Emergency Sub Plan: Mixed Ages, One Adult

Everyone does the same thing. What changes is what you ask them about it. That is the whole method and it means one adult can run it.

What you need

**Minutes 0 to 10.** Boundary, sit, listen for two minutes, one sound each.

**Minutes 10 to 35.** Everyone collects leaves. That is the shared activity.

Then the task differs, and you say all three out loud at the start so nobody feels sorted.

Youngest: put them in order from smallest to biggest.

Middle: sort them into groups and be ready to say what your rule was.

Oldest: find two leaves from the same plant that are different, and work out why.

**Minutes 35 to 50.** Pair an older child with a younger one. The older one asks the younger one about their order. Not teaches. Asks. This is the part that does the most work.

**Minutes 50 to 60.** Leaves back. Gather. One thing each. In.

The session

Nothing. Containers if available.

If it rains

Move to a covered area and run the observation parts only. Nothing here requires dry ground except the drawing, and a clipboard solves that.

For the person leaving the plan

Print this, put it in the folder, and write the class name and the boundary at the top. That is all the preparation this needs, and it stays useful for years.

More no prep sessions

See the teacher starting point for the routines that make any outdoor session work.