How to Write an Efficient Lesson Plan
Have you been writing a “not so effective” lesson plan?
Do you feel there’s more to learn about lesson plan drafting?
Yes! You’re right. There are some key secrets, tools and techniques involved in writing a good lesson plan.
In this article, you are going to learn about effective writing lesson planning, the qualities of successful lesson plans, preparation and methodology involved in lesson plan writing.
After reading this article, you will be able to:
- Write a realistic and effective lesson plan,
- Teach others about lesson planning
- Enhance your teaching styles
- Improve the academic and social life of your dear students
- Increase the amount you earn as a teacher due to your rare skills
- Bring out unlimited creativity in your pupils
- Help your students discover more about themselves
- Impact your core values to your students
- Help your students attain their goals and dreams in life.
We suppose that you’re interested in knowing more about the methodologies used in effectual lesson planning but, it is best to firstly know what a lesson plan is.
What Is a Lesson Plan?
A lesson plan is a detailed, decisive and directive description, which serves as studying trajectory for a lesson. The length of such lesson plan is determined by the duration of the course, whether it is per semester, session or throughout the student’s stay on the campus/college. Depending on the teacher’s preference, scope of study, subject coverage, topics coverage, subject requirements and school stipulations, lesson plans vary distinctively.
It can also be referred to as a well-arranged bit by bit guide, which runs through the lecturer’s aims, subject coverage and procedures. It involves creativity, goal setting, activity developing and material researching/compiling.
In summary, a less plan is defined as a students’ guide for a particular duration of time, which include the number of topics, topic duration, subtopics, goals and learning procedures.
Now that we know the nitty-gritty of a lesson plan, we must also equip ourselves with the qualities that make effective lesson plans.
What are the Qualities of a Successful Lesson Plan
According to Madeline Hunter, a veteran educator and the pioneer of the great Hunter Method, a good lesson plan includes objective(s), anticipatory set, modeled practice, guided practice, independent practice, check for understanding, and closure. However, more liberal educators have laid down more inciting rules as regarding what a perfect lesson plan should have. Below are the qualities every successful lesson plan should have:
- Topics and subtitles should relate to everyday life: Students should be able to relate their day to day experiences with what they are being taught in school. Unrelated topics oftentimes bore students and depreciate their drive towards learning the course. Make sure you give your topics life by presenting them in a creative and appealing manner.
- Lesson plan should be comprehensive enough for the level of the students been taught:Albert Einstein said, things should be made simple but not simpler. It is very cruel and immature for any teacher to give students an incomprehensive guide. A guide is meant to aid learning and if your students cannot comprehend your guide, how can they prepare ahead of class. An incomprehensive teacher’s guide will only force your students to hate your curse and hatred is disastrous to learning. Create an easy to read guide that would interest your students and make them curious to know more.
- It should be short and precise: A lesson plan is not a textbook or class note, therefore, make it brief and precise. Also, try not to release the bulky lesson plan of two or more sessions at a time. If possible, try to break them down into daily/weekly lesson plans.
- Quality lesson plans male provisions for proper revisions and evaluations of the topics taught over a period of time:It has been discovered that periodical evaluation of students’ knowledge and revision enhances students’ performance, help them remember what they are being taught and lessens the work of the teacher during pre-examination lessons.
- It should contain relevant illustrations, statistical tables and related diagrams:Diagrams, tables and illustrations aides teaching and paints the perfect picture that words might not be able to achieve. The illustrations used might be sketchy or done with a free hand; depending on the course of study for example Biology requires more drawings and sketchy diagrams are not that present, except in ecological and geographical biology.
- It must be time-conscious: A lesson plan that does not give credence to time is unrealistic and unprofessional. No matter how bulky the scope of study is, it should be time bound.
Having added the qualities of a good lesson plan to our armory, we are fully set to move on to the much-awaited methodology of writing a successful lesson plan.
How to Make a Good Lesson Plan
Regardless of the level being taught, the Hunter’s Model is a perfect structure for every lecturer in any system or field. However, based on the procedural sharpness and strictness of the Hunter’s Model, you will be given the liberal/general model before proceeding to the Hunter’s Model.
General Methodology
- Understand your students: Understanding your students is very important in creating an effective lesson planning. People are different so whenever you plan to teach students, you must always consider the difference in behaviors, nature, culture, ideology and conditions. A daily lesson plan for private school students, who are rich and well fed, will not work for public school students, who are oftentimes poor and not well fed.
Your lesson plan should be tailored in a way that considers these differences and exploits certain advantages for example, Arab students do not have programs on Sundays, and therefore, Sunday can be included as a lesson day, if it is comfortable with them.
In cases where you come from different origins, you will have to study them first because of the complexity of the class.
- Set learning goals:Any statement that entails the detailed description of the subject coverage of a course is a learning objective statement. This statement should be down to earth and practical enough for the students to understand and gain throughout their course of study.
Writing the objective for a lesson/lecture involves proper outlining of subject ideas depending on the course coverage. It serves as an overview that functions as the basis upon which future lectures would be built.
- Stipulate the time for each topic:If this is the case, simply break your lesson plan into sections. Make sure the curriculum you are planning to cover is in good proportion to the time allotted. Break bulky topics down into sub-topics and allot enough time for each sub-topic.
- Research, compile and recommend available materials that are also remarkable: Consider inventory materials and resources, which are available and useful to you as a teacher. Depending on the course of studying, these materials might include practical manuals, textbooks, graph, calculator, research thesis, novels and online books.
Hunter’s Methodology
- Create brilliant objectives:Students study well when they prepare ahead of class and this can only be possible if you give them the objectives of the course. The U.S. Department of Education noted, “The purpose or objective of the lesson includes why students need to learn the objective, what they will be able to do once they have met the criterion, (and) how they will demonstrate learning… The formula for the behavioral objective is: The learner will do what + with what + how well.”
- Adopt the Anticipatory Set:An anticipatory set includes all forms of activities that arouse students in preparation for the next class. Adopting an anticipatory set means the teacher is making efforts towards getting students elated about future lessons. It might be a educating game, a puzzle, shocking/interesting facts, interactive discussion, film viewing, field trip, or entertaining exercise.
- Incorporate ModelledPractice: Modelled practice is the main essence of teaching, which involves direct instructions, explanations, class exercises and assignments. It is a stepwise approach that often takes time depending on the level you’re teaching and most importantly, it’s the core of teaching itself.
In order to this perfectly, the teacher must be patient, fluent in whatever language he/she speaks, interactive, persistent and approachable.
- Give class works in order to check for Understanding: This is necessary in order to get accurate feedbacks from your students. Feedbacks help you know where they’re lagging behind and after getting this feedback, work on your students’ academic deficiencies. Do not rush your students during class exercises because there are students who write best when they are not rushed.
- Give assignments so as to push your students to Practice Independently:Practice makes perfect but independent practice goes a long way in building innovative and competent students. You do not have to give bulky assignments that you won’t be able to mark on time. The main objectives of giving assignments is firstly, to keep your students busy when they are not in school, to help them get conversant with the topics taught and get feedback on how well they understand the topics taught.
NOTE: it is futile when you give assignments and you do not dive them the correct answers and approaches to tackling those problems next time.
- Closure: This is more or less the conclusion.
Final Thoughts
Teaching is one of the most difficult tasks to do and in order to be a good teacher; one must have a good lesson plan. This article has given you all the basics you need ranging from the definition of a lesson plan to the different methodologies involved and the qualities required.
However, beyond the lesson plan, you must be patient, persistent, approachable and well-informed in order to be a good teacher. A good lesson plan is just an adorable foundation for teaching but what makes a good teacher are the character, reservations, ability to research and impact knowledge. Since no building can stand without a foundation, the lesson plan still remains an inevitable material in the profession/skill/art/science of teaching.
Both individual characters and quality lesson plan are all you need in order to be a good teacher.
