K-2 October Sub Plans: Easy, No-Prep Emergency Plans for Fall!

October is such a fun time in the classroom! 🍂 Between pumpkins, changing leaves, Halloween excitement, and all the activities happening this time of year, our school days can get pretty busy. The last thing you want to worry about when you're feeling under the weather or need an unexpected day off is putting together substitute plans!

That's why I love having ready-to-use October sub plans tucked away and ready to go. With engaging fall-themed activities for kindergarten, first grade, and second grade, you can feel confident that your students will continue learning even when you're not there.

If you're looking for simple, no-prep emergency sub plans for your primary classroom, I've got you covered!

🍎 Why Every K-2 Teacher Needs October Sub Plans

Let's be honest: unexpected absences happen! Whether you wake up sick, have an appointment, or need a last-minute personal day, having emergency plans ready makes life so much easier.

My October sub plans are designed to help make those unexpected days less stressful. Instead of scrambling to find worksheets and write detailed lesson plans, you can have a full day of learning activities ready to print and leave for your substitute.

These plans are designed to help you:

• Save time with ready-to-use lesson plans and printable activities.
• Keep students engaged with fun, fall-themed learning.
• Cover important skills across multiple subject areas.
• Give your substitute teacher clear directions and an organized schedule.
• Spend less time planning for the unexpected and more time enjoying the fall season!

🎃 Kindergarten October Sub Plans

Kindergarten students love learning through seasonal activities, and October is the perfect time to bring a little fall fun into the classroom!

My Kindergarten October Sub Plans include a full day of emergency lesson plans and practice pages designed for young learners.

Activities include:

• Reading: Apple comprehension
• Writing: Scarecrow writing
• Word Work: Beginning sounds
• Sight Words: Rainbow Write
• Math: Pumpkin ten-frame counting
• Social Studies: Explorers
• Science: Leaf people

The resource also includes a schedule, a substitute report, and extra classwork to help your day run smoothly.

These activities give kindergarteners opportunities to practice early literacy, math, and other important skills while enjoying the season.

👉 Shop Kindergarten October Sub Plans on Teachers Pay Teachers

🍁 First Grade October Sub Plans

First grade is such an important year for building reading, writing, and math confidence. When you need to be out, it's helpful to have activities that reinforce familiar skills without requiring hours of preparation.

My First Grade October Sub Plans include a full day of emergency lesson plans and printable practice activities.

Here's a peek at what's included:

• Reading: Apple comprehension
• Writing: Scarecrow writing
• Word Work: ABC order
• Sight Words: Rainbow write
• Math: Subtraction from 10
• Social Studies: Explorers
• Science – Leaf People

You'll also find a classroom schedule, a substitute report, and extra classwork to help keep everything organized.

These fall-themed activities provide meaningful practice while giving your substitute a clear plan for the day.

👉 Find First Grade October Sub Plans in My TPT Store

🧡 Second Grade October Sub Plans

Second graders are ready for more independent practice, and having organized emergency plans can help them stay on track even when their regular teacher is away.

My Second Grade October Sub Plans provide a full day of ready-to-use activities designed to keep students learning and engaged.

• Reading: Apple comprehension
• Writing: Scarecrow writing
• Word Work: ABC order
• Sight Words: Rainbow Write
• Math: Subtraction from 20
• Social Studies: Explorers
• Science – Leaf People

The resource includes a schedule, a substitute report, and printable practice pages for a variety of classroom subjects.

With seasonal activities and familiar classroom routines, these plans can help your students continue practicing important skills while your substitute follows an organized schedule.

👉 Shop Second Grade October Sub Plans on Teachers Pay Teachers

📝 What's Included in These Emergency Sub Plans?

Each grade-level resource is designed to make preparing for an unexpected absence easier.

Depending on the grade level, you'll find:

• A classroom schedule
• A substitute report
• Reading activities
• Writing activities
• Phonics or word work
• Sight word practice
• Math activities
• Additional subject-area lessons
• Extra classwork

The activities are designed to provide a full day of learning, so you can spend less time putting plans together and more time taking care of yourself when you need a day away.

🍂 How I Prep My Emergency Sub Plans

Want to make your emergency plans even easier to use? Here are a few simple tips!

1. Print your plans ahead of time.

Print your October sub plans and keep a copy in your emergency sub folder. You'll be glad they're ready when you need them!

2. Add your classroom schedule.

Include your regular daily schedule, special-area times, lunch information, and any classroom routines your substitute needs to know.

3. Leave important student information.

Make sure your substitute knows about classroom procedures, student needs, dismissal routines, and where to find supplies.

4. Keep everything together.

Store your plans, worksheets, attendance information, and substitute notes in one easy-to-find location.

5. Give yourself permission to rest.

Once your plans are ready, you don't have to spend your entire sick day worrying about what your students are doing. Your classroom has a plan, and you can focus on getting better!

🧡 Make October a Little Less Stressful!

October should be filled with fun fall activities, pumpkin projects, and exciting learning opportunities—not late-night lesson planning when you're already feeling sick!

Having emergency sub plans ready to go is one of those little things that can make a BIG difference during the school year.

Whether you teach kindergarten, first grade, or second grade, these October sub plans can help you feel more prepared for those unexpected days away from the classroom.

Ready to get your October sub plans organized?

🍎 Shop Kindergarten October Sub Plans

🍁 Shop First Grade October Sub Plans

🎃 Shop Second Grade October Sub Plans

Happy teaching, and here's to a fun, organized, and less stressful October!

Ring in the New Year

Happy New Year

What better way to welcome the new year than with my New Year’s 2025 Activity Packet!  This carefully designed resource is perfect for keeping your students engaged while reflecting on the past year and setting goals for the future. Whether you’re a teacher, parent, or homeschooler, this resource offers a variety of fun and meaningful activities tailored for young learners.

What’s Included

Here’s a sneak peek at what you’ll find in the New Year’s 2025 Activity Packet:

1.       Reflection Pages: Help students look back on 2024 with creative writing prompts and fun drawing activities that encourage self-expression.

2.      Goal-Setting Worksheets: Start the year strong with prompts that inspire students to set realistic and personal New Year’s resolutions.

3.      Creative Crafts: Hands-on projects that allow students to create festive decorations or keepsakes to celebrate 2025.

4.      Math and Literacy Practice: Skills-based activities with a New Year’s twist to keep learning exciting and relevant.

5.      Games and Puzzles: Entertain and challenge students with a word search and more!

Why You’ll Love This Resource

• Engaging and Easy to Use: Perfect for students of varying levels, this packet is designed to be both fun and educational.
• Time-Saving: Print-and-go activities make preparation a breeze.
• Festive and Meaningful: Combine the joy of New Year’s celebrations with thoughtful reflection and skill-building exercises.

How to Use This Resource

• Back-to-School Kickoff: Use it during the first week back from winter break to ease into routines while sparking creativity.
• Homeschool: Add a festive flair to your curriculum while teaching the value of reflection and goal-setting.

Get Ready for 2025

Celebrate the start of a new year with activities that your students will love.

Click here to grab your New Year’s 2025 Activity Packet

Map Skills

In first grade, students are just beginning to explore the world around them in more concrete ways. One of the most exciting concepts for young learners to grasp is understanding maps and how they can represent real-world locations. Teaching map skills in first grade lays the groundwork for spatial awareness, problem-solving, and geographic understanding. In this blog post, we’ll dive into the essential map skills that first graders need to learn and share how our First Grade Map Skills Resource can make this learning experience fun and interactive.

Why Map Skills Are Important in First Grade

Map skills go beyond learning how to read a map. They teach children:

• Spatial Awareness: Understanding where things are in relation to each other.
• Critical Thinking: Problem-solving and following directions to navigate a map.
• Geographic Understanding: Developing a sense of the world outside their immediate environment, which can spark interest in different places and cultures.
• Abstract Thinking: Learning that symbols on a map represent real-world objects, a foundational concept for more complex thinking in math and literacy.

Essential Map Skills for First Graders

At this stage, first graders are ready to start building on simple map concepts. Here are the core map skills that students will develop:

1. Cardinal Directions

Students are introduced to the four cardinal directions: north, south, east, and west. Using a compass rose on a map, they begin to understand how directions help us locate places. First graders might practice simple activities like identifying what’s "north" of their school or where the playground is in relation to the cafeteria.

2. Map Symbols and Keys

Maps use symbols to represent real objects, and first graders learn to read these symbols through a map key. They’ll see pictures of trees, houses, rivers, and roads that stand for real-life features and practice matching these symbols with what they represent.

3. Simple Landforms and Bodies of Water

Students begin to identify basic landforms (like mountains and valleys) and bodies of water (rivers, lakes, oceans) on maps. By recognizing these features, they start understanding how geography shapes the world around them.

4. Understanding Location

First graders practice using terms like “left,” “right,” “near,” and “far” to describe where things are located on a map. They might start with simple tasks like following directions from one place to another, helping them grasp relative locations.

5. Reading Simple Maps

By first grade, students are ready to start interpreting simple maps of familiar places like the classroom, their neighborhood, or even a treasure map! Learning to trace routes and understand what different map features represent builds confidence in reading maps.

6. Creating Their Own Maps

One of the most exciting parts of teaching map skills is allowing students to create their own maps. First graders can draw maps of their classroom, school, or community, using symbols and labels to represent real-life locations. This hands-on activity reinforces map-reading skills and encourages creativity.

Fun Activities for Teaching First Grade Map Skills

• Compass Rose Hunt: Students go on a scavenger hunt around the classroom or playground, using cardinal directions to find hidden objects.
• Create a Map Key: Children design their own map key, selecting symbols for different places or objects in their school or neighborhood.
• Follow the Path: Using a simple map, students follow directions like “move three steps east” or “go two steps south” to navigate their way through a classroom obstacle course.
• Design Your Own Treasure Map: Students create a treasure map for a fun "hunt," practicing map-making and symbol use.

Check out this Map Skills resource to help you teach your Map Skills unit.

New Position

I am now officially an English Language Learner Teacher. When I was an Instructional Coach one of my responsibilities was to work closely with our ELL teacher and guess what I totally feel in love with ELLs. When an ELL position opened up at my school I had to jump and take it. I am so excited for this new position and looking forward to this new journey.

 

Here's a picture of my classroom this year. 

Happy New Year

Happy New Year

It's been a while since I have blogged. It was a very busy year. One major change was that I moved schools. I'm still teaching but now I teach at my neighborhood school. It's really cool seeing my students not only at school but in the neighborhood riding their bikes or playing outside. My daughter started Kindergarten and I couldn't resist the opportunity to teach at her school and I get to see her cute little face every day there.

First Day of School AM. Look at that cute face!

  

First Day of School PM. She had a fantastic 1st day!

Here are some pictures of my new classroom.