Kindergarten STEM Sub Plans | 12 No-Prep Emergency Lessons
This Kindergarten STEM Sub Plans resource includes 12 complete, ready-to-use STEM and engineering lessons designed specifically for children ages 5–6. Each lesson is short, predictable, hands-on, and structured so that a substitute teacher can confidently deliver it without a STEM background. The resource is designed to pair with the Kindergarten STEM Full-Year Curriculum.
The 12 lessons are: Cup Tower, Paper Bridge, Float or Sink, Ramp Roll, Strong Shapes, Magnet Hunt, Chair for a Bear, Keep It Dry, Count and Build, Fix It, Sort the Box, and Draw It, Build It. Each activity takes approximately 20–25 minutes and follows four manageable activity chunks.
The lessons are developmentally appropriate for Kindergarten, using picture-based student pages, drawing before building, simple challenges, counting and measuring, partner work, predictable routines, calm transitions, safety guidance, and substitute-friendly scripts. Practical classroom management support is included, such as giving children advance warning before cleanup and allowing them to draw or switch approaches when a construction attempt is unsuccessful.
Students work with familiar classroom materials to predict, observe, build, test, sort, count, compare, and improve. Activities include building towers and bridges, testing floating and sinking objects, investigating magnets, designing waterproof covers, exploring strong shapes, testing ramps, and creating a design before constructing it.
The resource is specifically designed for emergency substitute teaching. Each lesson includes word-for-word carpet scripts, clear step-by-step directions, materials lists, safety notes, picture pages, teacher notes-back pages, and backup instructions for common problems. Sub-folder materials are also included to help teachers organize everything in advance.
Materials require little or no special preparation and may include paper, cups, cardstock, tape, craft sticks, blocks, water, foil, fabric, magnets, crayons, classroom objects, and toy cars.
The resource is suitable for Kindergarten STEM and science, engineering activities, emergency sub plans, no-prep STEM activities, STEM centers, teacher absence days, and substitute teacher folders.
The central focus is not simply completing a construction challenge. Children practice the foundational STEM habits of making predictions, planning through drawing, building, testing, observing results, counting and comparing, sorting, communicating discoveries, and trying again. Failed designs become opportunities to observe, adjust, and improve.
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K - 5 STEM Sub Plans Bundle | Full-Year Engineering Activities
K–5 STEM Sub Plans Bundle | 72 No-Prep Emergency STEM Lessons with Word-for-Word Substitute Scripts 72 complete, stand-alone STEM lessons across Kindergarten through 5th Grade — each with a word-for-word substitute script, materials list, student page, and a notes-back-to-teacher page — so an unexpected absence never again means a STEM day lost. Every lesson is written for a substitute with no STEM background. The script says what to say. The directions say what to do, minute by minute. The student page says what to record. And because the lessons are non-sequential, the sub can pick any one without knowing what your class did last week. Print once, put it in the sub folder, and it's ready for the whole year. What's Included Six grade-level sub plan sets (333 pages, 72 lessons): Kindergarten STEM Sub Plans (12 lessons, 53 pages) — 20–25 minute lessons in four short chunks, word-for-word carpet scripts, picture-based student pages, and practical sub guidance for five-year-olds: the two-minute cleanup warning, switching to drawing if a build won't work, finishing early rather than rushing. 1st Grade STEM Sub Plans (12 lessons, 56 pages) — full lesson scripts, student pages, notes-back pages, 10-minute emergency fillers, sub folder cover, classroom information page. 2nd Grade STEM Sub Plans (12 lessons, 56 pages) — adds minute-by-minute directions, repeated trials and data collection, early-finisher options, and STEM Sub Tub setup guidance. 3rd Grade STEM Sub Plans (12 lessons, 56 pages) — adds variables, outliers, prediction error, and claim–evidence–reasoning. 4th Grade STEM Sub Plans (12 lessons, 56 pages) — adds measurable criteria, costing, percentage improvement, means and ranges, and source evaluation. 5th Grade STEM Sub Plans (12 lessons, 56 pages) — adds optimization, load-to-mass ratios, conservation of mass, energy chains, and flowchart/pseudocode communication. The Lessons K: Cup Tower · Paper Bridge · Float or Sink · Ramp Roll · Strong Shapes · Magnet Hunt · Chair for a Bear · Keep It Dry · Count and Build · Fix It · Sort the Box · Draw It, Build It 1st: The Ten Card Tower · Paper Bridge Challenge · Ramp Investigation · Shape Strength Test · Boat Cargo Challenge · The Great Egg Drop · Paper Airplane Lab · Build a Better Chair · Magnet Sort and Maze · Shadow Investigation · Sound Makers · Design a Solution 2nd: The Efficient Tower · Material Property Test · Ramp Trials · Shape Strength Lab · Boat Cargo Trials · The Insulation Test · Paper Airplane Lab · Build a Marble Sorter · Friction Surfaces · Parachute Trials · The Sound Barrier Test · Design for Everyone 3rd: The Variables Warm-Up · Bridge Efficiency · Ramp Pattern Prediction · The Pendulum Surprise · Friction Ranking · Insulation Trials · Paper Aeroplane Lab · Material Strength Test · The Outlier Problem · Design a Fair Test · Scale It Up · Claim, Evidence, Reasoning 4th: Write a Better Criterion · The Costing Challenge · Mean, Range and Whether It Matters · The Angle Lab · Percentage Improvement · Design a Fair Test · Scale It Up · The Source Test · Collision Protection · Encode a Message, and more 5th: Improving Is Not Optimising · Define the Real Problem · Four Ideas Before You Judge · Ratios, Not Differences · Conservation of Mass · Identify the Unknowns · The Energy Chain · Where Is Earth's Water? · Gravity and Air Resistance · Distance and Brightness · Flowchart and Pseudocode Relay · Report It So Someone Can Act Every Lesson Includes Word-for-word substitute script Step-by-step (1st) or minute-by-minute (2nd–5th) directions Materials list drawn from a standard classroom: paper, cups, tape, cardstock, books, toy cars, rulers, string, magnets, foil, water Student recording page Notes-back-to-teacher page so you know what happened Clear finish line and success criteria Safety directions Early-finisher options (2nd–5th) What Comes With Each Set A sub folder cover, a classroom information page, emergency 10-minute STEM fillers for when the lesson finishes early or the schedule shifts, and setup guidance for a labeled STEM Sub Tub — a bin of the common supplies so nothing depends on the sub finding materials. What Students Do, K–5 Predict, build, test, count, and try again (K) → build, test, measure, and record (1st) → repeated trials, fair tests, and data tables (2nd) → variables, prediction error, outliers, and CER (3rd) → measurable criteria, load per pound, percentage change, and whether a difference matters (4th) → optimization, ratios, trade-offs, and writing a procedure another pair can execute without help (5th). These aren't crafts to keep a room quiet; students collect data and explain what it means, even on a sub day. Format 6 PDF files, 333 pages total Print-and-go; designed to live in a sub folder or binder all year 12 lessons per grade, approximately 20–25 minutes each in K and a full STEM block in 1st–5th Materials are common classroom supplies; no kit required Teaching duration: 1 full school year per grade Sub Plans vs. the Other Short Activities The K–5 STEM Task Cards and K–5 STEM Early Finishers bundles are 5–10 minute activities students run themselves. Sub Plans are full lessons a substitute runs — scripted start to finish, with a class-wide structure and a page that comes back to you. If you're covering an absence, this is the one. The weekly engineering challenges are in the K–5 STEM Challenge Cards Bundle, the student recording pages in the K–5 STEM Journal Bundle, and the unit capstones in the K–5 STEM Projects Bundle. Teacher lesson plans for the regular year are in the K–5 STEM Curriculum Bundle, and everything together is the K–5 STEM Mega Bundle. Every sub plan set works on its own — no other purchase needed. Why Buy the Bundle Six sets bought separately cost $59.94. This bundle is $41.96 — and gives a STEM specialist, a grade-level team, or a whole elementary building a scripted STEM lesson ready for any sub, in any classroom, on any day of the year. Print once. Prep once. Be ready for the unexpected — K through 5.
$41.96
Bundle
Kindergarten STEM Bundle | Full-Year Engineering Activities
Kindergarten STEM Bundle | Full-Year STEM Curriculum | Engineering Activities, Projects, Task Cards & More Make STEM learning fun, hands-on, and easy to plan all year long with this comprehensive Kindergarten STEM Curriculum Bundle! This collection gives young learners multiple opportunities to explore engineering, solve problems, build ideas, and develop creative thinking through age-appropriate STEM activities. With a full-year STEM curriculum, picture cards, STEM journals, projects, task cards, early-finisher activities, and substitute plans included, this Kindergarten STEM Bundle gives teachers flexible resources for STEM instruction, enrichment, independent learning, and classroom coverage. What's Included This bundle includes 7 kindergarten STEM resources: • Kindergarten STEM Curriculum — 36 weekly challenges across 6 units • Kindergarten STEM Picture Cards — 60 picture-based cards for pre-readers • Kindergarten STEM Journal — 108 drawing-and-labeling recording pages • Kindergarten STEM Projects — 18 hands-on build projects • Kindergarten STEM Task Cards — 60 picture-supported skill cards • Kindergarten STEM for Early Finishers — 36 no-prep challenges with choice board • Kindergarten STEM Sub Plans — 12 emergency lessons with substitute scripts Together, these resources provide multiple ways to introduce, explore, practice, document, and extend STEM and engineering learning throughout the school year. How It Works in the Classroom Use this Kindergarten STEM Curriculum Bundle for: • Daily or weekly STEM instruction • Whole-group STEM lessons • Small-group activities • STEM centers and stations • Engineering challenges • Hands-on projects • Picture-supported STEM learning • STEM journals and reflection • Task card activities • Early-finisher enrichment • Substitute teacher plans • Flexible STEM exploration Use the curriculum for structured STEM learning, picture cards to support visual learning and discussion, projects for hands-on exploration, task cards for shorter activities, and journals for recording student thinking. Standards & Learning Goals Students develop foundational STEM and engineering skills through age-appropriate exploration, including: Engineering Design • Identifying simple problems • Brainstorming possible solutions • Designing and building • Testing ideas • Observing results • Making improvements Problem-Solving • Exploring different solutions • Thinking creatively • Making choices • Trying new strategies • Learning through hands-on discovery STEM Thinking • Observing and investigating • Asking questions • Making predictions • Exploring materials and designs • Connecting STEM concepts to everyday experiences Communication & Reflection • Sharing ideas • Describing designs • Explaining solutions • Recording learning through pictures and writing • Reflecting on STEM experiences Why Teachers Love It * Uses common classroom and recycled materials — full materials list included * Journals use drawing, labeling, and dictation, not written responses. * Complete kindergarten STEM resource collection * Seven complementary STEM resources in one bundle * Full-year engineering activities * Multiple formats for flexible STEM instruction * Picture cards support visual and language-rich learning * Encourages creativity and problem-solving * Includes hands-on projects and engineering activities * Provides meaningful early-finisher options * Includes substitute teacher plans * Works for whole-group, small-group, centers, and independent activities * Saves valuable planning time Instead of searching for different STEM resources throughout the year, teachers can use this Kindergarten STEM Bundle as a flexible resource library. Pull out a picture card for discussion, use a task card for a quick challenge, complete a hands-on project, or use the curriculum for structured STEM instruction. Download Today Add this Kindergarten STEM Curriculum Bundle to your classroom and give young learners a full year of opportunities to explore, create, build, test, and problem-solve! Whether you need a structured STEM lesson, a visual learning activity, a hands-on project, an independent task, an early-finisher activity, or a substitute plan, this bundle gives you flexible STEM resources for the school year.
$42.00
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