12 indoor recess games for a substitute
Rain on a sub day means indoor recess in a room you don't know, with supplies you can't find. These twelve games need nothing at all or only paper, keep everyone safe in a classroom with no running or tackling, and leave nobody sitting out. Half are whole-class games you lead, and half are paper games students can play at their desks while you watch the room.
Whole class, no supplies
1. Find the hidden leader
One student steps into the hall with an adult in view while the class quietly picks a leader. The leader starts a motion, like patting knees, and everyone copies, changing whenever the leader changes. The guesser returns and has three tries to spot who is leading.
Grades K–5You need Nothing
2. Whisper down the row
Whisper a short, silly sentence to the first student. They whisper it to the next, and so on down the row or around the circle. The last student says it aloud and you read the original. Start a new sentence with a new first student.
Grades K–5You need Nothing
3. Act it out
Choose a category, like animals, sports or jobs. A volunteer acts out something from it without words or sounds while the class guesses. Whoever guesses whispers the next idea to you before acting it out, or passes to a friend.
Grades 1–8You need Nothing
4. I spy, made harder
Play I spy with clues about color, then shape, then what the thing is used for: I spy something round that tells us when lunch is. The student who guesses gives the next set of clues.
Grades K–3You need Nothing
5. Hot and cold
One student covers their eyes while you hide an eraser somewhere in plain sight. The seeker walks slowly around the room, and the class hums louder as they get close and softer as they move away. Walking only.
Grades K–5You need One small classroom object, like an eraser
6. Category clap
Set a steady beat: two pats on knees, two claps. Name a category. On each beat, the next student names one thing in it. A student who can't think of one says pass and the beat goes on, so nobody is out.
Grades 2–8You need Nothing
Paper games at desks
7. Paper fortune tellers
Show the folds once on the board: corners to the middle, flip, corners to the middle again, fold in half. Students number the flaps, write kind fortunes under them and play with a neighbor. Keep fortunes friendly and about the future, not about classmates.
Grades 1–5You need A sheet of paper per student
8. Flick football
Students fold a strip of paper into a small triangle. Partners sit across a desk; one makes goalposts with their fingers while the other flicks the triangle toward them from the desk edge. Switch roles after each try. Desks only, no flicking at faces.
Grades 2–8You need A strip of paper per pair
9. Jumping paper frogs
Fold a simple jumping frog from a square of paper, step by step on the board. Students press its back edge so it hops across the desk. Let them try to land it on a target drawn on scrap paper.
Grades 1–5You need An index card or square paper per student
10. Paper plane test flights
Students fold a paper plane and take turns throwing it from one marked spot at the front, with everyone else seated. Each student counts floor tiles to see how far their own plane went, then refolds it to improve their own best. Nobody throws toward people.
Grades 2–8You need A sheet of paper per student
11. Four in a row on a grid
Partners draw a grid seven squares wide and six tall. Taking turns, each player shades the lowest empty square in any column with their own mark. The first to line up four in a row, across, down or diagonal, starts the next game.
Grades 2–8You need Paper with a grid of seven columns
12. Pass a paper ball
Students sit in a circle or at desks and pass a crumpled paper ball hand to hand while you hum. When you stop, whoever holds it answers a quick question you ask, like their favorite animal. Then the passing starts again.
Grades K–3You need One crumpled ball of scrap paper
Making it work
- Ask the neighbor teacher or a student where indoor recess things are kept. Many rooms have a bin of games already.
- Set the rules out loud first: walking feet, inside voices, and nobody throws anything at anyone.
- Keep a five-minute timer on the board for the last part, so the cleanup is no surprise.
- Let students who want quiet time read or draw. Not every child wants a game at recess.
- Use a brain break card when the room needs to move a little without leaving their spots.
Questions teachers ask
- What games can a substitute play for indoor recess?
- Guessing games like the hidden leader and act it out, whisper games, and paper games like fortune tellers, flick football and four in a row. None of them need supplies beyond paper, and none involve running.
- How do I keep indoor recess safe in a small classroom?
- Choose games that keep students seated or walking, set the rules before the game starts, and keep anything thrown soft and pointed away from people. Stop a game the moment it gets too wild.
- What if some students don't want to play?
- That's fine. Offer reading, drawing or a quiet paper game at their desk. Indoor recess is still a break, and a calm corner of the room helps the whole class settle when it's over.
Written for teachers by Peabody Teach. No ads, no affiliate links. Something wrong or missing? Tell us.