- Ask teachers where their best class came from and many say the same thing: somebody was ill and they said yes to a Thursday.
- Cover is an audition nobody calls an audition. The manager is solving a problem, not evaluating your philosophy.
- What gets you called again is unglamorous: you replied quickly, asked sensible questions, turned up early, left the room as you found it.
- Six questions asked the moment you accept prevent nearly every cover class that goes badly.
- The same-day note afterwards is three lines and is the whole difference between having covered once and being the person they think of next.
Ask teachers where their best class came from and a surprising number tell you the same thing. Somebody was ill. They said yes to a Thursday. Eighteen months later it’s theirs and it’s the one they would protect above all the others.
Teachers ask us how to get a regular slot. For me that’s the wrong question to start with, because the regular slot is nearly always the second thing that happens, not the first.
Cover gets treated as the junior version of teaching. In my experience it’s closer to the front door.
What is cover teaching, really?
It’s an audition that nobody calls an audition.
A manager with a hole in the timetable isn’t, in that moment, evaluating your philosophy. They’re solving a problem at short notice, and what they will remember is whether you made it easier or harder.
Which means the thing that gets you called again is mostly unglamorous. You replied quickly. You asked sensible questions. You turned up early. You left the room as you found it.
None of that’s teaching. All of it’s why some teachers get called first.
How do you get on the lists?
Four things, and they take an afternoon.
- Be on more than one list. Studios, gyms, community venues, the leisure trust, other teachers.
- Be one message away. A manager at nine with a nine-thirty gap wants a name, a number and a yes.
- Have your standing answer ready. What you teach, what you can cover, notice needed, your rate.
- Say yes to the awkward ones early. The Sunday morning, the one across town. You can be choosier once you’re on the list.
What should you confirm before accepting?
Six questions, sent the moment you say yes. What the class is called and what the regulars expect. How many usually come. Whether there’s kit. Who lets you in, and when. The rate, and who pays it. And whether anything is running you should know about.
Six questions prevent nearly every cover that goes badly.
What happens afterwards?
This is the bit nearly everybody skips.
Send a short note the same day. How it went, anything they would want to know, and that you’re happy to cover again. Three lines.
That note is the entire difference between having done one cover class and being the person they think of next time.
You might decide cover doesn’t suit your week and turn it down on purpose. Plenty of teachers do. Just know what you’re turning down.
Where this sits
YogaPros has been the professional body for yoga teachers since 2006, with over 10,000 members across 100+ countries.
*This article is general professional guidance. It isn’t a substitute for professional legal, tax, or insurance advice specific to your situation.*