Steps For Planning a Lesson

Planning is a key ingredient in the development of a good lesson. To varying degrees, teachers plan before, during, and after a lesson. Planning before class generally involves identifying potential lesson goals, selecting topics to be taught, designing interesting activities to promote student learning, organizing equipment and supplies, and giving the evaluation process some consideration. During class, teachers continually monitor the flow and focus of the lesson, gauging the progress of the students toward the learning goal. As they make adjustments and direct the lesson, teachers constantly weigh alternatives and plan the next series of actions and activities. At the conclusion of a lesson, teachers- particularly very good ones- assess the merits of the lesson, make decisions about activities that will best serve the next lesson, and take mental or written notes on student troubles and triumphs.

WHAT WILL THEY LEARN?

Preparation for any lesson begins with identifying a purpose or goal. What do your students need to learn? What will your students know when they leave the lesson that they didn't know when they arrived? In sport and physical activity settings, these goals are usually physical skills (e.g., serving, passing, striking) or activity-related knowledge (e.g., game rules, fitness facts, strategies). Without a clear purpose, it is difficult to offer mearningful instruction. This point cannot be overemphasized. Teachers or coaches who step before students or players with no purpose in mind will simply waste their students' time and their own. As Yogi Berra put it, "If you don't know where you are going, you might wind up somplace else". In other words, the only way to get somewhere is to know where you are going. Similarly, the only way your students can learn or your players can improve is if they know what they have to learn.

A variety of resources can help you identify instructional goals. Written plans such as curriculum guides, yearly plans, or teaching manuals are one way to identify goals. These sources usually suggest progressions in skill and knowledge development and are particulary useful when teaching something for the first time or two; they are also helpful when lessons are given in a series or unit on a particular sport or topic. For example, the goal for a single lesson may be selected based on goals achieved in the previous lessons and goals desired to teach through future lessons.

Many experienced teachers like to begin with their knowledge of the students' abilities and current skill levels. Through observations and conversations with students, or reflections on experiences with similar students, a teacher can identify pertinent goals that will lead to both worthwhile learning exprriences and significant student achievement. Because of this, teachers commonly watch the students play or practice a skill in the first few minutes of class and then decide the goal for the instructional session. If the teacher has observed the students many times before or is required to follow a scripted curriculum, then objectives can be determined before class.

A third source of learning goals is the student. Often students know precisely what they need to learn or improve. An advantage of student-identified learning goals is that students are often highly motivated to achieve them. Because they have had input into the direction and purpose of their learning experiences, they usually work harder to reach their goals. Don't hesitate to ask students what they would like to learn and why they would like to learn it. The answers may surprise you, and they will certainly help you plan useful instruction for your students. Regardless of the sources used to select and define instructional objectives, among the most critical factors in identifying learning goals are the students' aspirations, present skill level, and physical abilities. If these three factors are considered when determining the lesson goals, both the teacher and the student have a greater chance for instructional success.

SELECTING LEARNING ACTIVITIES

Once the purpose of the lesson is determined, the next step is to select or create appropriate learning experiences so that the instructional goals can be achieved. Learning experiences can include lectures, skill drills, videotape viewing, discussions, or any other activitiy that provides the learner with the information to be learned. The prime consideration when selecting these activities is efficiency of learning. What activity will best teach a student the information or skill at hand?

Learning activities are derived from many resources. The teacher's personal experience as both a student and teacher of the subject matter is a good place to begin. Sometimes learning activities from one sport or activity are easily transferred to another sport with only a few minor adjustments. For example, a basketball dribbling drill might be easily adapted for practicing the soccer dribble. Discussion with other teachers about activities they have found effective are also helpful. A favorite source for most teachers is books that include sport-specific skills, drills, and learning activities. Expert teachers are book collectors, and they rely on them heavily for new ideas and activities for their lessons. Finally, one of the best sources for learning ideas resides in the fertile imagination of the teacher. Knowing the subject, the students, and the resources available can often give a creative teacher the necessary platform for designing excelent activities for her/his students.

ORGANIZING THE LESSON

Having determined both the goals and learning activities, the teacher must next organize the learning experiences to achieve a maximum cumulative effect. This requires the teacher to consider the sequence and length of the selected activites. Once again, the students play a critical role in determining the order of the experience. For beginners who are perhaps tentative and need reassurance that they can indeed learn, selecting activities in which they experience success early in the lesson is crucial. The lesson activities can then be made increasingly more challenging as both skill and confidence increase.

Consideration should also be given to the equipment needed, as well as the location of the instruction and practice areas. Placing equipment in close proximity to the learning activities will save time that can be devoted to learning. Conducting learning and practice activities in close proximity will reduce transition and relocation time, again permitting more time for instructional activities. If it's not possible to locate the instructional activities close together, then teachers need to plan easy and efficient routes from one location to the next so that learning time isn't wasted.

ARE WE THERE YET?

Ask any parent who has taken a child on a long drive, and he or she will invariably tell you that somewhere along the route, a small voice from the back seat will ask, "Are we there yet?". The child is growing tired of the journey and wants to know when the destination will be reached. Although it's a question that often annoys a parent, it's a good question for a teacher. As the lesson progresses, and particularly when the lesson concludes, a teacher must evaluate the quality of the experience. Have the students learned yet? If not, is there a better route or alternative activities that might get them there faster? If they are already there, then it's time to plan the next learning destination. Asking these questions during the lesson helps the instructor make the necessary adjustments to promote greater learning. Asked at the conclusion of the lesson, the answers will provide insights for revising future lessons and lead long-term improvement in teaching.

STEPS IN PLANNING