leaving notes for a sub

a substitute in a preschool or infant/toddler room does not need your unit plan. they need: the schedule down to the minute, where the bathroom is, the allergy list, who is on a plan, and one line about each child so nobody is a stranger.

everything else — the good lesson you had planned — is a bonus. if the day just runs on time and no one gets hurt, the sub did the job.

one page. printed. taped inside the sign-in binder. it has: the schedule, the allergy and medical alert list, the drop-off and pickup routine, a note on any child with an iep, ifsp, or behavior plan, the fire and lockdown location, and one line per child in seating order.

the last piece — one line per child — is what a sub reads first in the parking lot. it is worth writing.

the plan page holds your daily schedule and can print as a sub-ready page. the class list holds the birthdays, allergies, home languages, family contacts, and any plan notes you have added — printed for a sub, it becomes the roster in one page.

the handoff tool is what your sub uses at the end of the day, to leave you a note about what happened while you were out.

you can use tiny signals as your own quiet hub across the rooms you sub in. save a short observation for the room's lead teacher when something worth remembering happens. it is a gift the lead teacher will notice.