I retired and am now subbing. My pay rate varies between districts, but I don’t worry too much about the actual numbers. I enter these classrooms for love, not money.The average rate for a Substitute Teacher, K-12 is $11.35 per hour, according to PayScale.com.

I work in one district that pays substitute paraprofessionals and substitute teachers exactly the same money. When I first heard the head of human resources explaining this pay set-up, I thought, “Why would I teach? Assistants have a much easier job.” Teachers get a few more breaks during the day, but assistants get paid the same amount per hour to cut up the apples for snack as teachers do to manage the behavior of twenty five-year-olds. Ummm… duhh?

I still teach. I like teaching. I don’t fear unruly minions. I can get the banana or potato chant going when I want everyone’s attention. I can cope with sketchy or absent lesson plans. One advantage to spending years working in a disadvantaged school with high turnover and few subs: You become a Grand Master of Sudden Emergencies.

Here’s the part that I find the funniest about my post-retirement subbing: My cleaning lady makes more money than I do.