Ocean Sub Plans: A Home for Hermit Crab & More!



See if this sounds familiar . . . don't do as I do, do as I say. You probably heard your parent say that a time or two when you were growing up. When I worked with student teachers or new teachers, I often told them not to do what I did when I was a new teacher. There were so many things that I did the hard way the first few years of my career.  I wasn't necessarily doing them wrong, but there are easier, quicker ways of doing things in our profession that seasoned teachers don't always remember to tell the inexperienced ones.

Planning for a sub was one of these "hard way, easy way" lessons that I eventually learned.  But, I really wished someone would have given me directions to the easy way much earlier in my career!

Plan Idea #1: In the beginning, when I needed a sub, I wrote out step by step directions of what the sub needed to do during the day that I was absent.  Yes, this works but it is not an efficient use of my time.  

Plan Idea #2:  I typed up a generic sub plan and then added the assignments.  This worked most of the time.  But, what happens if you or your child gets sick in the middle of the night and you can't come in and write the assignments and prepare the lessons?

Plan Idea #3:  Emergency sub plans - One day of lesson plans that are generic so they can be used at any time of the year.  One of the schools that I worked at, required us to organize these in a folder and give them to the secretary.  This is a smart idea if your secretary has the room to store them.  

Through trial and error, feedback from subs and co-workers I finally found a system that worked for me.


I organize a Sub Resource Binder (original)  and Ocean-themed Sub Resource Binder.  This is the "how to" for the sub.  It explains all of the procedures for how I run my class.  It saves so much time and the subs love it! Have you ever been pulled from class at the last minute for meeting?  Maybe the meeting is only for an hour or so, but when it catches you by surprise, it is hard to think of all the details you need to put in plans for the sub who will be covering your class.  When this happens you pull out your handy dandy sub resource binder and give him/her the materials that are needed to teach the lessons.  Quick, easy and painless for you and easy for the sub! 

I organize my weekly lesson plans in a tub like this:

Click HERE to read more about it.

I have the following folders in the tub:  Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Centers. I put all of the papers, read aloud books, and other materials that I need for my lessons that I need for the day in the order that I will teach them in folders.  I show the special ed. teachers that I work with and a buddy teacher where I keep my stuff.  If there is ever a time when I am too sick to come in an organize my sub plans, I call one of these teachers who can pull out the day's folder and my Sub Resource Binder.  I know that my sub has all that he or she needs to have a successful day.



The procedure pages come in PDF format and EDITABLE in Powerpoint.


I think every teacher needs a set of emergency plans because you never know when something might happen.  My first 18 years of teaching, I made emergency sub plans and didn't need to use them.  It would have been easy to think that this was a waste of time to make them at the beginning of the year when I had so many other things to do.  But, then during my 19th year, my daughter got sick - really sick - in the middle of the night, my husband was out of town, and there wasn't any way that I could leave my daughter to go plan for a sub.  Luckily I had emergency sub plans.  


I think you have to look at emergency sub plans like an insurance policy.  You've bought car insurance for years yet you've hopefully not been in a car accident.  But, if you ever are in a car accident, you will be thankful that you not only have an insurance policy, but that you took the time to shop around to get the best policy possible.  Sub plans work the same way.  Take the time before school begins to make quality emergency sub plans.

I have two different substitute resource binder kits.  My original one is below.  
Click HERE to check this out.

I just finished an ocean themed packet.


Click HERE to check this out.

This kit has activities that are ocean themed including activities for A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle and Fancy Nancy Sand Castles and Sand Palaces.  Be sure to download the preview file so you can see what is included.

I have a little FREEBIE for you to thank you for stopping by today.


Click HERE to download the Hermit Crab freebie.






Sources to make my blog post graphics can be found HERE

Click HERE to read my blog's disclosure statement.
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FREE Morning Messages - Memorial Day


Memorial Day will soon be here!  Do you have any special lessons planned?  I just added a FREE Memorial Day packet.


I also have another freebie that you may want to check out.  Five writing prompts that can be used for any patriotic holiday.




Check out my A+ May Pinterest Board which has more fun ideas.

  
Fern has a few tips to share with you, too.  Hop over to her blog!


Each week, Fern and I will share a teacher tip. We love to read teacher blogs and the latest teacher idea books and hope you do, too!  Stop by Fern's blog and my blog each week for our latest tips.  We hope you will share your ideas, too.  

What do you have planned for Memorial Day?

Looking for more ideas?  Click on the pictures below.



Sources to make my blog post graphics can be found HERE.

Click HERE to read my blog's disclosure statement.
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End of Year Ideas and FREEBIE


The end of the school year can be a crazy time.  With a little preplanning, it can actually be fun and only a little crazy.  

I am a BIG believer in a picture is worth a thousand words.  I love to take pictures of my students in action and put them on our class website.  I found that when I did this consistently, my parents consistently read the postings on my website.  I cannot stress the consistency part enough.  If you want your parents to look at your website, you have to be consistent with your posting. Pictures of their children are the perfect incentive for them to check your site. I usually uploaded pictures at the end of the week showing what we had done.  Sometimes my posts were just a sentence or two about what was happening in the picture.

Posting pictures is a great way to communicate with parents. If you haven't done this yet, I would encourage you to try it.  You will be pleasantly surprised at how pictures build positive relationships with your parents.  I tell my parents at Back to School night that one of their children's weekly homework assignments is to do "show 'n tell"  using our pictures.  Parents feel like they have a better understanding of what is going on in the classroom when they see all of the Kodak moments.

These pictures are also useful for the end of the year slideshow. I had a huge collection showing all of the fun stuff we had done that year.  Each week I chose a few of the best ones to add to my EOY file. Then in May, it was a simple thing to add these pictures to a slideshow. A few minutes each week adding these to my EOY file, made my end of the year much less hectic.  You can add music to the slideshow.  Some years I have added theme songs from movies.  Other years I have used songs that had special memories for my class.  One year I began the song with the instrumental version of the Van Halen song "Right Now".

Click on the picture to listen to this.

I invited the parents to join us for our "Hollywood Premiere" starring their children.  We ate popcorn, watched the show, and laughed at all of the happy memories.

Are you planning a Hollywood theme next year?  I have a Star Student packet that is editable and integrated with social studies, language arts, and other subjects that works perfectly with this.  One of the activities for the star student is to decorate a star for the class Hollywood Walk of Fame.  You could make a Walk of Fame if you want to do a Hollywood themed end of the year party.  Here is a free sample from my star student packet.

Click HERE to download this freebie.


I have some more end of the year ideas on my A+ May Pinterest Board .

  
Fern has a few tips to share with you, too.  Hop over to her blog!


Each week, Fern and I will share a teacher tip. We love to read teacher blogs and the latest teacher idea books and hope you do, too!  Stop by Fern's blog and my blog each week for our latest tips.  We hope you will share your ideas, too.  


How do you celebrate the end of the year?

Looking for more ideas?  Click on the pictures below.





Sources to make my blog post graphics can be found HERE.
Click HERE to read my blog's disclosure statement.
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