TES Maths: Cover lesson collection

Detailed lesson ideas to help you prepare valuable cover work 

It is always handy to have a stock of cover lessons up your sleeve, in case you're off sick, going on a course or left in the lurch by a colleague. And with the exams on the horizon, I find that this becomes more important than ever.

Good-quality cover work needs to have clear instructions and be plentiful, so that students don't finish it all in five minutes. For the non-maths specialist covering your class, it's also very useful if it comes complete with answers.

With that in mind, here is a selection of the best cover lessons from the TES Maths community.

Craig Barton, TES Maths adviser

Resources by topic

Explore exercises for every maths topic you could imagine using these thorough lesson plans and activities. With pages of questions and answers, they are perfect for cover work and are pitched at Year 7, Year 8, Year 9 and GCSE classes. 

Student booklets 

Although these workbooks were designed as homework activities, they can easily be left for cover lessons. They cater for a range of ages and abilities, from low-ability sheets for Year 8, Year 9 and Year 10 to high-ability booklets for Year 8 and 9. 

GCSE worksheets

Avoid unproductivity in your Year 10 and 11 cover lessons using this bundle of revision homework sheets. Covering a range of topics, and alternating between calculator and non-calculator exercises, these work well at the end of a year as a revision exercise or at the start of term to see what your students have remembered. Two resource bundles are available; one for students working towards grades C and B, and one for students aiming for grades B to A*. 

Revision presentation  

Challenge your KS3 class with this well-structured resource, which when printed fits neatly onto an A4 piece of paper, complete with a presentation displaying the answers. With over 100 slides, there is plenty of content to keep a class occupied and is a good back-up to have for multiple cover lessons. 

Maths investigations 

If you are feeling a bit adventurous, then you could always set something a bit different. Engage your students with one of six thought-provoking investigations, including topics such as area and probability. It comes complete with teacher support, as well as guidance for peer assessment.

Useful extras 

You can't always be prepared for a last minute change of plan, but at least with this handy template you can quickly organise your thoughts in a structured way. And if you fancy trying something off-the-wall, how about adapting these English cover work lesson ideas for the maths classroom? With a bit of creative thinking, these could be used to approach topics in a more engaging way. 

Did you know you can keep up with the latest blog posts in our dedicated maths area? And do let us know if there are any other topics you'd like us to consider covering!