Substitute Lesson Without Preparation

Choose an activity according to the year group and the class's energy level: everything works without materials or subject knowledge.

At the end of the lesson: give the class teacher brief feedback (last column).

Use the classic categories plus 2 to 3 new ones suggested by the class (TV series, app, sport)

Play 3 rounds, count the points, and crown the winning team

Divide the class into 2 teams and have students draw terms on the board

Terms: jobs, animals, films, whispered by the substitute teacher

Write 5 estimation questions on the board: How many stairs does the school have? What is the combined age of the headteacher and caretaker?

Teams estimate; the closest guess wins

Allow 15 minutes of writing time for this prompt: Behind the old door in the school basement lies ...

Afterwards, volunteers may read their text aloud

Each student creates 2 riddle questions (school, animals, general knowledge)

Then hold a group quiz: Who asks the trickiest question?

Invent an animal that does not exist: write and draw a profile, then create a gallery on the board

Divide the class into pro and con teams and choose a debate question (mobile phones in lessons? abolish grades?)

Allow 10 minutes for preparation, followed by a 15-minute debate with a fixed speaking order

Write a letter to your future self in 20 years: What do you want to have achieved, and what advice would you give yourself?

The letter remains private; volunteers may share one sentence

Groups invent an absurd product and pitch it to the class in 2 minutes

Vote: Who wins the contract?

Homework or an own-choice book: 30 minutes of silent work with a timer on the board

Dictate problems, solve them mentally, and hold up the result on paper: surprisingly popular

No tests or grades during substitute lessons

The class remains in the room and school rules apply

Briefly note: what was done, any noteworthy incidents, and absent students