Lesson Plan, Types, and Template

Cynthia Ekwueme
5 min readJun 19, 2023

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One of the most significant responsibilities you will have as a teacher is creating lesson plans on a regular basis. According to Wikipedia, the largest and most-read reference work in history, “Details will vary depending on the preference of the teacher, the subject being covered, and the needs of the students.”

As a teacher, it is important to know the best plan to use. It enables you to estimate the length of the lesson and greatly helps you in pacing the lesson in accordance with the student’s level of proficiency.

Fortunately, based on the number of subjects or grade levels you teach per day and how far in advance you would like to arrange your class, you can create multiple types of lesson plans.

Creating a certain type of lesson plan will be considerably simpler for the instructor if they have access to a template in the right format.

In this article, we will discuss the importance of lesson plans, the various types of lesson plans, and provide a classic template.

Photo by Unseen Studio

Why is it important to understand the many types of lesson plans?

In addition to assisting you in estimating the length of the lesson and correctly pacing the lesson in accordance with the proficiency level of the students, you also comprehend how each plan functions and can modify a template to meet the unique requirements of your class.

Types of Lesson Plans

A lesson plan is a thorough outline of the lesson you intend to teach your pupils. This tool allows you to carry out a specific instructional goal efficiently. By putting an effective lesson plan into action, you can be sure that both you and your students are following the curriculum’s goals and ideal timetable.

Depending on the number of subjects or grade levels you teach each day and how far in advance you want to schedule your class, you can adopt any one of the following five different types of lesson plans:

Daily Plan

A daily plan is the type of plan made for every day of the week. It lasts for just one class period or one day, with each day having a different objective and a brief test at the end to see if the students understood the material covered that day.

Weekly Plan

In contrast to daily lesson plans, weekly lesson plans only include one lesson that is designed to last the entire week. The completion of this kind of plan requires five consecutive class periods.

Students are first exposed to the material by teachers earlier in the week, and then they use it independently in the middle of the week. At the end of the week, teachers evaluate the student’s understanding of the material.

Unit Plan

Compared to other lesson plans, these cover a wider range of topics, making them more comprehensive. The duration of a unit plan ranges from two weeks to two months.

Some educators prefer developing a unit plan, primarily because planning an entire unit can help a teacher know how long the unit will take so they can pace the lessons according to each class’s proficiency level.

Content Area Lesson Plan

Most teachers in the primary classroom create multiple lesson plans each day because they teach a variety of subjects. Accordingly, each of these subjects requires a unique lesson plan.

The lesson plan for each content area may be for a single day, a whole week, or an entire unit depending on the teacher’s preferences,

Grade-Specific Lesson Plan

Some educators work with multiple grade levels, typically in secondary classrooms, and they make specific plans because each grade level is learning different material at varying depths.

These teachers can use the daily, weekly, or unit plan, and they can develop unique lesson plans based on the grade level they are instructing at any given time.

As a teacher, it is important to know the best plan to use. It enables you to estimate the length of the lesson and greatly helps you in pacing the lesson in accordance with the student’s level of proficiency.

Element Of A Lesson Plan

Several crucial elements to keep in mind when drafting your lesson plan, which also highlights Herbartion’s approach, are grade level/subject of the lesson, type of lesson, duration, the topic of the lesson, previous knowledge, a clear objective, instructional materials, direction of the lesson, and assessment.

Lesson Plan Template

You can use the following model to draft a successful lesson plan:

Grade level and subject

[Insert the grade level and subject of the lesson you’re teaching]

Type of lesson

[Describe the kind of lesson you’re teaching, such as whether it’s a daily, weekly, or unit lesson]

Duration of lesson

[Include the potential duration of the lesson in terms of minutes or class periods]

Topic of lesson

[Give a succinct overview of the lesson’s topic]

Previous Knowledge

[Briefly indicate students’ “prior knowledge of the topic”]

Clear Objectives

Explain the main objective of your lesson in one to two sentences. What the students may be able to do or comprehend by the end of the lesson is included in this]

Instructional Materials

Students must have the following materials, as appropriate for their (type) lesson:

  • [Identify the material]
  • [Identify the material]
  • [Identify the material]
  • [Identify the material]

Direction of lesson

In the following fashion, highlight the minute-by-minute direction of your lesson in five possible steps:

The minute-by-minute instructions for the [type and duration] lesson are listed below:

  • [Include one to three sentences describing possible activities for teachers and students to engage in during this time period of the lesson. [Time in minutes]
  • [Include one to three sentences describing possible activities for teachers and students to engage in during this time period of the lesson. [Time in minutes]

In the fashion above, highlight the minute-by-minute direction of your lesson procedure in five possible steps.

Assessment

Summarize the structure and objectives of the student assessment in a single paragraph. Explain the duration of the assessment and what the teacher might do following a review of the student’s scores.

Summary

In the end, a carefully crafted plan must be developed in order to deliver a quality education because it highlights a defined goal and how to effectively deliver the lesson. It allows you to better anticipate the demands of the classroom and makes clear to anyone the subject of the lesson, the overarching goal, who your intended audience is, and the procedure for evaluating students’ performance.

However, employing the proper plan is crucial because it also ensures that your session runs smoothly. It allows you to estimate the length of the class and considerably facilitates pacing the lecture in accordance with the student’s understanding.

Amazingly, using a lesson plan template makes the planning process efficient and instant. Simply enter your details, and you’re good to go.

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Cynthia Ekwueme

I write for blogs and help teachers create course materials based on solid research, sharing my knowledge on effective teaching and EdTech one post at a time.