Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links which means we may make a small commission at no cost to you if you click and purchase something we recommend. The suggested products are ones we have tried and love! For more information see our full disclosure policy. Thank you!

Emergency sub plans are a nice insurance policy for every teacher and every sub. Walking unexpectedly into a classroom with no sub plan is, let’s face it… terrifying. Still, I would argue that even more terrifying is getting sick and then considering how to write sub plans from bed.

Teaching in a special education resource classroom complicates this process a bit. Having students come through in groups every half hour with different needs and different IEP goals can be daunting. That is why I use picture books for read aloud in my emergency sub plans. It works with students of all ages. They are an equalizer; engaging, valuable, and simple.

Now, as much as I would love to rely on stories that are read aloud alone, I know that when it comes to emergency sub plans, worksheets are still king. Yes, I said that ugly word “worksheets”. In a perfect world every sub would walk into a room and nothing would change. They would teach the curriculum as the classroom teacher does and the day would move forward… Yep… Totally… So, anyone here ever actually worked as a substitute? I have! I can tell you, that while I am a good teacher, and while I was a good sub and this has never ever happened. You need the worksheets in the sub plans. And this is where my read aloud companion was born. 

Picture Books: An Emergency Sub Plan

Books break down social skills for kids (which I always, always try to sneak in) and are high interest. Even with older students, they work! If you haven’t done a picture book read aloud with a fifth grader yet, try it… magic! That means, like every other teacher I know, I have about a 100 books for read aloud. My stories are on hand at all times lest we find ourselves with 4 minutes before the bell rings and I can sneak one in. Making those books into a complete lesson without any prep has been absolute gold in my classroom.

Make It a Lesson

This read aloud companion turns any picture book into a lesson. I print a journal for each student at the beginning of the year and bam, done. Each page of the workbook gives an extension lesson that will work with any story. Some of the pages are more creative, asking students to design a social media page for the book, others ask more basic comprehension and retell questions. This way my students are practicing standards aligned comprehension and writing strategies.

An Emergency Book for Every Subject

With the journal in place, you can switch out the picture book to meet the needs of the students in front of you.

Here are some examples of books you can use as emergency sub plans in various topics.

• Sub plans for art: Uncle Andy’s : A fabulous visit with Andy Warhol
• Kindergarten sub plans: Rainbow Fish
• Sub plans for PE: Casey at the Bat
• Health sub plans: You are Healthy
• Sub plans for Music: This Jazz Man

Students enjoy the read aloud and are engaged in the workbook. Having an emergency sub plan that works with truly no prep, is seasonal and flexible with no prep beyond the initial printing of the journal is a good idea no matter what you teach. You can make your own or check out mine here. What are your go to emergency sub plans?