One of the hardest parts about being a teacher is the never-ending to-do list and limited amount of time. These time-saving hacks for teachers will help you maximise your time and productivity so that you can enjoy a healthy work-life balance. These time-saving hacks for teachers include tips for lesson planning, marking and assessment, communication and administration. 

So grab a coffee and relax while we explore time-saving hacks for teachers that will work for you!

Disclaimer: This blog post, ’49 time-saving hacks for teachers’, may contain affiliate links. This means I may receive a small commission on qualifying purchases. This is of no extra cost to you and it helps me to continue writing awesome content for you! Read full disclaimer here.

Time-saving hacks for teachers infographic of the 5 top tips for time-saving hacks for teachers.

Time-saving hacks for teachers: lesson planning

1. Batch your lesson planning

This is definitely my favourite of all the time-saving hacks for teachers. Batching is the best way to streamline your approach to lesson planning. When done well, this approach can save you hours of time every week.

So what is it?

Batching your lesson planning refers to planning all of a week’s lessons for a particular topic or grade level at the one time. 

So, a middle school maths teacher might plan all of their year 6 lessons for the week. Then year 7 and so on. 

A primary teacher might plan all the history lessons, then english, then maths. 

This approach saves you time as it allows your brain to focus on one topic rather than having to switch between topics. It will also help your lessons flow smoothly from one to the next.

impact of effective student engagement strategies

2. Plan learning intentions sequence first

If you aren’t able to batch plan your lessons in full, then the next best thing is to plan out the learning intentions for a batch of lessons. This also has the benefits of creating more streamlined lessons and when you do have time to sit and do some planning you already know the lesson you have to plan. 

3. Have a lesson planning schedule

If you’re someone who sits down at your desk and doesn’t know where to start, then this is for you. 

Have a schedule for what lessons you’re going to plan on what day. E.g. Mondays you plan your year 7 lessons, Tuesday you plan year 8 and so on. This schedule can be as detailed or as loose as you want it to be depending on the type of structure that you will find helpful. 

4. Use templates

Templates are one of my favourite time-saving hacks for teachers. They can make a measurable difference in your day, particularly if you find one you like and will use often. You can use templates for worksheets, presentation slides, lab reports, – you name it and there is probably a template for it!

Canva is a great tool for whipping up quick templates and resources. Did you know they have some excellent FREE templates for worksheets and presentation slides?!

Slidescarnival also has beautiful FREE templates for presentations that are much nicer than the boring stock standard ones. 

If you’re a science teacher then these editable science experiment templates (also FREE!) are perfect when you are planning an experiment or having students write up an experimental method. 

I also love to use templates for activities like Tarsia puzzles and escape rooms. Enter your email below and I’ll send you my Tarsia Puzzle template for FREE!Time-saving hacks for teachers infographic of the 5 top tips for time-saving hacks for teachers.

Time-saving hacks for teachers infographic of the 5 top tips for time-saving hacks for teachers.

time-saving hacks for teachers

5. Use resources with teacher answers

If you’re shopping for resources, buy ones that come complete with teacher answers. There is nothing worse than buying a resource you want to use straight away but then realise you have to sit and work out all the answers. My favourite places to purchase teacher resources:

• Teachers Pay Teachers
• Amped Up Learning
• TimeSavers for Teachers

Likewise, make sure if you’re purchasing a textbook that it has fully worked answers for every set of questions. Yes you would think that all textbooks would have this – but actually I’ve found many don’t. It is worth checking before buying!

6. Buy no prep lessons 

If you’re going to spend your hard earned money on purchasing some new activities – then make the most of it and purchase ones that don’t require any prep from you! From digital escape rooms to worksheets to quizzes, there are always no prep options around. 

7. Have sub lessons ready to go

As a teacher it is often more work to take a sick day than to just go into work. And if you’re really sick, then the last thing you feel like doing is creating lesson plans for someone else to take. It is worth having a pack of ready to go lessons for days like this and it is worth putting them together when you aren’t sick!

Some ideas for sub lessons that can be used at any time of year include:

• Research task for a famous person related to your subject e.g. famous scientist, mathematician, architect, artist, etc
• Numeracy worksheets related to your subject e.g. significant figures in science, converting units in food tech, reading graphs in social studies or drawing timelines in history. 
• Literacy activities revising key vocabulary. 
• Quizlets and kahoots are also easy to leave for a sub and require minimal prep.

8. Share resources with colleagues 

Be open in sharing your lesson resources with your colleagues and hopefully they will reciprocate. It also warms them up so that if you want to ask a colleague for a copy of a particular resource, they may be more willing to help you out.

9. Lesson plan with colleagues

To take the above point a bit further, why not plan a lesson with your colleagues? If you are teaching the same content as another teacher, then why not plan together?! There is no point in both of you trying to design an activity for the same thing. This is a great way to save time and build relationships with your colleagues at the same time.

10. Sometimes plan an ‘easy’ lesson

A textbook based lesson or an educational video can give you some prep time back which will allow you to make the next lesson more engaging. Don’t feel guilty about this.

11. Use a Google Doc for your lesson planning

I love using Google Docs for my lesson planning as it is easy to change and adapt quickly. I also use it to link in any worksheets, resources and videos so all of my resources are accessible at a click. 

12. Video record your presentations

Recording your presentations can be done at a click of a button these days. Whether you use screen-cast-o-matic or zoom, recording may allow you to share it with students who missed the lesson, or to set it as flipped learning next year.

13. Use digital escape rooms (instead of paper ones)

Want to do a fun escape room but don’t have the time to set it up and buy all the bits and pieces you need to go along with it? Digital escape rooms are a fantastic alternative! They are cheaper than trying to buy a class set of padlocks and are generally zero prep. 

Check out some of my digital escape rooms for middle and high school science.

Time-saving hacks for teachers infographic of the 5 top tips for time-saving hacks for teachers.

Time-saving hacks for teachers infographic of the 5 top tips for time-saving hacks for teachers

Time-saving hacks for teachers:

Have these handy in a folder on your desk

14. Lesson finishers

No one wants to constantly think of ideas for lesson finishers. Save yourself time and grab my free lesson finisher ideas here.

15. Easy research assignments or activities (for early finishers)

Having a list of easy research assignments students can do if they finish early is a great idea. To keep them relevant year round it could be something related to the subject as a whole such as researching something related to your subject area in industry or looking for news articles related to your subject. 

16. Differentiation strategies

Need to differentiate on the fly? Or want a quick list of differentiation strategies you can pick and choose from during lesson prep? Visit my 53 EASY differentiation strategies post.

17. Engagement strategies

Keeping lessons engaging can be a battle. If you keep a list of engagement strategies handy then it is quick and easy to come up with ideas while lesson planning. Check out this list of 31 effective engagement strategies.