r/cpssubs

Has anyone had experiences where an entire school staff is rude to subs and won’t talk to you? There is a school I’ve been to a few times and the office barely acknowledges me and I can barely get them to tell me what room number to go to (but I never thought too much about it because it’s such a small interaction and idk how busy people are). Security also wont talk to me, but again I never thought too much about it. I recently had a job where the teacher didn’t leave a schedule or plans and said I’ll be with the other two classes in that grade and the other teachers will guide me and they’re a wonderful team and will help me (it was a special day so we were all together and other staff was running the activities and we were all just supervising the grade). None of the teachers would even talk to me or tell me what’s going on and if I asked about the schedule they’d check their phone and ignore me or say they’re figuring it out and walk away. I just left them alone because I didn’t know if they were stressed or what. Towards the end of the day, one of the teachers who never spoke to me all day randomly asked me if I was certified, and I was genuinely confused because there are so many different kind of certifications and obviously I’m certified to sub if I’m there, so I asked “certified to what?” And she replied “Certified to teach” and in that moment I realized they don’t respect substitute teachers and that’s probably why the entire school staff doesn’t talk to me ever. I was wondering if anyone else has experienced this with school staff?

Hello,

I've had a pretty unique work history over the past 10 years and looking to pivot into something else.

Before I purchase the para license I was wondering if anyone has any insight if I would have a shot at getting a job.

I graduated with my bachelor's in business management in 2018

Played poker professionally for 7 years and then spent the last year working in sales.

I'm just looking to do something that would give me a sense of fulfillment and I've always loved working with kids.

If anyone can provide any insight before I spend the $100 I would appreciate it!

Hey all, I've been subbing with CPS for the past two months with about 15-20 days worked under my belt. I am really enjoying my time in the classroom and hope to return next school year, but admittedly have canceled jobs more than five times- the majority more than 3 days in advance, with only one around 24 hours in advance.

I have heard mixed things about canceling jobs- some current teachers telling me as a sub they canceled jobs often to work at their preferred schools and still gained employment with CPS, and some on here claiming if you cancel too many times you will be removed from the sub pool.

So, what is the deal with canceling sub jobs? Will too many cancelations cause you to lose your job and put you in bad graces with CPS? Do they really care as long as you do a good job when you show up? I couldn't find clear information on this in the CPS sub handbook.

Thank you for your insights everyone!

I am hoping to babysit/nanny over the summer. I don't have formal experience because most of my childcare has been through family or tutoring.

Last month I subbed for a SPED teacher in a preschool and spent a lot of time with the general education teacher and was very hands on with the kiddos. What do you all think about me asking her for a reference/review on care.com? It was only one day, but I'm just asking her to speak to my temperament with the kids.

Inappropriate, depends, or totally fine?

When would applications open? or would it be better to cold email schools I might be interested in?

I already have my sub and para licenses ! but I do not have much experience in the teaching field, what would you all recommend?

I’m not returning next year and was wondering if I needed to send out a formal resignation or do I just stop picking up assignments?

graduated in may 2025 with secondary ed teaching degree. started subbing fall 2025 with cps and am now closing out the school year with them. i applied to teach summer school and just got an email that i did not get picked. this is pretty disappointing as i was really hoping for a role and basically made my availability wide open for any time, any session, any school. am i completely out of a job for this summer? will i be able to sub for summer school teachers via frontline? anyone with multi year experience who can clarify would be greatly appreciated.

Just wanted to see how long after the bell you will wait to mark a student tardy. I, personally, am pretty strict about marking them tardy even if it is a few minutes after the bell if they don't have a pass from another teacher. Especially if they come in and put their stuff down and then leave and come back after the bell has already run for class to start.

I have had students argue with me about how they're only a few minutes late and a lot of the students in the schools I am at don't seem to realize that 3 tardies in a day add up to a 1/2 day absence. I learned that piece of information after I had counselors doing a presentation for class schedules for next year.

Does anyone know the minimum qualification to be paid for a half day? I’ve seen some people say 3.45 hours some say 3.30, not all half day assignments I’ve seen even last that long to qualify for that for example 12-3:15, if anyone knows that would be great. Thanks!

Hello! Has anyone experienced a lock on where it says ‘Accept’? I fully own that I have cancelled a few, whether that be because a school I go to regularly has asked me after I accepted elsewhere (with plenty of notice) and then had to cancel one today because of a family emergency ,which was under 24 hours from the beginning time.

I’ve emailed Sub Services to explain the issue/reasoning and called the school to which they understood.

I just don’t want to be blacklisted, especially as I’m trying to work for CPS 😔

Do you leave feedback on your assignments? I usually do it only if I have something particularly positive or negative to say. Is that a problem?

Just got a notification about new mandatory training on SafeSchools, is this paid?

Hello! Just curious if anyone else has experienced this. I was supposed to substitute for a junior middle school social studies class, however, I got there and another teacher was out so they put me in her classroom and left the student teacher take over the first class. The new classroom was 3rd-5th SPED…something I’ve never done. I didn’t put up a fight since I’m trying to recoup lost money from student teaching, but I have had zero interest in being in a primary classroom. What would you have done?