There are scores of sites available on the Internet to assist substitute teachers in carrying out their duties and responsibilities.
A few of the best are listed below.

For information on Effective Teaching Practices, Click Here:
For information on "Sponge" Act-ivities for Substitutes, Click Here:
For additional outstanding internet resources, please view those below.

Discipline Help provides solutions for handling 117 specific types of student misbehavior in the classroom. This site also provides an excellent theoretical foundation for behavior management and "Behavior of the Day" to learn how to manage hundreds of different student behaviors. You will want to "bookmark" this site.

Substitute Teacher Training Institute The Substitute Teaching Institute at Utah State University (STI/USU) is the nationwide leader in training substitute teachers with the skills they need to succeed in the classroom. Founded in 1995 at Utah State University, STI/USU conducts research in the best practices for substitute teaching and provides live and online training resources as well as the Substitute Teacher Handbook and the SubInstructor CD. Their latest service is the SUB STATION, which includes FAQ's about substitute teaching, additional internet links, a chat line, sample lesson plans, and many other features which bring dignity and professionalism to substitute teaching.

I Love that Teaching Idea In addition to lesson plan ideas, this site also includes tips and instructions for your first day with the students, classroom management ideas, field trips, techer tips, and a special section for substitute teachers.

Misunderstood Minds Provides substitutes with a fascinating and instructive look inside the minds of special needs students, particularly those considered to have "learniing disabilities," including students lacking success in reading, writing, and mathematics. The site is a companion to the PBS special on learning differences and disabilities.

teach-nology.com. This site is a fairly recent addition to the scores of free resources available on line for teachers, including substitute teachers. Instructional materials and ideas, along with workbooks, worksheets, puzzles, educational games, etc., can all be found on this one site. There is also an excellent article for first time substitute teachers that is a must read for all beginning substitutes. Click here for the article. (Contributed by Jean Hackett, Stinson Middle School, NISD, San Antonio, TX)

Sub Station: Tips and Resources for Substitute Teachers contains a wide array of resources for substitutes, including articles from The Education World such as "Substitute Survival: Tools You Can Use," and "Ten Games for Classroom Fun;" activity tools such as free worksheets, brainteasers, and writing prompts; and additional links to more Internet resources.

The Lesson Plans Page may be the best thing for substitute teachers since intercom buttons. This site provides lesson plan ideas for every subject area and every instructional level. It also provides valuable links to other resources useful to both the regular and the substitute teacher. If you don't mind the pop-up advertisements, this site should be in every substitute teacher's electronic grab bag.

GEM Project Site The Gateway to Educational Materials (GEM) provides "one-stop, any stop" access to the substantial, but un cataloged, collections of Internet-based educational materials available on various federal, state, university, non profit, and commercial internet sites. An excellent site for long term subs who need resources on the subjects they are expected to teach. Searchable by subjects and grade levels.

ProTeacher provides both the regular and the substitute teacher an endless supply of information and suggestions for successful teaching. It lists numerous articles on topics including child development, classroom management, special needs students, teaching practices, and lesson plans. The site provides excellent resources for teaching specific subject areas from kindergarten to high school. A "chat room" is also available for substitute teachers to share their frustrations and successes.

Blue Web'n is a powerful search tool for curriculum and instruction ideas for teachers. Ideas and resources can be searched for by subject area or grade level and includes lesson plans, activities and additional instructional resources.

Education World: The Educator's Best Friend is an overall curriculum and instruction resource to teachers, including substitutes. Many articles about teaching in general as well as specific suggestions for classroom activities.

AskERIC Lesson Plans This collection contains more than 2000 unique lesson plans which have been written and submitted to AskERIC by teachers from all over the United States and the world. This site is particularly good for middle and high school levels, although it includes activities and plans for grades k-12.

The Honor Level System: Discipline by Design Several excellent articles on discipline in the classroom are provided, including 11 Techniques for better Classroom Discipline, Four Steps for Better Classroom Discipline, and Discipline Techniques that Backfire.

Guest Teacher From the introduction to the site: "These pages are intended for all the brave men and women who have walked the halls of our schools as Guest Teachers. We hope you find our site easy to use and extremely helpful. It is 100% created by our readers, so all suggestions and ideas are welcome. Enjoy!"