25 sub-day activities a substitute can run with no prep
The best sub-day activities need nothing from you on the morning you're out: a page the substitute opens on the projector, a sheet already in the emergency folder, or a game with rules that fit on a card. These twenty-five cover the whole day, from the opener to the exit ticket, and each says what the substitute does, what to leave and the grades it suits.
Openers
1. The board on the projector
The substitute opens the morning board, types the day's plan into it and leaves it on the projector, so students see the schedule and the clock all day.
Grades K–8You need The morning boardUse Morning board
2. Would you rather warm-up
The substitute spins the would-you-rather wheel and students move to one side of the room or write their choice and one reason. It breaks the ice with a new adult.
Grades K–8You need The would you rather wheelUse Would you rather wheel
3. Journal prompt
The substitute picks a prompt for your grade and students write for ten minutes in their journals. Leave a note saying where the journals are kept.
Grades 1–8You need The writing prompts pageUse Writing prompts by grade
4. Two truths and a lie about the sub
The substitute tells three facts about themselves, one false, and students vote on which is the lie. Then students may ask the sub one question each.
Grades 2–8You need Nothing
Reading and writing
5. Read-aloud with questions
The substitute shows a read-aloud on the projector, reads it to the class, and asks the discussion questions printed with the story.
Grades K–5You need The read-aloud pageUse Read-aloud books for the projector
6. Passage with questions
Leave a class set of a grade-level passage with its questions in the sub folder. Students read and answer independently; the sub collects them.
Grades 1–8You need Printed passages at your gradeUse Reading passages with questions
7. Story map for the read-aloud
After the read-aloud, students fill in a story map: characters, setting, problem, events and solution.
Grades 1–4You need Printed story mapsUse Story map
8. Word search with this week's words
Make a word search from your current word list once and keep copies in the emergency folder. Students find the words, then write sentences with three of them.
Grades 1–5You need A printed word searchUse Word search maker
9. Silent reading with a log
Students read their own books for twenty minutes and fill in their reading log. The substitute reads too, which keeps the room quiet.
Grades 1–8You need Students' own books and reading logsUse Weekly reading log
10. A letter to the teacher
Students write you a short letter about the day: what they did, what they learned and one question for you. You get a report in their words.
Grades 1–8You need Lined paper
11. Themed crossword
Keep copies of a ready-made crossword in the folder, such as space or weather. Students solve it in pairs.
Grades 3–8You need A printed themed crosswordUse Space crossword, Weather crossword
Math
12. Math facts on the wheel
The substitute spins the math facts wheel and students write the answer on whiteboards, showing on the count of three.
Grades 1–5You need The math facts wheel and mini whiteboardsUse Math facts wheel
13. Hundreds chart puzzles
The substitute hides a number on the hundreds chart and gives clues: "It is ten more than 34." Students guess on whiteboards.
Grades K–2You need The hundreds chart on the projectorUse Hundreds chart
14. Sudoku
Keep a set of sudoku puzzles at two levels in the folder. Students who finish one try the harder one.
Grades 2–8You need Printed sudoku puzzlesUse Sudoku maker
15. Number of the day
The substitute writes a number on the board and students show it as many ways as they can: tally marks, tens and ones, a sum, a word, a drawing.
Grades K–5You need A number written on the board
16. Practice sheet by topic
Leave a class set of a math sheet on a topic the class already knows well, so the substitute doesn't need to teach anything new.
Grades 1–8You need Printed practice sheetsUse Math worksheets by topic and grade
Games and breaks
17. Brain breaks
The substitute draws a brain break card when the class gets restless and leads it from the front. Every card says what to do.
Grades K–5You need The brain break cardsUse Brain break cards
18. Silent ball
Students sit on their desks and toss a soft ball in silence. A dropped ball or a sound means sitting down for the next round, and everyone is back in for each new round.
Grades 2–8You need A soft foam ball
19. Category game
Spin a letter. Students list a food, an animal, a place and a name starting with that letter in two minutes. Unique answers score a point.
Grades 2–8You need Paper and the letter wheelUse Letter wheel A–Z
20. Twenty questions
The substitute thinks of an animal or object and the class asks up to twenty yes-or-no questions to guess it. A student who guesses right leads the next round.
Grades K–8You need Nothing
21. Heads up, seven up
Seven students stand at the front; everyone else puts heads down with a thumb up. Each of the seven presses one thumb down, then the chosen students guess who picked them.
Grades 1–5You need Nothing
Wrapping up
22. Exit ticket
Students write one thing they learned and one question they have. You read them the next day to see how the day went.
Grades 1–8You need Printed exit ticket slipsUse Exit ticket slips
23. Clean-up on a timer
The substitute starts five minutes and the class tidies the room before dismissal, so you come back to a clean room.
Grades K–5You need The 5 minute timerUse 5 minute timer
24. One thing I learned
Students sit in a circle or stay at their desks and each says one thing they learned or enjoyed today. Passing is allowed.
Grades K–8You need Nothing
25. Notes for the teacher
The substitute fills in the notes page: what was finished, who helped, any problems. Put the page last in the folder so it isn't missed.
Grades K–8You need The notes page in your sub folderUse Sub plan template and emergency sub folder
Making it work
- Build an emergency sub folder in August with a week's worth of these, printed and labeled by day.
- Fill in the substitute info sheet with your schedule, signals and helpers, and keep it at the front.
- Choose review over new content. A substitute can run practice well; teaching a new skill is much harder.
- Write the projector pages' addresses on the plan in full, so the substitute doesn't have to search.
- Leave a list of two or three reliable student helpers by first name, and your attention signal.
Questions teachers ask
- What should I leave for a substitute?
- A plan for each part of the day, the materials already printed, your schedule and routines, a seating chart, the names of helpful students and who to ask for help, and a page for notes. The sub plan template covers all of it.
- What are good no-prep activities for a sub day?
- Reading a story aloud with questions, a passage with questions, a word search or crossword from a ready-made set, math fact games on the projector, brain breaks, and simple class games like twenty questions.
- Should a substitute teach new material?
- Usually not. Plan review and practice of what the class already knows, so the day goes smoothly and nobody has to unlearn a mistake taught in a rush.
Written for teachers by Peabody Teach. No ads, no affiliate links. Something wrong or missing? Tell us.