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1st grade sub plans: math

A 1st grade math block for a substitute, 60 minutes: a warm-up on the board, then addition within 20 practice (a sheet with its answer key on its own page), partners checking each other, and early finishers writing problems of their own. 4 steps, written to be read once and followed.

Checked October 30, 2026. Made from Peabody Teach's own passages, worksheets and brain break cards.

Make the whole day at 1st grade ▸

The math block

Math: addition within 20

  1. Warm-up: count together by ones to 100, then by tens to 100.
  2. Hand out the addition within 20 sheet (16 problems). Print 24; the key is on its own page.
  3. Students work on their own for twenty minutes, then check with a partner.
  4. Early finishers write three problems of their own and swap with a neighbor.

📄 Addition within 20 (sheet and key)

The sheets, on their own pages

Subbing 1st grade

First graders can read short passages with help, write a sentence or two, and are glad to show a new adult what they know. The afternoon is harder than the morning, so the plan puts the reading and the math before lunch.

  • Read every passage aloud once before they read it themselves.
  • Answer questions out loud first, then write: a partner talk turns a blank page into a sentence.
  • Expect lots of “that's not how our teacher does it”. Thank them and ask them to show you.

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