How I Finally Made Sub Plans That Actually Work
Y'all, now that the second week of school is done, I feel like I am starting to get into the groove. One thing I always make sure to do right away is create sub plans. I learned this lesson the hard way. About three years ago, I caught COVID the second week of school! I was so sick, and putting sub plans together was the last thing I wanted to do. So now, I make sure I have sub plans ready to go early just in case. While working on my sub plans, I have continued to work on the Creek Side Ruana. I am actually making better progress than I thought since it was not too long ago that I had to completely start over. You can read the blog post here.
What Actually Makes Sub Plans "Substitute-Proof"
After years of coming back to a classroom that had clearly gone sideways, here's what finally worked for me: the stuff that holds up even when the sub has never taught your subject a day in their life:
Keep a dedicated sub binder, not a scramble. I've used the same sub binder for years now — seating charts, class rules, a generic activity that works for any day, and I only ever have to update the specific lesson part, which means it's ready even when I'm not.
Make it grab-and-go for someone else. The whole point of the binder is that it doesn't depend on me being there to explain anything. On a last-minute absence, I can text a teacher friend and ask her to just set the binder on my desk on her way to her own class, and the sub has everything they need without me lifting a finger from home.
Write for a stranger, not for yourself. If it only makes sense because you know your own shorthand, it's not sub-proof yet. I write mine like I'm explaining it to a substitute I've never met, because usually I am.
Build in an "if this goes wrong" plan. Technology doesn't work, a video won't load, half the class is at an assembly — I always write a backup activity that needs zero prep and zero tech.
Leave the names of your genuinely helpful students. This might be my favorite trick. I always list a few kids I know will actually help a sub instead of testing them — the ones who'll explain where things are, keep an eye on the room, and not pile on if things get chaotic. It's saved more than one rough day.
Put the emergency contacts and procedures at the very top, not buried on page three. A sub flipping through your plans in a panic should not have to hunt for who to call.
None of this is glamorous. It's just the boring, specific stuff that actually saves a sub and saves you from coming back to chaos. The sub binder has been a game changer.
The Project That Got Me Through It: The Creekside Ruana
I know it doesn’t look like much progress from last week but as you read further you’ll see why. 😆
While I was slogging through all of that, I kept a hook and my Creekside Ruana within arm's reach. If you haven't seen this Marly Bird pattern, it's a size-inclusive, boho-style cocoon cardigan with actual pockets, the kind of piece that feels a little indulgent to work on, which made it the perfect reward system for sub-plan writing.
I'm still working through it, nowhere near done, but it's coming along, and every round has felt like a small win in a week that didn't have a lot of those.
The Yarn Tangle That Nearly Broke Me
If you had seen this on Tuesday you would have cried with me.
Here's the part where I confess: at some point mid-week, I reached for a new cake of yarn, and well, it was the worst tangled mess I have ever dealt with in my crocheting life.
I don't have a picture, because I was too deep in problem-solving mode to think about my phone; you'll just have to trust me that it was bad. Genuinely, embarrassingly bad. There was a solid twenty minutes where quitting the whole project felt like a real option. But I picked it apart, section by section, the same way I picked apart those sub plans — one small piece at a time, instead of staring at the whole overwhelming mess. It’s taken me three days to pull apart, and I have a small section left to do.
Where That Leaves Me
The sub plans are done and actually usable. The Ruana has a few new rounds on it. And somewhere in the middle of untangling both of those messes, I was reminded that most things — plans, yarn, weeks — come apart one small, patient step at a time, not all at once.
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." — Philippians 4:6
If you're deep in your own tangled mess this week, sub plans or otherwise, I hope you find your version of ten quiet minutes with a hook in hand.
What's the worst tangle you've ever had to work through — yarn or otherwise? Tell me in the comments.
Ariana 🧶
