Whether for professional development, a family emergency, or a personal illness, there will be days when you will need a substitute teacher to cover during your absence. As with so many of our responsibilities, it makes good sense to anticipate and plan in advance. In my experience as a substitute teacher, I appreciate when there is a clear, complete and meaningful lesson plan available when I enter a classroom.
Teachers practice different disciplines with regard to substitute coverage. I find it most helpful when teachers have developed and use a substitute teacher template that is populated with important classroom information and the day’s (or days’) lesson instructions.
The elements of the template should be separated and clearly identified (e.g,, Contact Info, Emergency Procedures, Attendance, Classroom Technology, Bathroom Policy, Phone Policy, Lesson Plan, ….).
Contacts, Emergency Procedures, Classroom Policies and Technology
The first part of the template should include contact info and emergency procedures, classroom protocols and policies, and technology information. This information will be consistent from day to day and can be prepared well in advance of a teacher’s absence.
- Contact information for key administration office (i.e., front office staff) and helper aides and teachers
- Information about the school’s emergency procedures and the actions the substitute should take in response to an earthquake, fire or lockdown event or drill;
- Attendance procedure
- Bathroom policy, enforcement and actions to take if policy is violated
- Mobile phone policy, enforcement and actions to take if policy is violated
- Information about the classroom technology (projector, DVD, laptop, WiFi access, document projector, classroom audio equipment, smart board, …)
Class Information, Roles and Responsibilities, Homework and Lesson Instructions
The second part of the template may be broken out by class/period and includes class information and the lesson plan for the class. The lesson plan may be for a single day or for multiple days depending upon the length of absence.
- Helpful information about the class (e.g., behavior and discipline matters)
- Names of students who can assist with class activities
- Assigned student roles and responsibilities
- Daily lesson and instructions (homework review, homework to be collected, new class instruction and work to be completed in class, video instructions, handouts, work to be collected at end of class, individual or group activities, new homework assignment, class reminders, …)
It is important to the continuity of your teaching to prepare and provide clear and complete instructions for your substitute teachers. Your days away from the classroom should not be lost time for your students. Whether this time is used effectively or not is your responsibility. Please make the effort to help your substitute teacher be successful in your classroom.