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. Check things off as you go; the page remembers.

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.