Emergency Sub Plans: What to Include + Template by Grade

Emergency sub plans are a ready-made set of lessons and class information that any substitute can pick up when you’re out without warning; the best ones include a one-page overview, routines, safety information, confidential support notes and two to three days of standalone review lessons. You build them once, update them a few times a year, and stop worrying about the 5 a.m. sick-day scramble. Here’s exactly what to include, a template you can copy, and activity ideas by grade band.

What makes emergency plans different

Regular sub plans follow your current unit. Emergency plans can’t, because you won’t have time to update them. They should be:

• Standalone: they make sense any week of the year.
• Low-tech: they work even if the projector or Wi-Fi fails.
• Fully prepped: copies made, materials labeled, answer keys included.
• Simple to follow: written for someone who has never met your class.

What goes in the sub binder

Protect student privacy

A sub needs to know about a severe allergy, a seizure plan or a required accommodation. A sub doesn’t need the full IEP, diagnoses or family details. Follow your district’s rules and FERPA:

• Share only what’s necessary to keep students safe and provide required supports.
• Keep confidential pages in a sealed or clearly marked folder.
• Use first names or initials where possible.
• Never post health or disability information on a wall or an open shared document.

Fill-in emergency sub plan template

Copy this structure for each day you prepare.

Day 1 overview

• Arrival (8:00–8:15): Students unpack, turn in folders, start the morning work on their desks (copies in the blue tray).
• Morning meeting (8:15–8:30): Greeting, share question from the card in the binder, calendar.
• Reading (8:30–9:30): Read-aloud of the book in the sub tub, then the comprehension page. Fast finishers: independent reading.
• Specials (9:30–10:15): Drop off and pick up at the art room.
• Math (10:15–11:15): Review game, then the practice page; answer key in the folder.
• Lunch and recess (11:15–12:00).
• Writing (12:00–12:45): Prompt in the folder; students draft and illustrate.
• Science or social studies (12:45–1:30): Short video or read-aloud plus an organizer.
• Pack up and dismissal (1:30–2:00): Bus list and car riders on page 7.

Add one line per block about what to do if the class finishes early.

Ready activities by grade band

Kindergarten and 1st grade

• Read-aloud with a draw-and-label response (“Draw your favorite part. Label it.”)
• Letter and sound review game using picture cards
• Counting and number-writing pages within 20
• Directed drawing with a sentence starter
• Movement songs and a familiar calm-down routine

2nd and 3rd grade

• Read-aloud with a story map organizer
• Math review stations: addition and subtraction games, measurement with rulers, time practice
• Opinion writing prompt: “Should kids have homework? Give two reasons.”
• Word work: sort spelling patterns students already know
• Science or social studies article with a “3 facts, 2 questions, 1 picture” page

4th and 5th grade

• Short nonfiction article with text-evidence questions
• Math spiral review and a logic puzzle
• Writing: “Write a letter to next year’s class with five tips for success”
• Vocabulary review: word map for 4 previously taught words
• Research mini-project using books from the class library

Tips that make sub days go smoothly

1. Write for a stranger. Avoid shorthand like “do the usual.”
2. Over-plan slightly. A sub with nothing left at 1:15 p.m. is a sub in trouble.
3. Make copies plus five. New students arrive and pages get lost.
4. Label everything with day and block: “Day 2 – Math.”
5. Add your classroom signal. Tell the sub exactly what you say and what students do.
6. Name reliable helpers, but don’t put the same student in charge every time.
7. Leave a backup plan for indoor recess or a tech failure.
8. Ask for feedback. The note-to-teacher form tells you what to fix.

Keep the plans current

Set a reminder at the start of each quarter to:

• Update the seating chart, schedule changes and helper list.
• Swap out any lesson that used up its copies.
• Review support notes with your case manager or nurse.
• Check that emergency procedures match this year’s drill maps.

Sample behavior page for the sub

Substitutes struggle most with expectations they can’t see. A half-page like this one prevents a lot of trouble:

How we get attention: I say “Class, class,” and students answer “Yes, yes” and turn to face me. Voice levels: 0 = silent, 1 = whisper, 2 = partner voice. The chart is by the door. Rewards: Table points on the whiteboard. The table with the most points at the end of the day picks the read-aloud book tomorrow. If a student is off task: a quiet reminder, then a move to the calm-down spot for a few minutes, then a note for me. If a student is unsafe: call the office at the number on page 1. Do not leave the class unattended. Students who may need extra support: see the confidential page in the red folder.

Keep it positive and specific. A sub who knows your routines can keep them going, and your class will feel the difference.

Sample note-to-teacher form

Leave a one-page form so you get useful information back:

• Which lessons were finished, partly finished or skipped
• Students who were absent or left early
• Students who were especially helpful
• Any behavior problems and how they were handled
• Messages from the office, parents or other staff
• Anything that was confusing in the plans

Read it the day you return and fix what didn’t work. After two or three sub days, your emergency plans will be close to foolproof.

Emergency plans vs planned absences

When you know about an absence in advance (a training, an appointment), write regular plans that keep the unit moving and leave the emergency folder untouched. Save the emergency plans for the days you truly can’t prepare. If you use them, restock them within a week: make new copies, replace the read-aloud if the class has already heard it, and check that the answer keys are still in the folder.

Using AI to speed things up

A lesson plan generator can draft a standalone review lesson in minutes, and a worksheet generator can create practice pages at the right level. Review everything before printing, check facts and fit to your standards, and never include student names or personal details in the prompt.

Strong sub plans grow out of strong routines. If your class already knows what to do at each transition, the sub’s job is much easier; our classroom management plan template helps you write those routines down. When you’re planning regular lessons, our lesson planning guide covers the rest.

For more on routines, calm-down spaces and behavior systems that hold up even when you’re out, visit our classroom management guide.