So I had to be out on Tuesday and left very detailed sub plans for the substitute. I also had my leadership buttons out along with a list of my student leaders for the day. I came into my room on Tuesday to a note from the sub that read, "What a great group they were today! Their rules and your plans make this "sub" teacher very happy. Rule 5!" She is a retired school teacher, so she certainly would know an awesome class when she's in one. WBT has certainly made a difference in my classroom this year, and I think this proves it! How often do teachers come back to comments like that after their class being with a sub? Needless to say, they earned a smiley from me on Wednesday morning!

Thanks,
Staci

I have just recently discovered Whole Brain Teaching. I began using it in my classroom a few weeks ago and am thrilled with the way things are going! Friday will be my first day with a substitute. I am a little nervous about a sub being able to handle it. I am glad to hear that your class did well with a sub. How did you set up your plans for your sub?

Does anyone else have helpful hints for sub plans?

I'm sorry I'm just not getting back to you on this. I ended up being out again this past Friday with a 24-hour stomach bug. Anyway, I always leave typed up sub plans outlining my day hourly for my sub. I also leave a little note telling my sub who my class leaders are for the day and the buttons that they are to wear that day. For example, my class leader wears a button and any time the sub needs to get the class's attention, he/she will simply point to that person and they call the class back with a variation on Class! My rules leader may be asked by the sub to go to the front and review the classroom rules with the class with them then teaching each other. For the rest of the subject areas, I have a Teach/Okay leader. At this point in the school year, most of the material we are covering is review. So, I leave in my sub plans the skills we are working on. For example, we were working on homophones last week, and I had already taught that this year. So, my Teach/Okay leader went to the front of the class, retaught the class using words and gesture (Mirror Words) about homophones. She then said, "Teach," the class said, "Okay," and off they went. My Teach/Okay leader did this throughout the day for the various areas. My sub usually has a pretty easy day. I happened to have the same sub again this past Friday, and again she left glowing remarks about my class. I hope this helps. If I can help more, please let me know and I'll do my best!

Thanks,
Staci