Lesson Planning

Theo NavarroCUP Methodologist

AstanaKazakhstan

Why do we plan lessons?•It helps the teacher be more confident•It provides a useful guide for smooth and

efficient teaching•It helps the teacher prepare for the lesson•It helps to provide useful reference for

future planning•It helps the teacher be more organised.•It helps the teacher think of ALL the

students in the class, not just the strong, the weak or the average.

•It helps the teacher recognize what his or her objectives for the lesson are.

•It helps the teacher to know whether he or she has achieved those objectives

•It allows the teacher judge his or her own performance

•It is proof that the teacher has put time and energy into giving a good lesson

•It gives the teacher a sense of direction in the syllabus

•It helps the teacher to see which parts of the lesson went well, and which did not.

•It is sometimes a requirement given to us by our administrators.

What goes into a lesson plan?

• Before you start it’s important to know what the pupils have achieved so far. Don’t focus on what you did in class, but what the pupils can do. One lesson isn’t always enough.

• Be aware of how many pupils will be in your class.• Define a clear objective to the lesson (e.g. After

the lesson the pupils will be able to describe their physical appearance)

• Don’t forget the “Teacher’s Book!” The Primary Colours Teachers Book is full of helpful information to make planning lessons easier.

•Don’t just follow the book. Feel free to bring extra activities into class if you think they can help your students.

•Organise the activities in a way that makes sense to you AND to your students.

•It’s always a good idea to start the lesson with a fun activity. E.g. using a song you learned last lesson; Simon Says; a small acting activity.

•When planning your lesson it is more important to focus on the “Rationale” of the activity (the reason you are doing the activity) than the activity itself.

•Give each activity a time limit. This doesn’t have to be TOO strict (if you feel the children need more time, give it to them), but this helps you organise your ideas and expect what you will and will not have time to do in your lesson.

•Write notes for yourself. This helps you remember things that are sometimes easy to forget, and stops you from experiencing those “Oh damn! I forgot to do this/give this etc.” moments in class.

Rationale?• Examining the rationale of activities is the most

important aspect of lesson planning. WHY we do activities is more important than choosing the activities.

• The rationale section of the lesson plan helps us to understand HOW the activities help the students learn. This helps us to understand the importance of the activities and allocate appropriate time. E.g. an activity that teaches two new words of vocabulary through reading is much less important than the activity that uses these words, and words from a previous lesson, in conversation. So the conversation activity should have more time set aside for it.

•If we don’t understand why the children are doing an activity, how can the children understand? Many children like to ask why they have to do something, it’s much more effective to tell them than to say, “Because I am the teacher and I told you to do it!”

•Having a rationale section in our lesson plan also helps us explain to colleagues, administrators and parents why we chose to conduct our lesson in a specific way. This helps us to explain the logic behind our decisions, as well as to see the logic for ourselves.

“Do I have to make a detailed plan for EVERY lesson?”

•In a perfect world teachers do not need to sleep or eat. We do NOT live in a perfect world.

•We cannot be expected to create a detailed lesson plan for every single class we teach, as some of us have more than 20 classes a week.

•Detailed lesson plans are valuable tools when starting a new class; deciding to change the direction of a class; when trying to make your teaching more efficient; when examining your own skills; and when ending a course

•It IS recommended, however, that new teachers plan all of their lessons. With time it becomes easier to see the rationale of activities and organise them quickly, but this takes PRACTICE.

•If you don’t have time to create a detailed plan for EVERY lesson, then prioritize. Spend more time planning for the classes where you feel less confident or less comfortable.

•Even teachers with over twenty years of experience find it helpful to plan lessons. Doing this every so often helps you to keep your own teaching standards high.

“I’m paid to teach in class, I’m not paid to plan lessons at home!”

•Teaching DOES require you to work on your own time, outside of office hours. This is the nature of our work. Every teacher in the world has to do work outside of classroom hours.

•With some practice, you can learn to manage your time in a way so that you can be successful in both your professional and your personal life.

•If you do not spend ANY time planning your lessons, then it is your students who suffer, not you.

Be proud of your work!•If you have a lesson plan that you think is

really good, that you’ve used in class and that was very effective, be proud!

•Share your ideas with your colleagues. As teachers it is very easy for us to feel “alone” in our careers, but that simply isn’t true! You and your colleagues should help each other.

•Give advice to your colleagues, and ACCEPT ADVICE also.

Thank you for your time

Theo NavarroCUP Methodologist

AstanaKazakhstan