For every classroom crawling with kiddos, there is a teacher that is exposed to an assortment of germs. Yes, teachers get sick, and unfortunately, it can happen more than once a year. And while you can try to avoid getting sick as a teacher, you can’t prevent every illness.
Avoiding calling in sick as a teacher and dragging yourself into the classroom and “taking one for the team,” is not the answer.
Teachers know all the teacher sick day excuses about why they can’t ask for a sub. Here are 5 of those teacher sick day excuses (and some reasons you definitely should use your sick days).
This is the #1 reason on the list of teacher sick day excuses. Every teacher knows that it’s more exhausting to plan for a sub than to just drag your sick self to work and try to make it through the day. Writing out plans for lessons, emergencies, contingency plans for behaviors and medical needs requires time and energy, something that is often lacking when you wake up at 4 a.m. with the flu. Going to work sounds easier than trying to articulate daily plans to a sub.
Next time, take the day off. After all, uncared for illness can turn into multiple days of illness. The only thing worse than planning for one sub day is planning for a week off. I’ve done the hard work to make this easier for you with my comprehensive guide to emergency sub plans. I’ve even made Ready To Go Sub Plans to make taking a day off easier than ever before!
