Cover Day & Supply
Cover Day & Supply resources
Self-contained cover lessons, supply teacher survival guides, and emergency pack templates — for the unexpected absence, the supply teacher walking into an unfamiliar room, and the class teacher who wants something ready for next time.
Where to start
Curator's picks for cover day & supply.
If you're new to LessonKind cover day & supply, these are the resources we'd point you to first.
Cover Day — Morning Meeting Script (Any Class)
A scripted morning meeting routine for any class, any age, when you don't know the children. Register, weather, mood check, calendar, day plan — 10 minutes that establish you as the adult and the children as a team.
Quick Fillers for Any Class — 25 Time-Filling Activities
25 quick activities for the dead time that happens on cover days — finished a lesson early, transition went fast, the class arrived back from PE 10 minutes early. From 30 seconds to 15 minutes long.
Classroom Info Template — For the Cover Folder
A printable template for the 'about your class' page that goes in the emergency cover folder. Class list, seating plan, medical flags, SEND notes — all in one page.
Cover Day End-of-Day Handover Template
What the supply teacher fills in at the end of the day for the returning class teacher. Brief, structured, useful — covers what got done, what to follow up, what's worth knowing.
Browse all cover day & supply resources
Any-Year Art Cover Lesson — Self-Portrait Continuum
A self-contained art lesson that works from Reception to Year 6 — observational self-portrait with reflection. Materials: pencils and paper. Time: 45-60 minutes.
Behavior Strategies for an Unfamiliar Class
What works (and what doesn't) when you don't know the children, the school's rules, or where the head's office is. Quick-deploy strategies for the unfamiliar classroom.
Classroom Info Template — For the Cover Folder
A printable template for the 'about your class' page that goes in the emergency cover folder. Class list, seating plan, medical flags, SEND notes — all in one page.
Cover Day End-of-Day Handover Template
What the supply teacher fills in at the end of the day for the returning class teacher. Brief, structured, useful — covers what got done, what to follow up, what's worth knowing.
Cover Day Full Pack — Year 1-2 (KS1)
A complete cover-day pack for KS1 — registration, maths, phonics, snack, story, P.E., afternoon project. Five hours of teaching with everything you need, no class teacher prep required.
Cover Day — Morning Meeting Script (Any Class)
A scripted morning meeting routine for any class, any age, when you don't know the children. Register, weather, mood check, calendar, day plan — 10 minutes that establish you as the adult and the children as a team.
Emergency Cover Pack — For the Class Teacher to Leave
What every class teacher should keep printed in their classroom drawer — a one-day emergency cover pack so a supply teacher can run the day without disrupting learning. Builds itself from your existing materials.
First Day as Supply — A Survival Guide
What to do in your first 15 minutes in an unfamiliar classroom. How to win the morning before the children arrive. How to manage the rest of the day. Field-tested supply teacher survival.
Quick Fillers for Any Class — 25 Time-Filling Activities
25 quick activities for the dead time that happens on cover days — finished a lesson early, transition went fast, the class arrived back from PE 10 minutes early. From 30 seconds to 15 minutes long.
Cover Day — P.E. Lesson That Works for Any Class
A 45-minute P.E. session that requires no equipment beyond cones (chairs work), no kit knowledge, and works for any class from Y1 to Y6. Five timed activities, each with KS1/KS2 differentiation.
KS1 English — Self-Contained Cover Lesson
A complete KS1 English cover lesson — story prediction and writing — that any supply teacher can run. Includes a complete short story, prediction prompts, and a writing task with three levels.
KS1 Maths — Self-Contained Cover Lesson
A complete, ready-to-run KS1 maths lesson on number bonds and addition that any supply teacher can deliver — with full script, differentiated activities, and answers.
Supply Teacher Class Information Pack
One-page template for classroom teachers to leave for supply cover — class rules, daily routines, key pupils to know, and emergency contacts. Print and keep in the cover folder.
Cover Day Full-Day Pack — Year 3-4
A complete self-contained Y3-4 cover day for the supply teacher who's just walked in. Five hours of curriculum-aligned, no-prep activities — literacy, maths, foundation, with an end-of-day reflection. Print and go.
Cover Day — Reading Comprehension That Works for Any KS2 Class
Three short, age-flexible reading texts (animal facts, a short story, a non-fiction explanation) with comprehension questions. Pick the one that fits the class level. Self-marking — children check answers at the back.
KS2 English — Self-Contained Cover Lesson
A complete KS2 English cover lesson — comprehension and inference — built around a self-contained text. Any supply teacher can run it. Includes the full text, comprehension questions, and inference task.
KS2 Maths — Self-Contained Cover Lesson
A complete, ready-to-run KS2 maths lesson on the four operations and arithmetic strategy that any supply teacher can deliver — with full script, three difficulty levels, and answers.
Cover Day Full-Day Pack — Year 5-6
A complete self-contained Y5-6 cover day for the supply teacher. Five hours of curriculum-aligned work — argumentative writing, fractions/decimals, debate task, art and reading. Print and go.
Editorial
Articles for cover day & supply teachers.
Long-form pieces that go deeper than the resources — written by a qualified primary teacher, not generated.
Behavior & classroom management
The Supply Teacher Who Makes Them Want to Listen
Most supply teaching advice focuses on rules, threats, and 'taking control.' The supply teachers schools beg back are doing something different. This is about that something.
7 min read
Teaching strategy
Teaching Mixed-Year Groups in Primary Schools
Mixed-year group classes are common in smaller primary schools. Here's how to plan for them, how to differentiate, and how to use the age difference as a learning asset rather than a burden.
6 min read
First-year teaching
Supply Teaching: How to Walk Into an Unknown Classroom and Have a Good Day
Supply teaching is one of the hardest things in education. Walking into a class that doesn't know you, without a relationship, without context, is a specific skill. Here's how to do it well.
7 min read
First-year teaching
Five Mistakes I Made as a New Elementary Teacher
If I could go back and shake my first-year teacher self by the shoulders, here's what I'd say.
7 min read