Today we’re going to talk about 5 simple lesson planning tips for new teachers.
Lesson planning can seem daunting, especially if you’re a new teacher and are being asked by administration to have them on hand.
You may be wondering how to plan for an entire year. How to ensure that your plans are engaging and relevant to your students. Let me know tell, that I was there as well during my first year. I planned out an entire year ahead of time. Yes! Before I even met my students. Guess what! It didn’t work out.
So, before we even start, so you don’t have to re-do as much as I did, I’m going to save you a lot of time and energy and tell you to use the following 5 steps for just one term. When you’re first starting out, map out only one term at a time or you’ll stress yourself out before you even get started.
Actionable Steps:
#1. Big Picture
Think about your big picture goals. Based on the learning objectives, what are the big units that you want to teach? What learning objectives or skills do you want your students to master? Once you’ve done that, think about the smaller segments and break it down into what topic you’ll teach each day.
#2. Find Go-To Resources
Instead of creating worksheets and units from scratch, go online and look up some done-for-you units or lessons that will fit into your big picture. You don’t need to do everything on your own and frankly shouldn’t if you want some ounce of work-life balance. For resources to help you out, check out either my FREE resource library or my store.
#3. Create Your Template
Instead of constantly creating a new template and wasting your time, use the same one over and over again. If you have one, go for it. If you don’t, here are two options:
#4. Differentiate
You may not be able to plan for the first week ahead as you may need to assess what a child can or can’t do first, but if you’re able to prepare for one level above and one level below for as many lessons as possible, it will make a huge difference. There are many resources online where the resources are differentiated for you, so you don’t need to worry about that.
#5. . Assess and Reflect
When you start your unit give students quick assessments, such as, asking them what they learned in a particular subject. Reflect on what went well and what needs improvement and make changes accordingly. On your lesson plan, like my lesson planning template, there’s a section for this so you can make the necessary changes.
Recap:
Let’s recap really quickly. Today, we looked at the following:
- The importance of focusing on only five lesson planning tips.
- 5 ways to enhance your lesson planning skills: big picture, find go-to resources, create your template, differentiate, and assess and reflect.
Free Resources:
Enjoy these three resources by clicking on the images below:
Next Steps:
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I’ll see you next Friday at 5:30pm PST.
Until I see you next time, remember to create, experience & teach from the heart.
