Supply Teacher Interview Questions

"Students tend to be kinaesthetic, visual, or auditory learners. I try to include different activities that appeal to each type of learner and, if necessary, adapt the teacher's lesson plan to do so. For example, in an English class, I would let students hold a book while I read to them and they follow along. An activity like this would appeal to each type of learner."

"I always arrive at the school early to give myself time to prepare and find my classroom. I head to the school's office to receive my assignment for the day and ask for directions to my class. Once there, I go over the teacher's lesson plans and familiarise myself with the classroom and materials before the students come in."

"I generally work with younger kids, so I create a reward system to manage my class effectively. I write their names on the board and give students a smiley face if they answer questions, sit properly, demonstrate good listening skills, and show other similar behaviours. If they get 10 smiley faces by the end of the lesson, I give them a sticker. When students are being disruptive, I take away a smiley face and remind them they won't get a sticker if they misbehave. Rewarding positive behaviour helps encourage other students to follow along."

"As soon as I get to my classroom, I go through the lesson plan the teacher left for me. I take out any material the students will need, such as textbooks or worksheets, and go over those as well to familiarise myself with the lesson. If there are answer sheets, I try to memorise the answers so that I'm not constantly referring back to them."

"I didn't enjoy reading when I was younger until I started high school and met one of my favourite English teachers. He introduced the class to a great list of stories and books and helped us understand them better. This led me to love reading all kinds of books, even to this day. He inspired in me a need to instil the same love of reading and learning into other children, so I became a teacher."

"My teaching philosophy is that every student is unique and has different learning needs, so I adapt my teaching accordingly. I aim to create an inspiring and hands-on academic environment where every student can grow mentally as well as physically, socially, and emotionally."

"I get to know student's learning styles, passions, and challenges by engaging them in conversation before I begin teaching. I won't learn everything about each student in such a short amount of time, but I aim to learn enough to tailor my teaching style to their needs. Engaging students in a conversation also helps them open up, making them more willing to participate in the lesson."

"Although I am a recent graduate, I am motivated and passionate about teaching children. I have been volunteering with children since I was in high school, so I have a lot of hands-on experience. I can use my volunteer experience with children and knowledge from my own education to create a warm and positive learning environment for students."

"My teaching style is interactive, supportive, and communicative. I encourage students to speak their minds and approach me with any questions they have. This allows students to participate and feel comfortable requesting the help they need."

"I always arrive at school early to create my schedule for the day. I create a loose schedule based on the teacher's lesson plan and ensure I stick to it as closely as I can. I make notes to the teacher throughout the day so that I'm not left with that task when it's time to leave."

"I think students today are under a lot of pressure. Many jobs are requiring more and more education, extracurriculars, and better grades, and students are struggling to meet these expectations. I try to set realistic expectations for my students to not overwhelm them further."

"I motivate students by thoroughly explaining activities and learning goals. Students that don't understand a lesson may be scared to try and fail, so explaining each activity in detail helps motivate students by giving them the confidence they need to complete each activity."

"I love being able to visit multiple schools and get to know a wide range of students, but I do eventually want to work for one school full time. My goal for the future is to obtain a full-time English teaching position at an elementary or high school."

"Students' needs are constantly changing, and I try to keep up with these changes by taking courses in my free time. I recently took an online course about using technology in teaching. Technology is also constantly changing, and using it in my class helps keep students engaged, so the course was extremely valuable."

"In the past, I have worked with classes of varying sizes. I have taught students one-on-one, small classes of 10 children, and large classes of 30. I am thus comfortable teaching classes of any size independently."