Writing Sub Plans Teenagers Will Actually Follow

Every secondary teacher has come back from a sick day to the same scene: a stack of blank worksheets, a note that says the class "was a little loud," and a lesson that now has to be taught twice. The problem usually is not the substitute. It is the plan.

Teenagers are very good at spotting a day that does not count. If the sub plan looks like filler, they will treat it like filler. A good plan does the opposite. It tells students, before the substitute even speaks, that today is a normal day with normal expectations.

Why the sub day is worth taking seriously

It is easy to write off one day. But days add up. A well-known study by Raegen Miller, Richard Murnane, and John Willett followed fourth graders in a large urban district over three school years and found that each 10 days of teacher absence reduced students' math achievement by 3.3 percent of a standard deviation. That is an elementary sample, so it does not transfer neatly to a high school biology class. It does make the basic point: lost instructional days are not free, and the quality of what happens on them matters.

Most teachers will miss some days every year for illness, family, training, or coaching. The goal is not to never be absent. The goal is for the class to keep moving when you are.

What a sub plan for teenagers needs

1. Work that continues the unit, not work that pauses it

Busywork is the fastest way to lose a room. Plan something that obviously connects to what you did yesterday and what you will do tomorrow: the next reading in the unit, a practice set on the skill you just taught, a structured discussion of a source you already introduced. When students can see that it counts, most of them will do it.

2. Directions students can follow without an adult explaining them

Assume the substitute has never taught your subject. Write the directions for the students, not for the sub, and post them where everyone can see them: on the board, on a slide, or at the top of the handout. Short numbered steps. Clear time checks. What to turn in and where.

3. A reason to finish

Say plainly that the work will be collected and used. If it counts toward a grade, say that. If you are going to open tomorrow's class with it, say that. Teenagers respond to real stakes, not threats. "We are using this tomorrow" is more persuasive than "the sub will be writing names down."

4. Student roles that already exist

If your class already runs on student jobs, such as someone passing out materials, someone keeping time, and someone collecting work, the substitute does not have to rebuild the room. List those roles and names in the plan. This is one of the best arguments for giving students real responsibility all year: the class can partly run itself on the days you are not there.

5. The practical details, on one page

• Bell schedule and any changes that day
• Seating charts, with a note on who can help
• Where materials, passes, and the emergency folder are
• Students with accommodations or health plans the sub needs to know about, shared the way your school requires
• A trusted colleague next door to call on

6. A simple way for the sub to report back

Instead of an open "how did it go" note, give the substitute a short form: what was finished, who was absent, who was especially helpful, and anything you need to follow up on. It takes them two minutes, and it gives you something useful to work with the next morning.

Keep an emergency plan on file

Not every absence is planned. Keep one or two general lessons ready that work at any point in the year, such as a skill-practice day, a source analysis, or a review activity. Put them in a folder the office knows about. Update them once a semester so the dates and names are not stale.

If you want to see the same problem from the other side of the desk, including what a substitute can actually control in their first few minutes, there is a thorough guide for substitutes running a room that isn't theirs. It is a good read for anyone writing plans, because it shows exactly what the person walking in has to work with.

When you come back

How you handle the next day teaches the class more than the plan did. Open with the work from the sub day. Use it. Acknowledge the students who did what was asked, and follow up privately and fairly with any issues, the same way you would if you had been in the room. If students learn that sub days count and that you follow through, the next one goes better.

Frequently asked questions

Should a substitute teach new material?

Usually not, unless you know the sub has the background. Practice, application, and discussion of material you have already introduced tend to go more smoothly and are easier to check when you return.

How long should a sub plan be?

Long enough to cover the whole period with a short extension task for early finishers, and short enough that the substitute can read it in a few minutes before the bell. One page of logistics plus the student-facing directions is a good target.

Is it fair to grade work from a sub day?

Yes, if the directions were clear and students had the time and materials to do it. Grading it signals that the day mattered. If something went wrong that was out of students' control, adjust.

Sources

• Miller, R. T., Murnane, R. J., & Willett, J. B. (2007). Do Teacher Absences Impact Student Achievement? Longitudinal Evidence from One Urban School District (NBER Working Paper No. 13356). National Bureau of Economic Research. Published in Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 2008. nber.org

More on this blog: Classroom Management · Planning

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About the author
Clay Shumate is a certified secondary Social Studies teacher in the public schools of West Alabama, with seven years of classroom experience, a B.A. in History, and an M.Ed. in Secondary Education. He writes about project-based learning, student responsibility, respect, and practical ways to hold young people to a higher standard while giving them room to learn from mistakes.