The sub folder checklist
A sub day goes well or badly based on what is in one folder on your desk. This is the checklist I use to stock mine: a one-page printable you can pin inside your plan book, and the whole list is right here too, free to copy.
Download the printable checklist (PDF) One page, no sign-up.
Before anything else
- A one-page substitute note: the schedule, the routines, what to do when a student is stuck
- Seating chart with pronunciation notes for the tricky names
- Class roster with a column per day for attendance and turned-in work
- Two reliable student helpers, named
The work
- Five days of review-only student work, clipped by day
- Answer keys labeled by page
- An early finisher task for every day
- A no-printer backup activity
The logistics
- The real schedule, with pull-out times and specials
- Dismissal notes: buses, pickups, walkers
- Fire drill route and lockdown procedure
- Health notes the sub must know (allergies, medical plans)
- The teacher next door, named, for questions
- A report form for the sub to fill in at the end of the day
If the "five days of review-only work" line is the part your folder is missing, that is exactly what my Math Sub Plans bundle for grades 3 to 5 was built to be, and the math sub plans guide walks through the whole system.