You can store supplies to use for classroom management and to keep your life as a teacher more organized.

Whether you need to keep track of the attendance sheet or whip up activities when the lesson plan is missing, here’s what to bring in your substitute teacher bag to be prepared for a great day.

Psst – grab our free downloadable kit that includes the sub bag checklist, stationery checklist, useful websites, and a sub report template.

Get your free resource kit

1) Coloring sheets

There will be times when the teacher’s lesson plans don’t take up the entire class period. This is when your bag of tricks should contain backup lesson plans or activities.

Coloring sheets are an easy and popular way for students to fill up extra time. As with any activity, consider the difficulty of the coloring sheets you take with you.

Younger students will need simple coloring designs while older students can color more intricate artwork.

This quiet activity is especially handy if there are a few students who finish the planned activity very quickly or if your class needs brain breaks.

Keeping kids occupied is one of the best methods of classroom management for teachers.

2) Puzzle worksheets

Just like the coloring sheets, crossword puzzles are simple and easy to use for any subject.

Substitute teachers often use puzzle worksheets for students who are quick finishers in class too.

If you end up needing a class-wide activity, you can make finishing the puzzles a competition. Separate the class into small groups and provide different puzzle versions to each group. Have prizes ready for the first group of students that complete their puzzles.

Use Google to find many ready-to-use crossword puzzles online. Some teachers list them for free on Teachers Pay Teachers.

If you want to make your own puzzles, try out this puzzle maker site. You can create several versions of all sorts of puzzles like math squares and word searches.

You can also download Scoot’s free, printable word search puzzle in our resource kit!

Get your free puzzle worksheet

3) Speaking buddies

Speaking aids are great tools to have in your bag of tricks when you substitute teach in History, English, or Foreign Language classes.

Younger students especially will focus better on 1 speaker when there’s a clear visual identifier.

Just about any small, but fun item is a perfect speaking buddy to easily carry in your sub bag. Use aids like juggling balls, stuffed animals, flags, and more.

Pass the speaking buddy to the student who is speaking and act as the moderator asking discussion questions about the subject they’re currently working on.

4) Stickers

Stickers are always a great addition to your substitute to-go bag.

Use fun stickers as positive reinforcement for students to finish their work and be on their best behavior throughout the day.

When others see you rewarding students for good behavior, they’ll typically follow along because they want goodies too.

Even if you don’t have stickers or other little treasures to share, always make sure to verbally give positive reinforcement to encourage good behavior as you’re teaching. This can be as simple as “I see you working hard. You’re doing a great job!” or “It’s very nice of you to help out your classmate.”

5) Picture books and articles

A little storytime is an amazing addition to the day of learning for lower and upper elementary kids.

You can plan to read a book or suggest it as a prize to win for the class. An easy behavior management strategy is to reward students with a story after they accumulate 10 incidents of good behavior.

You can also start storytime if the class is getting a little too rowdy. When the class as a whole becomes too energetic and you’re having trouble reigning them in, reading a good picture book provides effective downtime. Having brain breaks like these helps re-sharpen your students’ focus.

To turn storytime into a learning opportunity, have a few lesson ideas attached to some of your picture books.

For older students starting from middle school, bring a collection of articles. Have students read the article and write a summary. Some great resources for students include National Geographic Kids and Tween Tribune.

Visit your local library and ask the librarian for suggestions on what books and articles to bring for the age group you typically substitute teach for.

6) Filing folder

Now onto supplies that will help you regardless of what grade level you teach.

First up is the filing folder.

As a guest teacher, you want the day to go as smoothly as possible. The filing folder is helpful because you can organize all the activities we went over earlier.

Store your flat items like stickers or coloring sheets, so they aren’t floating around in your sub bag and in danger of getting bent.

Having the folder also helps ensure that you don’t lose any important document throughout the day.

7) Stationery

You’ll never know what materials students will be missing and classrooms aren’t always packed with what you need.

Usually, there would be a stash of pencils and erasers somewhere in the room to pass out but not always. Finding that stash may also prove to be a challenge when you need a spare right away.

Be prepared by packing some (or all) of the following items in your bag of tricks:

• Pack of pencils
• Pack of erasers
• Flash cards
• Paper clips
• Mini stapler
• Loose leaf paper
• Dry erase markers

Keep an eye out for school sales that sell pencils and erasers at very low prices. If you end up purchasing patterned pencils and funny-shaped cap erasers, you can give them out as prizes too.

8) Hand sanitizer and sanitizing wipes

Substitute teaching can be messy work! No matter how old the students are, spills often happen.

For large accidents, definitely call the school custodian, but for small ones, roll up your sleeves and clean them up. Use your sub bag supplies when the classroom doesn’t have sanitizing items.

Encourage students to use hand sanitizer when they return to the classroom after a recess break.

9) “While you were out” note for the regular teacher

Want to make a great impression on the teacher you’re subbing for? Leave a note that recaps the day.

Write down which students were helpful and which were being rowdy. You should also comment on how much material the class covered.

This is a great opportunity for you to leave your name and contact information.

Feel free to write all of this information down on a simple piece of paper or on sticky notes, but if you want an actual template, check out this freebie from us to add to your sub bag.

Get your free sub note template

After you’re done writing, leave it on the teacher’s desk so they can easily find it the next day.

If you’re teaching with Scoot Education, no worries about sharing your personal information, the school staff can simply get in touch with us!

10) Personal items

Make sure that you’re comfortable and ready to have a good day by preparing items just for you!

Your schedule as a substitute teacher won’t always be straightforward and predictable. Even your lunch break might be at odd hours.

So pack a water bottle and some of your favorite snacks in your sub bag. It isn’t a bad idea to keep chapstick or vitamin C packets either.

You can even pack a book in case you have long breaks.

Being a substitute teacher is rewarding but can definitely be challenging even in the best circumstances. A good sub bag allows you to quickly improvise in any situation and be the best substitute that you can be.

But remember to follow the lesson plans first. It’s only after the lesson plan or if it’s missing that you start reaching for the activities from your bag of tricks.

Relax, be confident, and have a wonderful time substitute teaching!

Ready to become a substitute teacher?

Becoming a substitute teacher is simple. Especially with an educational staffing company like Scoot Education. We want to support you throughout your application process and beyond.

Subbing with Scoot means access to more opportunities, more school districts, and more excitement!

Apply now

In middle or high school, some students might view breaks as childish or a waste of time. But the opposite couldn’t be more true.

Brain breaks are powerful for motivating students and helping them focus better. There’s many ways to make breaks fun and collaborative as well.

We’ll dive into what brain breaks are, why they’re important, and how to incorporate them into your classroom.

What are brain breaks?

A “brain break” is an activity that gives students an energy boost, while preparing their minds and bodies to engage in the next task. They help students rest and refocus their mind to learn better.

Brain breaks are useful for all age groups from younger students to even adults!

There are many types of brain breaks:

• Movement breaks: Physical activities like walking outside, yoga poses, jumping jacks, motor exercises, or a quick dance party.
• Social-emotional breaks: Deep breathing, mindfulness exercises like meditation, journaling, or talking with a neighbor
• Mental breaks: creative exercises, playing a game, or multi-sensory art activities

How long should brain breaks be?

They should take 3 to 10 minutes. They can be done individually (like deep breathing) or as a whole class (like a round of Simon Says).

A general rule to follow is to take a 3 to 5 minute break for every 10 to 15 minutes of concentrated work time for elementary students, and every 20 to 30 minutes for middle and high school students.

15 brain breaks for secondary school

If video is more your thing, here’s Val, one of our Education Consultants, with 5 easy brain-breaks to refresh your kids and ensure their success. Read on to learn of 10 more brain break strategies.

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Movement breaks

As kids enter middle and high school, they lose recess time and spend more time on their screens or sitting at their desks through lectures and long study hours.

But exercise improves learning! Research shows that physically active children consistently outperform their inactive peers academically on both a short- and long-term basis.

A short movement break will get blood pumping through the body and oxygen flowing to their brains. This will help with attention, cognitive function, memory, self-regulation, and the ability to cope with stress. And it lightens up the mood!

1. Shake it out

Try the “5, 4, 3, 2, 1” method – call out five actions for your students to do as quickly as they can. For instance, 5 jumping jacks, 4 push-ups, 3 sit-ups, 2 squat jumps, and 1 tree pose. A little cardio gets the blood flowing and can enhance focus.

2. Pinky-Thumb Flip

This one-minute sensory exercise uses both halves of your brain and your hands. Hold your hands into fists. On one hand, stick out your thumb only. On the other hand, stick out your pinky. Now, bring both fingers back in and switch back and forth.

3. Yoga minute

Take a minute to move and stretch with your students. Pick up to 5 yoga positions to hold for a few seconds. You can play a video to follow along or lead them through the sequence yourself.

Mindfulness breaks

Mindfulness exercises are extremely effective for stress reduction, relaxation, and overall well-being and mental health, no matter your age! In fact, many schools are using SEL (social-emotional learning) techniques in their classrooms.

Now more than ever, middle and high schoolers should be taught these strategies before they transition into adulthood. As they enter college, students will meet more stressful situations and responsibilities. These are tools that they can use throughout their life.

4. Guided breathing exercise

One way to practice mindfulness is by doing breath work. Invite students to think about what makes them feel calm and relaxed (e.g. listening to music, reading a book, lying down).

Share with students any of these 3 breathing techniques that they can use when they want to feel calm: balloon breathing, flower breathing, or blowing bubbles. You can also play a video for them to follow along.

5. Meditation

Guided meditation can help secondary students relax and refocus in class. It’s a simple and inviting way to promote mindfulness and well-being in the classroom.

Encourage students to find a comfortable position and close their eyes. Then, use a video that provides calming visuals and soothing audio instructions. Try Khan Academy’s guided meditation video for students.

6. Journal time

Set aside 5 minutes during a class period for journaling. Journaling is a great reflective exercise for people of all ages. Depending on your prompt, students can practice gratitude, honesty, self-awareness, and take a step back from busy-ness.

If you collect their journals, reading them can always teach you something new about your kids, allowing you to connect with them with more empathy. Here are 55 prompts high school students will love. Feel free to make up your own as well!

Creative activities

Get your students to exercise their artistic abilities in any medium – drawing, storytelling, or music. Gamify these activities to get everyone engaged and socializing with each other.

7. Collaborative storytelling

First student starts the story with one sentence. Each subsequent student adds to the story with one additional sentence. Story ends with the last student.

8. Drawing games

You could play a game that gets students to bust out their drawing and guessing skills. You’ll definitely get a few chuckles at people’s drawings. Here are two games that are great for large groups:

• Pictionary: This is a simple drawing and guessing game. Use the whiteboard and have everyone guess individually or in teams.
• Telestrations: This is like a “telephone” game, but on paper. It’s also known as the “Write Draw Pass” activity. You’ll need to divide up a large class into groups of 8 and make sure there’s a logical passing order. Learn how it works here (and fun variations).

Classroom games

Games help students practice communicating verbally or nonverbally and get to know more about each other! They also bring out people’s competitive spirits, encourage teamwork, and teach strategy.

9. Two Truths and a Lie

This is a fantastic 10-15 minute icebreaker that encourages students to share interesting tidbits about themselves. It helps students get to know each other in a lighthearted way.

You can play this game on teams or individually. It’s an ideal activity for the beginning of the school year or after a break.

10. Heads Up, Seven Up

Heads Up, Seven Up is a quiet, deduction game. There are 3 ways to play Heads Up, Seven Up.

It’s a perfect game to play to calm your kids down after a long day. Tell your kids they can play this at the end of class. They’ll be excited to play and finish up their work quickly!

11. Silent Ball

Try Silent Ball for three minutes before dismissal. Have students stand in a circle, sit on the carpet, or even sit on the tops of their desks.

Give students a small, squishy ball to silently pass around to each other in class. If a student makes a bad pass, drops the ball, or utters a sound, they’re out of the game. Keep playing until there is one student left standing (or sitting).

There are some modifications you can make. For example, players out of the game can knock down a pass in order to join back in the game.

Silent Ball builds a positive classroom community by fostering friendly competition and boosts nonverbal communication.

Educational breaks

Take a few minutes to learn a quirky fact, an interesting historical event, or a new language. It’ll broaden their horizons, giving students a fresh perspective on humanity and a break from work.

12. Learn something new

Watch a short 3-5 minute video that inspires wonder or curiosity. Learning doesn’t have to be confined to the traditional curriculum!

Videos from SciShow, How it’s made, or National Geographic can be a quick, interesting break from the work they have been doing. Make sure the video is appropriate for class and not too long and distracting.

13. Foreign language tongue twister

Try out a tongue twister challenge-in a different language for an extra challenge. It’s a fun way to improve pronunciation and discover hidden linguistic talents!

Check out: 9 Tongue Twisters From Around the World

Other brain breaks

Give your students space to solve puzzles and write down their thoughts. Riddles and puzzles encourage kids to exercise their brain outside of the days’ lessons. Introduce these breaks after they finish work, so they don’t become too much of a distraction.

14. Riddle time

Challenge your kids to think outside the box. Share a few of these brain bending riddles for your students to think about during the day.

Check out: 100 Riddles for the Classroom

15. Puzzle palooza

Bring in a puzzle and set up a little table for a quick puzzle break to reward your kids for finishing their work on time. Some might stay throughout recess time to complete the puzzle.

Check out: Free Online Jigsaw Puzzles

Why are brain breaks important?

Brain breaks help students recharge, refocus, and reconnect with themselves and others. There are all kinds of benefits associated with brain breaks:

• Enhance focus and concentration
• Boost learning and short-term memory
• Emotional regulation
• Inspire creativity and problem-solving skills
• Improve social skills
• Foster positive classroom environment

Take recess, for example. Research shows the power of recess! When children play together, they learn how to take turns, resolve conflicts, and solve problems.

How do I integrate brain breaks effectively?

1. Observe your students’ engagement levels

Schedule a group game after 20 to 30 minutes of quiet work. Or let them know they can relax after they answer 5 math questions. This will help your students stay motivated during work time, knowing they have a break coming up.

You might decide to adjust the timing depending on the age and specific needs of your students. Older students tend to focus better than younger students.

Most importantly, stay flexible! Carefully observe if your students are getting tired or losing focus early. Then start the brain break earlier to re-energize them! If they’re on a roll, hold off on taking a break.

2. Pick different brain breaks

Create a list of brain breaks to make it easy to get started without thinking and choosing. And it allows you to try out different ways to engage your students!

Or here are some more creative options:

• Put them on a large dice or beach balls
• Write them on popsicle sticks to pull from a jar
• Print a brain breaks bingo card to complete

3. Find the best break for the right situation

Think about what your group of kids will respond best to. Each kid has different interests and preferences. Take this opportunity to get to know your students better! Do they like making music? Do they like dancing? Are they into drawing?

Also consider the time of day and your students’ energy levels. If everyone is tired at the end of the day, a sit-down activity might be better than a dance break.

Being aware of your students’ energy levels and enthusiasm will help you run effective brain breaks.

4. Use a timer

Keep time with a stopwatch or your phone to make sure your break lasts the right amount of time.

Too short, and kids might not feel rested enough. Too long, and they might become distracted and reluctant to return to the task at hand.

Place the timer somewhere your students can see or use music as a countdown timer. Tell them that the activity is over when the song is over. This way, they can be fully prepared to get back to work when it’s time.

5. Talk about it afterward

Make sure to ask kids how they felt about the activity.

Ask them the following questions:

• How did you find today’s work?
• What was your favorite brain break?
• How do you think the brain break helped you?

Their feedback will help you understand how to improve your brain break sessions.

Want to sub with us?

We hope these ideas and tips were helpful! If you’re a current sub or someone looking to try out teaching, apply to Scoot Education! We’re a substitute teacher staffing company dedicated to creating exceptional experiences in education.

As a Scoot sub, you’ll get ultimate flexibility in your work schedule, 1-on-1 support through a personal Education Consultant, and market leading pay.

While Halloween candy is a huge part of traditional trick-or-treating excitement, some students may have allergies or dietary sensitivities that might leave them out of the celebrations.

Don’t let that stop you!

We’ve compiled the best spooky activities and alternative goodies to candy to have your kids howling with excitement!

The most exciting Halloween activities

All of these spooky Halloween games and activities can be done in the classroom while social distancing or even at a virtual Halloween party!

Halloween themed bingo

The best part of this fun Halloween game is that all you need is a printer and some pencils to play!

What you’ll need:

1. Download The Incremental Mama’s PDF of free Halloween-themed bingo sheets with unique calling cards!
2. Pens or pencils for students to mark their sheet
   1. If you don’t want students to write on the printed sheets, you can use store-bought pumpkin seeds as markers instead!

How to play:

1. Give every player a card (if you are virtual, you can mail them a card or have them print it out at home).
2. Have each player grab a handful of pumpkin seeds, or have them bring out a pen or pencil.
3. Everyone can put a marker on the FREE space!
4. Put all the calling cards into a bowl or bag.
5. Randomly select a card to announce to your class. If a player has the same image on their bingo sheet, they can mark it off with their markers.
6. Repeat this until someone calls, “Trick or treat!”
7. Give the winner a prize and play again!

Great pumpkin math investigation

This is a great way to combine teaching and celebrating Halloween with kids!

What you’ll need:

1. Enough small pumpkins for each small group in your class and an extra for yourself
   1. OR if it’s too messy to carve pumpkins to scoop out the seeds, you can replace each pumpkin with a brown bag full of store-bought seeds).
2. Next, print out these free activity sheets!

How to play:

1. First, do a demonstration of the activity. Get your own pumpkin or brown bag. Have them guess and record the number of pumpkin seeds.
2. Take out the pumpkin seeds on a plate, and have your kids estimate the number of seeds on their plates.
3. Then, count the number of seeds using the different grouping mats.
   1. Model how you can use the number mats and add leftovers.
4. Record the total number of seeds on the provided chart. Have a discussion by comparing the estimations and the total amount of counted seeds.
   1. Ex. 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 +10 + 10 + 7 = 127 OR 100 + 20 + 7 = 127
5. Now, it’s time for your students to do the same thing in small groups! Give around 4-5 kids a pumpkin or bag and have them repeat everything you did.

Geometric bats:

Have your students learn about rectangles, squares, and triangles while crafting bats!

What you’ll need:

1. Black and orange construction paper
2. Scissors
3. Glue
4. Googly eyes
5. The Geometric Bat for Younger Kids downloadable template.
6. The template is free to download but you’ll need to make an account on Teachers Pay Teachers first.

How to construct the bat:

1. Use the template shapes to cut out the pieces from black construction paper.
2. Follow the design on the download to glue the pieces onto the orange piece of construction paper.
3. Glue on googly eyes.
4. Hang your bats around the class.
5. Let the discussion questions be the beginning of a great conversation about sizes, angles, and decomposition of shapes!

Decorate these bats around the classroom to add to the Halloween flare or have your students take them home to tape to their front doors.

Halloween themed movies for all ages

When finding something for your class to watch, it might be hard to find a movie that won’t scare the easily-spooked kids too badly yet will also grab the attention of the ones who like scary things.

We’ve got just the list of family-friendly movies to make sure your Halloween parties go smoothly without any crying or bored kids!

Spookley the Square Pumpkin (2004) – Rated G

This fun animated movie is about Spookley, a square pumpkin who gets teased and bullied for his shape. This is the perfect movie for young children and teaches them how to deal with bullying and how to accept and love themselves.Spookley: The Square Pumpkin is free with a Netflix subscription.

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) – Rated PG

When Jack Skellington from Halloween Town accidentally stumbles into Christmas Town, he begins to fall in love with Christmas. So much so that he kidnaps Santa Claus!The Nightmare Before Christmas can be rented on Amazon Prime for $3.99.

Coraline (2009) – Rated PG

Bring the haunted house to your classroom with this spooky stop-motion movie! After moving to a new home, Coraline discovers a portal to a parallel world of her current life. But she soon discovers that the mother of this world has a dark and terrible secret.

Coraline is one of the scarier movies on our list so if your students are younger or easily scared, we suggest skipping this one.

Amazon Prime is currently having a sale so you can rent Coraline for just $2.99 today!

Corpse Bride (2005) – Rated PG

A nervous man named Victor accidentally finds himself married to a corpse-woman named Emily after practicing his wedding vows in a forest. It’s up to his living fiancee to face Emily and get Victor back.

You can rent Corpse Bride on Amazon Prime for $3.99.

5 great alternatives to candy that your students will love

Luckily, Amazon has a vast selection of treats that aren’t candy that you can pass out in class.

The great part about having these candy alternatives is that you can take whatever you have leftover at the end of the day and hand it out to trick or treaters at night.

1) Spooky stickers

What kid doesn’t love stickers? Amazon has a great selection of different stickers that you can pass around for some more Halloween fun.

Our favorite spooky sticker set has over 1000 stickers and is less than $15 if you have Amazon Prime.

2) Halloween erasers

Erasers are always in demand for students and can make for a good bingo reward. Our favorite Amazon pack comes with 60 erasers, including cute black cats, shouting ghosts, and great pumpkins, all for $22.

3) Glow in the dark temporary tattoos

Choosing and putting on temporary tattoos is a guaranteed way to excite any kid, even the ones who are disappointed for not getting candy! We promise that these non-toxic glow-in-the-dark tattoos will be a huge hit for all your students.

You can find a stack of 20 temporary tattoo sheets with 200 assorted styles for less than $8. What a spooky steal!

Sticking on these fun tattoo stickers is easy:

1. Cut out the design you want.
2. Remove the clear film.
3. Stick it on any clean and smooth surface on the body.
4. Wet the tattoo sticker with water and wait for 10-20 seconds before slowly peeling off the sticker.
5. Tip: don’t touch the design as it dries! This will help it last longer.

Did you know that these temporary tattoos can last up to 5 days? These fun designs will make your kids popular with all their friends and can spice up their trick or treating costumes!

4) Glow sticks

This pack of 100 vibrant glowing sticks is the perfect Halloween party accessory and is only $13. Students can wear them around their necks or their wrists and the glow lasts for up to 12 hours, long enough for them to go out trick or treating at night!

5) Halloween themed masks

Masks are still a common sight but we know just the way to turn these masks into the perfect fashion statement with Halloween-themed protective masks! Run and get a 50 pack of these disposable, holiday-themed face masks for only $18.

You don’t need candy to have a spook-tacular Halloween!

There are a number of great ways educators can bring Halloween to the classroom without candy and trick or treating! Whether it is playing Halloween bingo in costumes or laughing over glowing tattoos as they watch a movie, we know your students will have a lot of fun!

You’ll have the elements of drama: tools, plot, structure, setting, cast of characters all in one sheet! Your kids will be able to increase imagination and confidence in their drama building skills.

Download PDF

How do you teach the elements of drama in your classroom?

Shoot us a message on Instagram @scooteducation or email us your favorite techniques at us@scoot.education!

If you find a way to form a bond with them, the overall classroom experience becomes more productive and enjoyable. Students are more active listeners and engage with learning better.

Regardless of how long you’re with the class, these 5 relationship-building tips help you establish rapport with students right away.

If you want your own physical copy of rapport-building tips, check outour free infographic!

Download these tips for later

1) Special greetings

Think about how you feel when you’re greeted by someone who is truly excited to see you!

You also get excited and happy, right? You feel welcomed.

Use this same excitement with your students. Make it a habit to bring the energy and actually greet your students-no mumbling or side glances! Address them with your full attention, look them in the eye, and speak confidently.

Older students, especially, will size you up, so your first impression is critical.

You can also make the greeting more interactive with a high five, a fist bump, or a special handshake.

This positive interaction helps set the tone for the rest of your experience with the students.

2) Check-in

Take less than 1 minute to get a gauge of how your students are doing by asking them: “How are you?”

There are many ways for your class to communicate their feelings.

One way is to just have everyone either give a thumbs-up or thumbs-down. Another way to check-in is to ask students to show a number between 1-5 on their hand, 5 being “My day is great!” and 1 being “My day can only go up from here.”

If there are students who aren’t feeling as well as the others, keep an eye on them.

You can also check-in regularly throughout the school day. Don’t be the substitute teacher who sits at their desk all day! You’ll appear disinterested or disengaged and likely not invited to teach in the classroom again.

Instead, give a positive impression to students. Show that you’re engaged and actively, move around the room to check-in with students on their progress.

3) Incentivize positive behavior

As you go around and check-in with students, reward any positive behavior with praise.

Openly praising good behavior encourages other students to do better, and fosters a cultural wealth model instead of a deficit model.

You’re a teacher, not a military sergeant. You’re not a disciplinarian, you’re an inspiring role model!

So, while you might occasionally need to address negative behavior, the most effective tactic to build trust with your students lies in empowering them, not scolding them.

Find ways to encourage more good behavior, like:

• Tell the class that you’ll write down the names of exceptional students to report back to their teacher.
• Ask each student to take out a piece of paper and make a name card. Then explain they’ll get a hole punch/sticker/stamp for everytime they did well and a special mention to their teacher on their great behavior
• Write the names on a white board for the whole class to see.

4) Listen

Let your students talk to you about something important to them.

Give them 2 minutes of your undivided attention where they can talk about anything.

Students love being heard and respected. If they see that you’re 100% present, they’ll also feel more relaxed and comfortable around you.

If you’re a long-term substitute, try incorporating 1-on-1 meetings with all of your students throughout your placement. Children often feel pressured to perform in front of their peers, so meeting them personally will help them calm down.

If you’re a substitute teacher, you likely won’t have time to meet with everyone, but definitely start addressing students individually instead of a whole group. And whenever a student wants to tell you something, give 100% of your attention.

5) Make mistakes

We teach our students that it’s okay to make mistakes and ask for help. But how willing are we to do the same?

When students make mistakes in front of their peers, they often feel very embarrassed. This can cause them to react negatively.

They may refuse to address the mistake and ask for help. When the whole class gets into this habit, it’s difficult to manage the class effectively.

Teach by example, if they see you, an authority figure, making a mistake and asking for help; that’s powerful!

Whether you’re a full-time teacher or substitute teacher, establishing successful teacher-student relationships is critical for any age group.

Not only will classroom management get much easier, you’ll also feel empowered to lead awesome learning days.

Try out any combination of the 5 rapport-building tips and let us know in the comments which is your favorite tip!

Ready to sub with Scoot?

Become a Scoot Education substitute teacher today and start making a difference in schools near you!
Apply to substitute teach with Scoot!

Educate your class about important terms, definitions, the Pride Movement, and LGBTQ+ stories!

Teach the history of Pride Month

Learning more about how Pride Month started is a good way to start celebrating LGBTQ+ communities.

Pride Month is commemorated each year in June to honor the 1969 Stonewall uprising in New York City.

Supporters of the Stonewall Inn, a gay club in Greenwich Village, had staged a resistance against a police raid that was targeting LGBTQ+ Americans.

Protestors demanded that safe havens be established where LGBTQ+ people can be safely open about their sexual orientation without fear of arrest.

The Stonewall Riots paved the way for the modern fight to outlaw discriminatory laws against the LGBTQ+ community.

While the fight continues, Pride Month also includes celebratory parades, parties, workshops, concerts, and more.
You can structure a lesson on the Stonewall Uprisings just like you do with any important event or see how this high school lesson plan is built.

Highlight LGBTQ+ history

Many people questioned and broke the societal expectations of gender and sexuality yet are often hidden from traditionally taught history.

Utilize The Hidden Voices LGBTQ+ Project to teach students about individuals who influenced the social, political, artistic, and economic landscape in significant ways. It also includes an overview of U.S. LGBTQ+ history, sample focus questions, and comprehensive profiles of historical figures.

Unheard Voices is another amazing resource to use in middle school or high school. It’s an oral history and curriculum project that explores broad themes including silence vs. invisibility, and inclusion vs. exclusion.

Teach about all of the pride flags

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The rainbow flag that you might be familiar with first started with Harvey Milk.

Milk was the first openly gay person to hold a high public office in a major American city, in this case, San Francisco. His campaigning emphasized hope for young gay people, so he asked the artist Gilbert Baker to design a unifying symbol.

That symbol turned out to be the rainbow flag, which first debuted at the San Francisco Pride Parade in 1978.
In addition to the rainbow flag, there are flags for a wide range of sexual orientations and gender identities just like how different states have their own state flag.

Know the difference between sex, gender, and sexuality

Gender, sex, and sexuality are not interchangeable terms, so it’s important to know what each mean.

Gender: Refers to socially constructed characteristics of females and males, such as roles, behaviors, and norms.

Sex: “Refers to a person’s anatomy, physical attributes such as external sex organs, sex chromosomes and internal reproductive structures” (Learning For Justice).

Sexuality/ Sexual Orientation: “Our physical, emotional and/or romantic attractions to others” (Learning For Justice).

Gender Identity: “A person’s gender-related identity, whether or not that gender-related identity, appearance or behavior is different from that traditionally associated with the person’s physiology or assigned sex at birth. Everyone has a gender identity. Gender Identity is a person’s inner sense of being a man or a woman, some combination of both, or neither” (PBS Learning Media).

Learning For Justice has K-12 lesson plans to help teachers navigate the complex topics of gender and sexual identity with their class. The lessons cover topics such as privilege tied to certain identities and figuring out how to express your own identity.

To break away from girl/boy labels, use this lesson toolkit to host a gender-neutral day and have students question gendered spaces present throughout their time in school.

Be aware of pride definitions

LGBTQ+ is a common abbreviation for lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer or questioning. The term is often used to encompass all of the communities in LGBTTQQIAAP:

• Lesbian
• Gay
• Bisexual
• Transgender
• Transsexual
• Queer
• Questioning
• Intersex
• Asexual/ Ace
• Ally
• Pansexual

LGBTQ+ is often used because it’s user friendly.

For common terminology used to address sexual identity, gender expression, and gender identity, check out this list.

You can also view this Toolkit for Educators for more terms and resources to help educators promote understanding, awareness, and self-esteem in the classroom.

There are a LOT of terms and terms that are always evolving. Don’t stress about memorizing the entire list.

The most important thing is to be respectful of everyone’s identities and use the terms that people prefer.

Share the stories of LGBTQ+ people

A critical way to highlight underrepresented communities is to showcase individual voices. Celebrate Pride Month by sharing LGBTQ+ stories with your students.

We Are The Youth is an ongoing photojournalism project that shares the stories of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer youth in the United States.

I’m From Driftwood aims to help LGBTQ+ people learn more about their community through the power of sharing stories.

You can also include LGBTQ+ inclusive books into your curriculum. Getting Smart created a list of great books from preschool to high school.

We hope you utilize these suggestions and resources to celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride with your students.

Helping students gain a better understanding of different communities builds empathy and allows LGBTQ+ students to feel safer and more affirmed in your classroom.

Start learning about Juneteenth and its cultural significance so you can celebrate it in your classroom this year!

What is Juneteenth?

Juneteenth, which is short for June Nineteenth, marks the day that U.S. federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas. They went to ensure that all enslaved African Americans were freed. Juneteenth is also the oldest celebration of the legal end of slavery in the United States.

Other names for Juneteenth are:

• Juneteenth Independence Day
• Freedom Day
• Emancipation Day
• Jubilee Day
• Cel-liberation Day
• Second Independence Day

The Emancipation Proclamation

On September 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. This proclamation was to be enacted on January 1, 1863. It said that all enslaved people that seceded from the U.S. during the American Civil War were to be freed.

This meant that slaves in border states and states under Northern control were not to be freed.

While this proclamation paved the way for permanent abolition of slavery, it was not the sole reason slaves were freed.

Two and a half years later in 1865, the Union soldiers would have to take control of Galveston, Texas. This action would help free all remaining enslaved people.

How did Juneteenth start?

A year after 1865, newly freed Black people organized an annual celebration of “Jubilee Day” on June 19th in the state of Texas. These community oriented local celebrations included music, prayers, barbecues, traditional dress and other celebratory acts.

As Black people migrated out of Texas to other states, they carried the Juneteenth tradition with them. Soon African American communities and other communities throughout the U.S. were celebrating Juneteenth!

Fun fact: Texas was the first state to declare Juneteenth a holiday!

The Civil Rights movement

During the era of World War 2, Juneteenth celebrations largely declined as much of the public’s attention was on wartime efforts.

This changed during the Civil Rights movement, which spanned between the 1950s and 1960s. After Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination in 1968, his friend Ralph Abernathy led the Poor People’s March that summer.

This march ended in a giant Juneteenth celebration, which helped spread Juneteenth around the country.

How is Juneteenth honored today?

“Juneteenth, today, celebrates African-American freedom and achievement while encouraging continuous self-development and respect for all cultures.”

Juneteenth.com

Many hold family gatherings, some make a pilgrimage to Galveston, and some cities hold larger events like parades. Other typical activities include rodeos, fishing, barbecuing, and baseball.

For non-Black individuals, you can celebrate by supporting Black communities whether through buying food from Black-owned restaurants or donating to community organizations.

You can also educate yourself about Black history and social justice through books, shows, podcasts, and more.

Is Juneteenth a federal holiday?

Yes, it is!

There have been multiple attempts in the past to recognize Juneteenth as a national day of observance, also known as a federal holiday. Finally, on January 13, 2022, the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act was signed into law. Juneteenth is now an official holiday!

With this, the United States now has 12 permanent federal holidays.

Here at Scoot, we get the day off to celebrate Juneteenth and reflect on our nation’s history.

How can I celebrate Juneteenth in the classroom?

Black history is deeply engrained with American history and should be taught year-round. But Juneteenth is a great opportunity to emphasize this important historical event. This is an important time for teaching tolerance and acceptance that all students need to learn.

Here are some great, free resources to share with your students as you begin celebrating Juneteenth!

Videos to watch

• What is Juneteenth? – This Juneteenth Cartoon that goes over fun facts about this holiday including why it’s celebrated around the US.
• Juneteenth – All About the Holidays – PBS Learning Media created this short video to introduce kids to Juneteenth.
• Celebrating Juneteenth – Founding director of the National Museum of African American History & Culture, Smithsonian leads a tour through a Juneteenth exhibition.

Teaching resources to use

• Teaching Juneteenth – This blog of Juneteenth lessons provides frameworks to help educators both recognize challenges of fighting injustice and celebrate culture, activism, and humanity.
• Teaching Culture as Resistance – This grades 6-8 lesson plan addresses important questions surrounding what identity is and how society shapes it.
• Juneteenth – These grades 3-5 lesson plans cover how to describe different identities and respectfully learn about other peoples’ experiences.

The importance of teaching Juneteenth

It’s important to give your students the space to explore Juneteenth and the dark history of the United States. We need to learn from past mistakes and atrocities to ensure it never happens again.

While you don’t have to give the gruesome details of the horrors of slavery, you should tell your students that Juneteenth is not just an annual holiday. It’s also a day that many people have given their lives to see celebrated.

It’s also great to know that you can help your Black and African American students feel that they and their history is respected!

1) Handprint hat

(via craftymorning)

Make sure your students stand out in the playground!

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2) Pine cone turkey

(via firefliesandmudpies)

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3) Turkey hand

(via happiest mommy on the block)

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Great way to express their artistic abilities.

4) Door decoration

(via thingstoshareandremember)

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5) Turkey mason jar

(via goodhousekeeping)

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Not only fun for kids to create but also a great addition to home decorations!

6) Pilgrim hat

(via fiskars)

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7) Colorful feathers

(via crafty morning)

8) Tissue paper turkey

(via crafty morning)

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9) Gobble globe

(via Ilovetocreate)

A combination of everything, hand cutout, glitter, glue and a great addition to classroom decorations!

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10) Paper pilgrims

(via goodhousekeeping)

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Bonus fun activity:

Learn how to say “thank you” in different languages. It can be fun for your students to  test their foreign language skills. (This website will help you learn to say “thank you” in over 400 languages!)

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