How many of you have thought to yourselves, "Why do I write lesson plans?  I know what I'm doing; I've been doing it for 20 years."  "My mentor teacher doesn't write them."  "My administrator never asks to see them."  Whether you're a first year teacher, have been teaching for years, or are re-entering the teaching profession, writing lesson plans is an imperative element of successful teaching.  If you aren't writing lesson plans, how do you assess the tempo and flow of your daily teaching?  How do you record content presented and accountability of the students?  How do you teach your students to be organized and have a plan if you don't?  Having well-written, organized lesson plans will assist in keeping you on task and stress-free.

Here are a few simple suggestion for writing lesson plans.

1.  Request a copy of your curriculum from your principal.  It's important to have this document in your possession.  The curriculum dictates and explains objectives, how to achieve those objectives, and what the outcomes should be.  (i.e. by the end of Kindergarten, each student will know...)

2.  Obtain a copy of the district and school calendars.  This is where you really get into planning out your lessons.  You need to be aware of the times when school isn't in session, when Parent/Teacher Conferences are, Professional Development days, scheduled fire and emergency drills, school assemblies, MEAP testing, etc.  If you don't account for these interruptions, your lessons will be thrown askew.  If you're on a team, this step is where you include team-planning.  As a team, goals will be set to accomplish items by certain times of the year.  You need to know those deadlines, too.

3.  Create goals that are achievable.  We all strive to be the great teacher, the one who teaches the kids the most and is known as such in the district.  "It's so obvious these kids were taught by Mrs. Smith, they're so advanced."  Don't be over-zealous.  It's about quality teaching at a pace that is suitable to all children in your classroom.

4.  Keep your lesson plans by your side while teaching.  On a daily basis, interruptions happen, subjects take longer (or shorter) to teach than anticipated, or a healthy dialogue leads to other lessons being placed on hold.  Be sure to document this in your daily lesson plan, so that tomorrow's success continues from today's.

5.  At the end of the week, evaluate your lesson plans.  Did you achieve your goals?  What worked well with the students?  What didn't?  What can you adjust in order to make next week more successful, productive, fun, and educational?

6.  Be flexible.  A rigid teacher usually doesn't have a good camaraderie within the classroom setting.  Being able to take a step back, assess and reflect on the situation, and make needed changes will facilitate a fun learning environment for all.

Daily life runs by a lesson plan. Getting out of bed, eating breakfast, personal hygiene, etc. are all part of a daily plan.  In order to maintain a healthy well-being, we need to incorporate those lesson plans into the classroom.  Doing so is beneficial to our personal lives as well as the lives of our students and colleagues.

Good luck with your future lesson planning!

Jennifer Evans