Casual Teaching Lifesavers
New to teaching? Called in at short notice? Or has the class teacher left nothing prepared?
It's happened to all of us and we have to think quick on our feet to fill the hours of the day with productive activities.
Feeling stuck? Here are some great ideas that take very little preparation that I use:
Storyline Online - allow students to lay down in front of the Interactive Whiteboard and listen to a story being read to them by a well known actor. If you don’t have access to an Interactive Whiteboard then read a picture book to the class yourself. Ensure to ask some comprehension questions both prior to and after the text. For example - together predict what the story may be about from the title and the front cover illustration. Make some connections with other books read or students life experiences. After reading the text quiz the students - what happened in the beginning, middle and end? Who was your favourite character and why? What do you think might happen next? If you could ask the author a question, what would you ask? Provide students with a piece of paper and they can draw a picture of their favourite part or of a time when they can relate to the main character.
Cosmic Kids Yoga - calm the class down by following an online yoga instruction aimed at children. So many to choose from. This is always a hit with my students. If you don’t have access to an Interactive Whiteboard then feel free to lead some yoga stretching exercises yourself. Ensure students have their own personal space. If its a crowded classroom you could dare to take the class outside or use the COLA or school Hall.
GoNoodle - has many guided fun activities to use on a hug variety of topics. You could infact use this website several times a day. You will need to sign up for a free account to access videos.
Silent reading - if there is a class library, take advantage and when the students come in after lunch, ask them to grab a book and do 15 minutes of reading silently to themselves. Allow them to choose a comfortable space around the room. Once the time is complete, choose a few students to share with the class what they were reading.
Just Dance - guided dance moves to popular songs. Another favourite. It's hard to stop at just one song. I wouldn't do any more than three at a time. Use it as a reward if their work is completed.
Guided Drawing - search YouTube for a guided drawing lesson. Students will need a piece of paper and a lead pencil. They follow the instruction online to draw something such as a dinosaur, cow etc. You may like to relate it to something they are learning about or something you have taught them that day.
Bingo - if you can find the weeks Spelling List, use the words to play a game of Bingo. Students will need a small piece of paper and to choose five words from the list to write down. Call out one of the spelling words and if they have it they cross it off. First person to get all five words marked off wins.
Use the Online Stopwatch - set a stopwatch/timer for fun activities such as who can write the most numbers starting at 1 in one minute, how many star jumps can you do in one minute….
Starfall - great activities for lower primary students. Again you will need access to an Interactive Whiteboard.
These have always been great last minute saviours for me and are always popular with the students. Do you have any other activities that require little preparation you can suggest… We would love it if you joined the conversation and left a comment below