Substitute Teacher Tells History Firsthand

Paul Vitello
The New York Times
Wednesday, April 4th, 2007
pgs
The Story
The Summary: A Long Island substitute teacher captivates his middle school audience by telling real tales of his past.

Every had those teacher, whether they were subs of full time. The teacher who had stories in their pockets, and would spend a whole class period way off topic, but, at the same time, you came away knowing more than you would have if class had gone on as planned.

History is a hard thing to understand. I barely remember what it was like before the days of computers and cell phones. I could only imagine how sucky it would be to have to share a phone with my roommates, and then having long distance charges on top of sharing. No thank you.

Having a person who was there who can provide a direct connection to the past which makes it easier for students to understand. You can say "The USA had ration stamps" or you can say "this is what it was like to buy food using ration stamps, and this is what my family did to adapt..."

A first-hand account of an event or time makes it more real. It takes the facts from history and turns them into people and places. Add a good story teller to the equation, and you have a history goldmine, where children enjoy listening to history. History becomes their favorite subject.

This teacher, Mr. Blume, 81, subs everything from math to spanish, and manages to bring personal experiences to every class. As a full time teacher he taught English and Social Studies. He retired in 1983, but now spends an average of 4 days a week subbing at Great Neck North Middle school.

I have a few substitute teachers that stick in my mind. One was Mrs. Oistead... she was a sub for as long as I knew her. I remember not liking her as an elementary student. She was one of those community people who, like Mr. Blume, never really retired.

Another, I can't remember his name at the moment, would bring his guitar to sub. Even if he was subbing shop. He was pretty cool.

Substitute teachers are special people who change the world, with out even knowing it. Especially the ones who retired, and still come back to teaching. (One of my high-school English teachers spent the beginning of her career subbing, as a part-time job while raising her family.)