Lesson planning is a constant task for teachers, one that takes up many hours each week. Teachers devote a lot of time to finding the best ways to make the most of their preparation time while also getting the best results from their students. Sometimes teachers get into a groove, though, and need a fresh perspective to get more from their lesson plans and keep them current. Other times, teachers may feel like they can’t keep their lesson plans organized and need a more efficient system for lesson planning. Whatever the struggle, lesson planning can be one of the most difficult and time-consuming parts of a teacher’s job, so we’ve cultivated a list of tips to help you get the most from your lesson planning.
Focus on the big picture and work backward
One of the easiest ways to find success in your lesson planning is by ensuring you are reaching an end goal. In this way, it can be beneficial to look at the end result of the unit and develop a list of objectives you want students to meet and the concepts you want them to understand. In doing this, take a look at the standards you need to incorporate alongside the skills you want students to develop. Break those standards and skills up into smaller increments; what does it take to build up to that end result? By working backward in developing your lesson plans, this will allow your lessons to be digestible chunks with goals that can be attained. This also simplifies the process, making it more efficient.
Borrow from the experts
But why start from scratch when there are so many resources out there to help? Many experts in curriculum development and lesson planning have resources available, so you don’t have to develop lessons entirely on your own. Matt Miller’s Ditch that Textbook lesson plan book, for example, provides lesson ideas for teachers that can easily be adapted to any classroom. Miller’s guide also encourages a hands-on, technology-driven classroom environment that can modernize and work alongside any existing lesson plans. However, Miller’s lesson plans aren’t the only resources out there to provide curriculum support to students. With just a little research you can get more out of your lesson plans while also making your process more efficient.
Rotate for different learning styles
However, another aspect to think about when developing lesson plans is learning styles. No two students in any class are the exact same, and students typically learn in a variety of ways, whether they learn visually, aurally, verbally, or kinesthetically. Because of this, it is important to focus your lesson plans around these different learning styles and regularly rotate the methods you use to make sure you’re developing the most effective lesson plans for your students. Whether you’re using preexisting lesson plans or ones you’ve created from scratch, it can be helpful to use a blank lesson plan book or a gradebook that accommodates lesson planning. These tools help you ensure that you’re accommodating all learning styles and equally spacing out different types of lessons. This will increase the organization of your lesson planning and help your process go more smoothly.
Looking for some lessons for inspiration or a place to record your lesson plans? Datebookstore.com has a variety of lesson plan books and gradebooks to ensure your lessons will be a success. Find the tool to revolutionize the way you prepare for class. Browse our lesson plan books.
