Need to be out of your classroom unexpectedly? These generic sub plans will allow anyone to come into your room on a moment's notice and navigate through your busy day. Your substitute will thank you!

DATE_______

Dear Brave Sub: NOTHING in a kindergarten plan is sacred! Everything has to be subject to last minute changes, because kindergarten is volatile! Use your own judgment to implement plans as you see fit. Please enjoy the class, but be firm. They’re a lot of fun. No matter what does or does not get done, the world will keep turning! Relax, enjoy, and have a good time. Your job today is to keep the children safe and happy, maintain what they have learned, and keep your sanity! Please note…. Jacob needs to go to nurse right after lunch for meds. He’s a bright, happy little guy who usually remembers on his own. Trust me, you’ll know by 12:30 if he forgot to get his medicine!

YOU’ LL NEED:

1. The attendance folder. If I did not leave it out for you, it is in the standup file on the shelf behind my desk. Inside it is attendance roster, lunch sheet, and money pouch. The lunch sheets will tell you that everyone is allowed to order snack milk every day except for Zack, Kyle, and Randy who can only order when a note comes allowing it. I ask all of the others every day. Some or der every day, some order only occasionally. FRIDAY IS THE ONLY DAY WHEN KINDER GARTEN CHILDREN ARE GIVEN THE OPTION OF ORDERING ICE CREAM. The ladies in the kitchen will let them know at lunch time who has money on his or her account for ice cream.
2. Menu choices from the menu taped to window casing behind my desk.
3. Extra storybooks. Check on the top shelf near the adjoining door to Mrs. Rhodes room.
4. Daily lesson folders. If I have not left boxes of materials out for you, you’ll find a folder marked with today’s name in the standup file behind the desk. It should have most of what you need.

7:35 Buses unload.. Some go to breakfast line, others go in rear gym door for StoryTime. ( I have Story Duty on Day 1. Material will be in the daily basket.) They know which way they go! I try to stand by the door to greet and direct them. Once they are on their way, you have planning time. (Days 2-6) Walkers and those who are driven to school will dribble in during this time. They, too, go to either breakfast or StoryTime.

8:00ish Children come to classroom and will line up at the side of my desk. I write their lunch orders on the lunch sheet, and check their folder for notes from home, etc. They will give you their folder (if they have it) so that it can be used at the end of the day to send things home. Check the folders for notes! All folders go into the TAKE HOME BOX (it’s on table in front of my desk) for the end of the day.

Lunch sheet: Put p for packers, or note choice (hot tray or sandwich) Double check for lunch pails, if a child says they brought their lunch! Sometimes it’s wishful thinking! Ask if they’d like to order snack milk today . If so, check box under snack milk. No one in kindergarten gets ice cream EXCEPT on Fridays. As a sub, don t worry if they have money on their account or not. The kitchen staff will take care of that. If they do give you money, write down the amount by their name, put the money in the pouch, along with the lunch sheet, and send the pouch to the kitchen. Put date on attendance sheet and circle name of absentee(s). Attendance sheet, along with any pertinent notes, goes to office. Check the helping hands on the connecting door to see who your helpers are.

8:05 ish Fourth graders will come over the PA system to do the pledge. The children know that when they hear the PA come on, they stand, take everything out of their hands, and face the speaker. When the pledge begins, they turn and face the flag. These announcements will probably come while you are doing the check-in line. Once the children go through your check-in line, they will take care of their backpack, etc. and have free choice of activities until you turn off lights as clean up signal. There are certain activities that are ONLY morning play activities. They know what they are. They also know there are no running or chasing games allowed!

8:18ish Remind them to get drinks and use the bathroom before cleanup time.

8:20ish: Turn off the lights for clean up. They will go to their places, take down chairs.

8:22ish Flag Song The SONG HELPERS will stand beside you on the rug and help you lead our Flag Song. This month’s song is _(check by calendar)_

Hug Circle. Check for SPECIAL HUGGERS on helpers hands. They know the routine and can explain. Once the smile and the hug ( a gentle hand squeeze) have been passed around the circle, we sing: (tune: Camptown Races)

What a way to start the day, With a hug, full of love,

What a way to start the day, Hug a special friend.

8:30 ish to 8:45 ish After the Hug Circle, the children sit on rug for Calendar and Weather, Calendar Routine: With calendar helper beside you, go through the calendar exercises. There is an index card on the bulletin board that explains what to do. ( helper uses pointer to show yesterday; you name yesterday s day and date; class chorally counts the dates to today; helper finds today s visual; you add today s visual; helper uses pointer to lead class in naming days to today; helper adds one straw to either ONES can or TENS can to represent how many days we have been in kindergarten. When there are ten sticks in ones can, sticks are bundled and moved to tens can;) We then focus on the 100 plus grid. Helper uses a pointer to lead the counting (down the left by tens, then across by ones) until we get to today’s number. Move the wikki stik.

Weather Report: The calendar person will then decide on a weather word, and help you turn the weather wheel on the calendar bulletin board. Helper then finds correct word for weather sentence. Class will sing the weather song. Ask them to teach it to you! Class turns on the rug to face the closet doors for Morning Message and/or Nursery Rhyme . (Morning Message gets tacked to bulletin board on the left.) If I have left a morning message, help the children fill in the blanks and read the whole thing with them.

Once you have finished together, the READER LEADER (check the job chart) can use a pointer to lead the class in reading it. If I have not left a morning message, or if you have time, re-read the Nursery Rhyme of the week, using a pointer and asking children to pick out specific words, find rhyming words, etc. (The Nursery Rhyme often reinforces the Letter we are emphasizing.) The nursery rhyme will either be clipped on the bulletin board or somewhere on the stand up easel on table at end of closet.

8:45- 9:15 Specials DAYS 1 and 4 GYM DAYS 3 and 6 LIBRARY DAYS 2 and 5 MUSIC

9:15 Pick up children from special. Back in room, set the timer for 3 minutes. They use this time to get drinks, use the bathroom, and go to the rug.

9:20 ish - 9:45 Children on rug. There will be a big book for SHARED READING. All pointers are in the umbrella stand. Highlighting tape, wikki stiks, post-its and anything else you might need are in the caddy beside the story chair. Specific directions will be written here, in my planbook, or in today’s basket on the shelf behind my desk. Lots of phonics, phonemic awareness, etc. done here as whole group! In an emergency, with no plans, or you can’t locate the big book, or plans that look like Greek, you can use the Nursery Rhyme chart for choral reading and finding sight words. (We call them popcorn words.) Review the other nursery rhymes we’ve done by using the charts in tall box labeled Nursery Rhymes behind my desk. Use any of the CD’s in the basket. Most have some nursery rhymes on them.

9:40ish. Give directions for today’s MUST DO. This is an independent Center activity that children will complete during group time. Directions are here, in my planbook, or attached to the materials for the center in the daily basket. Almost always, it is a reading/literacy activity. If I haven’t left one, they may do a free choice sponge activity. They know the drill!

9:45-10:25 Small Groups ( early in the year this time is for readiness and enrichment activities; it usually evolves into guided reading; might be a math review or enrichment, depending upon the group.) Mrs. Worthing comes in for our group work. Check the sub folder for specifics of who is in which group and the rotation of groups. The groups rotate every 15minutes from you to Mrs. Worthing to independent center. You always start with the BLUE GROUP, and they rotate then to Mrs. Worthing. Typically the PURPLE group will need the most reinforcement, and you may not finish all the plans with them.

You will work with groups at the table near the windows. I probably left specific lesson materials on my desk in the daily folder or the box, and have outlined them below. If not, and if the plans in my PlanBook look like Greek, check in the closet for a Memory Game, Alphabet Bingo, or use any of the DLM Materials in the a big plastic box in the closet. Or they can always practice writing numbers, letters, shapes, etc. Mrs. Worthing is self-directed!

10:25- 10:50 Math Check daily folder (or Plan Book) and details below. We usually start with a relevant movement activity, or a specific story that I’ ve left, but if I haven’ t left one, use any storybook from corner shelf. These usually relate to themes we re doing. Good math CD’s in the basket. Use Jack Hartmann, Math in Motion or Dr. Jean Feldman, Totally Math. Children also know how to play Bummer Number. Have fun!

10:50ish. Children use the bathroom, wash, get lunch pails, and wait at tables for you to line them up for lunch. We line up in two lines, one for packers and one for trays with the hot tray people first and sandwiches at the end.

10:55 Take children to lunchroom. Help the tray people get through the line, and then you have lunch while the children are in the lunchroom, except on MONDAY when you stay in the cafeteria on lunch duty.

11:25 Rescue the class from the lunchroom. (OR, rescue the lunchroom from the class!) They come back to the room, use the bathroom, and gather on the rug. Set the timer for about 5 minutes. They know how to use Timer Time!

11:35ish We come to the rug for a lesson or story. Check below or Plan Book for details. You could use this time for a story from the back shelf, to get out a puppet to tell a story (puppets are in the blue tub under the Author Table), play a game of your choice, or give them free time for Quiet Activities. (They know the rules and the routines!)

11:45ish. Centers. The children know the routine, know where materials are, know how to find their group, etc. IF today is a day to start new centers, don’t! Instead, let them get out all centers from the last rotation, and they may have free choice of centers.

Or

Use any of the extra theme or letter-related story books in the EXTRA basket.

12:18ish- Get ready for recess (Earlier in snowsuit weather!) Remind them to use bathroom.

12:20-1:00 Recess. Don t let them go out until you are sure the Recess Duty Teacher is on the way out. If someone has to “do time” , send note to Recess Teacher to have that child stand by wall for five minutes. You have RECESS DUTY on TUESDAYS. If it is raining, check the box of videos on the shelf over the children’s hooks.

1:00ish Children come in from playground. Remind the children to use this time to use the bathroom, get drinks. They will clean up and go to seats to prepare for snacktime. Send down SNACK MILK HELPERS to get snack milk.

1:00 - 1:15ish - Snack time. The child who brought snack will pass out snack napkins. (If there are not enough napkins in basket, just cut paper towels into quarters ) . Baskets with napkins and straws are inside low left cupboard under sink counter. If the snack person forgot, I have extra snacks in the large rubber maid tub in the back closet. You pass out the snack. Gloves are on my tall gray file by TV. The kitchen will send back the lunch sheet so you will remember who gets snack milk. As they finish snack, they will clean up and freely choose quiet activities. Remind them to use bathroom and get drinks at this time. The blocks are CLOSED during snack time.

1:15ish : Sharing Time. Today’ s sharers are listed on the pink poster on the front board. Be sure to remind tomorrow’ s people. If we’re doing Book Talks, they’ll surely remind you of whose day it is to report about a book!

1:25ish THEME LESSONS; SCIENCE; SOCIAL STUDIES; SEASONAL - Once sharing time is done (it takes about 3 minutes!), I usually start with a song, movement activity, or story. Again, details will be in the planbook or the daily folders or the box I may have left for you. Quite likely, I’ve outlined them below for you. At any time, if they need to work out wiggles, etc., use the Exercise Tape (in box by tape player), play a movement game, do an action rhyme, or sing! You can randomly choose any of the CDs to learn new songs or practice old favorites.

or:

If you and they are whipped, or if you have time to fill and can’t make sense of the plans, here are some suggestions: Your Choice: Do a story, activity, game, song of your choosing, or allow them free choice of quiet activities. You can get down some of the tubs from shelves over the back closet if you’d like. This is a special treat; manipulatives that don’t come out often!

2:05ish Rest Time. Pass out mats. They know their rest spots! Put on music if you’d like, or read to them, or just let them rest quietly. In nice weather, use your discretion….You might want to take them back outside for a second recess, instead of rest time.

2:25 Class Meeting on the Rug. We talk about what we need to tell families tonight; what we did today; what to look forward to tomorrow.

2:30ish Fourth grade helpers will come in. They will help put up extra chairs. Also, Fourth Graders can help children get backpacks packed, chairs up, or any other jobs you need done.

2:45 Walkers are dismissed. I usually sing or read or chat with others on the rug while we wait for buses to be called. List beside door has bus routine, bus numbers, etc.

2:57ish Announcement will ask bus children to find their bus spots in the hall. Substitute teacher collapses (after you leave me a note and let me know how everything went!) Please let me know which stories you used, what activities did or did not get done, etc.

Thank you! I hope you relaxed enough to see the world through the eyes of a 5 year old! Any chance you’d ever agree to come back??????

Again, Thank you!

Cindy Middendorf