A lesson plan is a teacher’s daily guide for what students need to learn, how it will be taught, and how learning will be measured. Lesson plans help teachers be more effective in the classroom by providing a detailed outline to follow each class period. This ensures every bit of class time is spent teaching new concepts and having meaningful discussions — not figuring it out on the fly! The most effective lesson plans have six key parts: Because each part of a lesson plan plays a role in the learning experience of your students, it’s important to approach them with a clear plan in mind. Let’s start with the first part of every lesson plan -- the lesson objectives! Lesson objectives list what students will be able to do after completing the lesson. These objectives let you easily tell if your lesson has effectively taught your students new concepts and skills. It can feel overwhelming to pin down specific takeaways for a lesson, but you can break the process into steps to do it in a breeze! First, it’s best to view your lesson objectives as goals for your class and students. One of the most popular goal-setting strategies is the“SMART” criteria,which ensures goals are focused. In the context of lesson planning, you can use the SMART criteria to determine your lesson objectives: For each objective, it’s important to start with an action that relates to what students should be able to do after the lesson. Depending on what topic you’re teaching and the level of knowledge your students have, these actions will vary. For example, when teaching brand new concepts, you may define actions likedefine, identify, explain, anddetermine. However, if your lesson involves more advanced tasks, the objectives may include actions likecreate, use, perform, ormeasure. To see these phrases in context, let’s look at examples that a computer teacher might choose when teaching Microsoft Word. For an introductory lesson about Microsoft Word, objectives could be: In a more advanced class, objectives might include: When creating your lesson objectives, keep in mind that it’s easier to measure student success when you have specific goals. Once you’ve put your lesson objectives together, it’s time to tie them in with the next part of your lesson plan -- the related requirements! Related requirements arenational, state, or school standardsthat dictate what you need to teach in a class. If you teach a CTE course you likely need to tie your lessons tocertification requirementsas well. Every lesson you teach should help you hit those requirements. Listing them in your lesson plans helps you satisfy those requirements while focusing on the end goal of your class! On top of that, some administrators require teachers to distinctly show how they will teach course standards in each lesson. If you put them on your lesson plans, you’ve got a quick reference to prove you’re on the ball! When listing course standards or certification items on your lesson plan, it’s smart to use the exact organizational system found on your standards to make sure your class aligns. If you don’t have the specific outline for your course standards, ask another teacher or your administrator where you can find them. To get detailed certification requirements, check the certification provider’s website for an exam outline or test plan. Laying out each lesson plan according to your requirements can be tedious work, but it will ultimately help you stay organized and aligned with what you’re supposed to teach! The third section on your lesson plan is the list of materials that you need to teach the lesson and measure student outcomes. This section prepares you to deliver your lessons every day. Without this list, you may accidentally forget to print an important document or sign out the shared laptop cart! Common types of lesson materials include: The list of materials for each lesson depends on what you plan to teach, how you’ll teach it, and how you’ll measure lesson objectives. Because of this, many teachers compile their list of lesson materials in tandem with their lesson procedure! Your lesson procedure is an in-depth explanation of how the lesson will progress in the classroom. The lesson procedure is essentially step-by-step instructions that walk you through everything from the time students enter the classroom until the bell rings at the end of the period. It’s smart to be very detailed in this portion of your lesson plan. After all, there will be cases when another teacher or substitute needs to fill in for you! When writing your lesson procedure, you need to choose the type of activities that will help students meet the lesson objectives. To do that, you can answer a list of questions, including: It’s also a great idea to find out how other teachers address the topics in the classroom. You can do this by talking to coworkers,joining an online community, or searching for lesson ideas on educational blogs. After writing out a rough draft of your lesson procedure, many teachers outline it according to a specific teaching strategy. At AES, we recommend teachers usethe four phases: In the Explore phase of your lesson, you’ll introduce the objectives of the lesson and discuss key concepts students should know. This portion of your lesson procedure may entail an icebreaker activity to get students thinking about a new concept. In other cases, you might introduce the information by using a presentation to lecture while your students take notes. Ultimately, the strategy you use in the Explore phase will depend on the topics you’ll be teaching and your students’ prior knowledge. In the Learn & Practice phase, your students will work independently to get into the details of your lesson. If you use a textbook as your main curriculum resource, your students can read through an assigned passage to take notes or complete a worksheet. If you use adigital curriculum system, it’s the perfect time for students to work through the digital lessons and guided notes. You may also incorporate a class activity, group work, or skills practice to further engage your students in what they’re learning. Overall, this phase will make up the bulk of your lesson time, so be sure to detail everything out in your lesson procedure! In the Reflect phase, students will look back (and reflect on) what they’ve learned in the lesson. Most often, teachers lead a class discussion with critical thinking questions for students to answer aloud or in their class journal. It’s important to list the questions you plan to ask within the lesson procedure, to make sure you don’t forget anything! In the Reinforce phase, students will apply what they’ve learned through critical thinking activities. Depending on the lesson, you may want students to complete these tasks individually or as part of a group. This portion of the lesson procedure helps you gauge if your students will achieve the lesson objectives and often tie in with the assessment method! The assessment method measures whether your students learned a lesson’s information and met your lesson objectives. The methods listed on your lesson plan will most often beformative assessmentsand vary from lesson to lesson. To start, there are dozens of ways to measure student learning through formative assessments. Some of the most common assessment options include: In addition, your assessment method may be an in-class assignment or homework for students to complete prior to the next class. When choosing your assessment method, it’s important to incorporate your lesson objectives. If an objective was related to understanding a concept, consider an assessment that requires students to explain that concept. If an objective was for students to demonstrate a skill, design an assessment to confirm they can do that skill. Also, while many assessments receive grades in a class, formative assessments don’t always need to be graded! Ultimately, the purpose of this assessment is to measure how well your students learned a lesson’s material based on the way you presented information. This measurement will help you wrap up each lesson plan with the lesson reflection. The lesson reflection portion of a lesson plan encourages teachers to take notes on how to improve a lesson after it has been completed. By this point, your lesson has clear objectives, a plan for teaching, and a way to assess student learning. But if you don’t critically consider whether you succeeded, you’re doing a disservice to your future students! When completing your lesson reflection, ask yourself questions like: Essentially, you want to note any part of your lesson that didn’t go as expected. In addition, it’s smart to record ideas for improvement or adjustments in this section as well. That way, when you go to teach your lessons in the future, you have all of the information for improvement in one place! Lesson plans are the first steps in creating a full-fledged curriculum for a class. They dig into the details that ensure you teach the right information to your students at the right time, and they simplify your career by giving you a roadmap to follow each and every day. But what about the big picture? This is one of the hardest parts of teaching for educators throughout the world. It’s not just the individual lessons that need your attention — it’s the class as a whole! To do that, you need tocreate a curriculum. So where do you start? Learn how to create your own curriculum now!1. Lesson Objectives
2. Related Requirements
3. Lesson Materials
4. Lesson Procedure
Phase 1 - Explore
Phase 2 - Learn & Practice
Phase 3 - Reflect
Phase 4 - Reinforce
5. Assessment Method
6. Lesson Reflection
Lessons Are Just the Beginning
FAQs
What is lesson plan and example? ›
A lesson plan is a document that outlines the content of your lesson step-by-step. It's a list of tasks that your students will undertake, to help guide your teaching. A lesson plan is usually prepared in advance and can either cover a one-off activity, an entire lesson, a unit or course, a day, or a week.
What is the lesson plan of the lesson? ›A lesson plan is a teacher's daily guide for what students need to learn, how it will be taught, and how learning will be measured. Lesson plans help teachers be more effective in the classroom by providing a detailed outline to follow each class period.
What are the 5 steps in a lesson plan? ›- Step 1: Establish the Learning Outcomes. ...
- Step 2: Include Any Relevant Resource Materials for the Lesson. ...
- Step 3: Cite Lesson Plan Procedures. ...
- Step 4: Create Instructional Activities or Independent Practice. ...
- Step 5: Reflect and Plan Lesson Closure.
(1) Determine the objective (2) Research the topic as defined by the objective (3) Select the appropriate instructional method (4) Identify a usable lesson planning format (5) Decide how to organize the lesson (6) Choose appropriate support material (7) Prepare the beginning and ending of the lesson (8) Prepare a final ...
What is lesson planning in simple words? ›A lesson plan is a teacher's guide for facilitating a lesson. It typically includes the goal (what students need to learn), how the goal will be achieved (the method of delivery and procedure) and a way to measure how well the goal was reached (usually via homework assignments or testing).
What is a good lesson plan? ›Your lesson plans don't have to be complicated or lengthy; they should only include information on what you're preparing, how you'll teach it, and what you want your students to achieve as part of the curriculum. Quality lessons tie prior knowledge and understanding and flow easily, connecting ideas and concepts.
What are 3 types of lesson plan? ›- Daily Lesson Plan. Teachers prepare this type of lesson plan to cover the learning objective for a specific day. ...
- Weekly Lesson Plan. ...
- A Whole Unit Lesson Plan. ...
- Subject Specific Lesson Plan. ...
- Grade-Specific Lesson Plan.
- Take the long view. The first step in planning collaboratively is to sit down together and consider your entire program of study. ...
- Decide what to cover. Start with your first topic. ...
- Divide and conquer. Now for the fun part. ...
- Set the culture. ...
- Review and reflect.
A well-designed lesson plan: Helps students and teachers understand the goals of an instructional module. Allows the teacher to translate the curriculum into learning activities. Aligns the instructional materials with the assessment.
Why do we write a lesson plan? ›The lesson plan facilitates a productive post-lesson discussion. A well-written lesson plan provides a clear idea about what you would like to learn from the research lesson to help participants engage in a focused discussion and gain more learning.
What is a purpose of a lesson? ›
The purpose of this lesson is the reason for teaching the lesson: to introduce, to give information, to help organize information, to demonstrate knowledge, to provide enrichment or a chance for creative application. A. Anticipatory Set: You are motivating your students to want to learn this material.
How do teachers make lesson plans? ›- Identify the objectives. ...
- Determine the needs of your students. ...
- Plan your resources and materials. ...
- Engage your students. ...
- Instruct and present information. ...
- Allow time for student practice. ...
- Ending the lesson. ...
- Evaluate the lesson.
- An objective for the lesson.
- Time requirements for each aspect of the lesson.
- Specific activities that will be done.
- Materials that will be used.
- How the lesson will be differentiated.
- The method in which you will assess students' progress.
- Standards that the lesson will address.
Objective
A lesson objective can be one of the most important components of a lesson plan. Objectives define what students are going to learn during the lesson and explain how the learning is going to be assessed.
- Start with a Video. Everyone loves a good video, especially kids. ...
- Start with an Object. Another way to get your students wondering about a topic is to show them objects related to the content. ...
- Start with a Question. ...
- Start with Movement. ...
- Start with a Mistake.
School Lesson Plan
Choose a topic that you want the children in your class to learn and apply the 4-A's of activating prior knowledge, acquiring new knowledge, applying the knowledge, and assessing the knowledge. For example, you may want to teach a lesson on astronomy.
- Builds upon Students' Prior Knowledge. When planning for lessons, most of us focus tremendous effort on the content we will teach. ...
- Allows for more flexibility. ...
- Clarifies Transitions. ...
- Allots Time For Students' Involvement. ...
- Prompts Teachers to Reflect.
- Introduction. The beginning of the lesson should engage the students' attention and focus on the topic. ...
- Lesson development. Teachers should make students aware of the intended learning outcomes of the lesson. ...
- Assessment activities. ...
- Wrap up:
What is the difference between a learning plan and a lesson plan? A learning plan is a document that is used to plan learning. Whereas, a lesson plan is typically a step by step guide/ outline with small goals and objectives the students will accomplish during a day's work, week's work or even a semester long.
How many minutes does a teacher prepare a lesson plan? ›Plan your lesson for 10-minute chunks. Shorter tasks keep students engaged and give you an easy to follow structure. If you teach a 60-minute lesson, plan for 45-50 minutes only. This accounts for the extra time it takes for students to arrive, unpack, settle down and pack up in an orderly way at the end of the lesson.
How long should a lesson plan be? ›
You should aim for your lesson plan to be less than one page long.
What makes a lesson successful? ›A successful lesson plan addresses and integrates these three key components: Objectives for student learning. Teaching/learning activities. Strategies to check student understanding.
What things are the most difficult when lesson planning? ›- Planning Before Getting to Know Your Class. ...
- Not Having a Clear Goal. ...
- Having No Lesson Structure. ...
- Failing to Include Variety. ...
- Using the Same Lesson Plans. ...
- Planning Technology for Technology's Sake. ...
- Planning to Cover Materials and not Teach Students. ...
- No Plan B.
A good lesson plan should have a behavioral objective. The behavioral objective should be written in specific behavioral terms, stating exactly what the learner will be doing or saying when he demonstrates that he has achieved the goals of an instructional sequence.
Do teachers write lesson plans? ›While turning in lesson plans isn't required in most schools, planning one's lessons should be an expectation in all schools. Being prepared is essential for success. But that doesn't mean it's helpful for administrators to require teachers to turn in lesson plans. Organizing oneself for the work ahead is one thing.
What is the value of lesson planning? ›Lesson planning allows the educator to provide the learners with the required structure and direction to receive knowledge and skills through engaging methods of instruction. Similarly, it allows educators to meet the diverse learning styles of learners through differentiation of teaching.
What should be on a lesson plan template? ›The lesson plan template should include: Student objectives and learning goals. A pre-assessment to ascertain prior learning. Instructions for learning activities.
What are the 3 key components of a lesson plan? ›Key Elements of Lesson Plans
The three components that you should include in a lesson plan to ensure that it's solid and effective are: Learning objectives. Activities. Tools to check for understanding.
- Objective.
- Motivation.
- Direct Instruction.
- Guided Practice.
- Independent Practice.
- Supplementary and/or alternative instruction.
- Assessment.
Helps students and teachers understand the goals of an instructional module. Allows the teacher to translate the curriculum into learning activities. Aligns the instructional materials with the assessment. Aligns the assessment with the learning goal.
What is the basic element of a lesson plan? ›
The elements of the lesson plan are: assessment, duration, objectives, activities, strategies and learning outcomes (Burgul Adiguzel, 2021).
What is the 6 E's lesson plan? ›The 6E instruction model, as proposed by the International Technology and Engineering Educators Association (ITEEA), refers to Engage, Explore, Explain, Engineer, Enrich, and Evaluate [11], and the 6 steps are shown below: (1) Engage: it enhances students' curiosity, interest, and engagement.
What are the 4 C's in teaching? ›What are learning skills? The 21st century learning skills are often called the 4 C's: critical thinking, creative thinking, communicating, and collaborating. These skills help students learn, and so they are vital to success in school and beyond.
What makes a great lesson? ›Subject expertise and flair on the part of the teacher. The involvement of each and every student in the learning process. Expert use of questioning which probes understanding and teases out misconceptions. Challenging and imaginative tasks which will engage students and support the learning process.