Ever wondered how an educator is able to effectively deliver lessons day-in and day-out without faltering. There are so many topics to be covered and concepts to teach the class, but the subject teacher does it with precision and grace. She knows how to pace the learning and estimates the grasping power of students. All this is only possible with the help of proper planning and a bit of back-end effort.

What is a Lesson Plan?

A lesson plan is put together by the teacher so that she can navigate through the loads of lessons she needs to deliver in class. It is prepared in advance and serves as a blueprint for referencing, whenever required. Just like in the corporate environment employees have some targets enlisted clearly on the goal sheet, teachers have to refer to the lesson plan to set their teaching goals and achieve them in a timely manner.

Importance of Lesson Plans

• It provides a step-by-step guide for the teacher to know what to teach in class
• The plan guides the teacher to keep the materials ready for the session in advance
• The ‘objective’ of the lesson is ‘penned down’ clearly, so there is no ambiguity on what the student should know by the end of the session
• Teachers gain confidence and are less stressed about delivering the lecture
• You can also be prepared to answer queries that might be asked by the students
• Effective time-management is possible; as teachers know in advance how to divide the one-hour class cycle and devote time to teaching, conducting activities, and also allowing students to ask queries & do some brainstorming
• Avoids repetition of topics or forgetting to introduce a particular lesson in class
• Reference for a substitute teacher, in case the main teacher is absent
• Helps to strategize teaching and encourages educators to use innovative learning aids, to make the sessions more interesting

Steps for Preparing a Lesson Plan

As a general thumb rule, the lesson plan is designed to include three steps:

• Learning Objectives
• Learning Activities
• Assessment to check for student understanding

Learning Objectives

The objective for a lesson plan must be in sync with the learning readiness of students in class. To device the objectives, ask the following questions;

• What is the topic to be covered?
• What should the students learn from this lesson?
• What are the skills that students must be able to grasp and apply?
• What is the primary objective and which is the secondary objective?

Example:

Topic:

‘A detailed lesson plan of teaching Pronouns’

Objectives

• To be able to understand the concept correctly
• Read the phrase and identify the pronouns
• Complete the assessment on pronouns
• Participate in group work and discussions

Learning Activities

The learning activities should be related to the objective. You also need to understand the level of involvement children will have if you present that particular learning activity to them. Choose an activity that offers an immersive experience to students. Make sure it isn’t boring and alongside learning, children enjoy participating in the activity. Prepare for the following tasks;

• How will I explain the topic to students?
• How will I present the illustrations to them?
• How will I make the topic engaging?
• Are there any relatable examples that I can cite, for kids to understand the concept in a simpler manner?

Writing Objectives for Lesson Plans Using Bloom’s Taxonomy and Associated Action Verbs:

Learning level Associated action verbs

Knowledge

define, describe, state, list, name, write, recall, recognize, label, underline, select, reproduce, outline, match

Comprehension

identify, justify, select, indicate, illustrate, represent, name, formulate, explain, judge, contrast, classify

Application

predict, select, assess, explain, choose, find, show, demonstrate, construct, compute, use, perform

Analysis

analyze, identify, conclude, differentiate, select, separate, compare, contrast, justify, resolve, break down, criticize

Synthesis

combine, restate, summarize, precise, argue, discuss, organize, derive, select, relate, generalize, conclude

Evaluation

judge, evaluate, determine, recognize, support, defend, attack, criticize, identify, avoid, select, choose

Assessment to check for student understanding

This is the final step in the process, but the most important one. Regular assessments are to be conducted to understand the child’s retention capacity and clarity of the topics. Teachers can give homework, conduct quiz, take a surprise class test, and even assign project work, to evaluate and measure the child’s progress. Now that you know how to prepare a ‘lesson plan’ you are all set to take over the classroom session with confidence! However, as we can see preparing a lesson plan is pretty time-consuming, especially when it has to be mapped on paper. To make this process simple for teachers, the Next Learning Platform (NLP) – a school ERP tool, provides ready-made lesson plan templates. One has to simply input the pointers under each category and get started. Also, once the plan is made, it is saved on the system and can be retrieved, thereby saving time & effort to create it all over again. Tech-advanced regions like Dubai and other GCC counterparts, have already adopted NLP and are happy with the enormous time-saving benefits that it offers.

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