporary. If your strength is as a Tap or Hip Hop teacher why not broaden not only your outlook but more importantly your knowledge by investing time in yourself and tackling dance styles that are out of your comfort zone. By continually studying dance yourself you become a better teacher no matter what style you find yourself teaching.
You can become extremely useful to your employer if you are able to help out at times when other teachers are incapacitated for one reason or another and it can also help to keep you, as a teacher, fresh and inspired because you will often called upon to be creative in ways that are not the norm for you. For any sub it is helpful if the regular teacher is working with a syllabus for each class because it makes it so much easier to give the students exercises and class work that they are familiar with but it also won't hurt them to have some new material given to them and even if you are telling them the same things that their teacher tells them on a regular basis, sometimes hearing a different voice can all of a sudden make the student wake up and apply the correction that they have been given over and over again!
Subbing is just another way to broaden your scope as a teacher and to make yourself extremely valuable to your employers as someone that they can count on to be reliable and helpful in moments that can tend to be stressful. As you become more proficient as a sub you will also become more proficient as a teacher. You will probably be more appreciated by your regular students for all the new knowledge and experience you are able to bring into their classes and your employer will love the fact that you are able to be so versatile!
