Before he began attending the College of William and Mary, Will Heikkinen spent time teaching English to young students in Spain and
also worked as a tutor working with ESL students at the Frost School of
Lawrence. In doing so, he was often required to create lesson plans to
ensure his classes went smoothly. These tips should help any teachers
who need to do the same and don’t know where to start.
Have A Goal In Mind
Each of your lessons should have objectives that you aim to achieve by the end of them. The best way to start your lesson planning is to write down this objective and then build backwards from it, making sure that everything you incorporate into your lesson has this goal in mind. This ensures that the information you provide to your students is always relevant.
Build In Assessments
Assessments can take a variety of forms, such as pop quizzes, classroom discussions or a long test that you ask students to sit at the end. Regardless of the type that you choose, it is important for your lesson plans to contain some form of assessment as this will help you to understand what your students have picked up from the class and which areas may need further exploration.
Keep Time In Mind
Will Heikkinen had to ensure that all of his lessons contained plenty of information while also being aware of time constraints. It is rare to be able to teach a class without having to consider the clock, so make sure that your lesson plan doesn’t become too bloated.
Have A Goal In Mind
Each of your lessons should have objectives that you aim to achieve by the end of them. The best way to start your lesson planning is to write down this objective and then build backwards from it, making sure that everything you incorporate into your lesson has this goal in mind. This ensures that the information you provide to your students is always relevant.
Build In Assessments
Assessments can take a variety of forms, such as pop quizzes, classroom discussions or a long test that you ask students to sit at the end. Regardless of the type that you choose, it is important for your lesson plans to contain some form of assessment as this will help you to understand what your students have picked up from the class and which areas may need further exploration.
Keep Time In Mind
Will Heikkinen had to ensure that all of his lessons contained plenty of information while also being aware of time constraints. It is rare to be able to teach a class without having to consider the clock, so make sure that your lesson plan doesn’t become too bloated.
