When getting ready to take a day off as a teacher, it’s always stressful leaving your classroom in someone else’s hands. Especially with our substitute shortage that many districts are facing across the United States. However, one way that I make myself feel better about leaving my class for a day is to have thorough and complete sub plans.
When I first began teaching and had to create my first set of sub plans, I realized that I didn’t have a good idea of what to put on my sub plans! With the past six years of teaching, I’ve been able to identify the key things that I like to have on my sub plans. Along with identifying these various things, you get access to my free sub plan template at the end of this post that has all of these things on it!
1. Reason You’re Gone
One of the first things I like to put on my sub plans is explaining why I’m gone for the day. When I was a sub, many times I was asked “Why is so-and-so gone?” Oftentimes, I wasn’t able to tell students. So I like to provide the reason as to why I’m gone in case students as my sub.
2. Thanking Them
Immediately after I explain why I’m gone, I make sure to thank the substitute for coming in that day. Subbing is stressful and I always want to make sure that they know that I appreciate them.
3. All School Rules and Procedures
As a substitute, they are not always in the same building every day. Or they may be unfamiliar with your work site’s rules yet. So I make sure to always have a portion at the top that addresses our school wide rules and procedures. Some examples of this is our sign in/sign out process to go to the bathroom or office. We also have a schoolwide rule that students do not leave during the first and last ten minutes of class. While it can be hard to maintain the school rules when you’re a substitute teacher, being in the know is a great start for them!
4. Neighbor teacher or department head names
I also give a spot that shares who my neighbor teachers are and who my department heads are, so that if something is going wrong or they have questions, they know who they can go to.
5. Schedule
After the beginning information mentioned above, I make sure to have the schedule for the day on there – typically just the order of the classes, what classes they are, and the times they run from.
6. Plans
This is the obvious part of your sub plans – what are the classes doing while you are gone? Make sure you be as specific as possible in the directions – when is the assignment due? Where to find the information? Do students know about the assignment? I also like to provide some information about what students have previously done, so the substitute has an idea of the scope and sequence.
7. Where to get 504, IEP, ELL, and Health information
I make sure to provide a list of each student in each class that has a 504 plan, an IEP, receives ELL services, and any important health information. I have a binder that has all that information that I can reference and I make sure to tell the sub where they can find that information.
Need a refresher on all the acronyms within education? Check out this list of over 40 abbreviations!
8. In case of emergency
On your sub plans, you have to have a spot that mentions what the procedure is in case of evacuation. Typically, schools have a supply bag and a specific place that they line up on the field. Include that information for your substitute!
9. Phone number
Some teachers don’t like to put their phone numbers on the sub plans. I always put mine on the back page so that if the sub has any issues with technology or concerns, they can reach out to me as well.
I hope you have a wonderful day off – for whatever your reason is! Remember to grab the sub plan template above to make the workload a little easier for you 🙂
3 Comments
I used to sub in the beginning of my career and this is such a great list that I unfortunately didn’t always get. Now a days, the ‘in case of emergencies’ info is super important.
Creating a Sub Binder with most of this information has been a saving grace for surprise absences. Plenty of templates on TPT as well. I used to think my reason and contact info was necessary but after a few years, I realized it’s none of their business why I’m gone and they will survive without contacting me. I always put for questions Teacher A located B can help or call the office and Ms. C can help. Teachers deserve breaks too.
Totally agree! A sub binder is so helpful. I usually have one set up, but last year, with 3 preps, I found I just could never find the time to update it! When I was subbing, students always asked where their teacher was and when I could tell them where they were, they seemed to appreciate it. But yes, teachers definitely deserve breaks too!