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Lesson PlanningLesson planning is a critical part of a teacher?s preparation for class. This is especially true for teachers who have little or no classroom experience. lesson planning can help the teacher to stay on track to achieve his goals over a period of time. By looking at past lesson plans, the teacher can see what has been successful and what activities could be cut from future lessons. This is why it is important for teachers to take notes on what they found to be successful or a hindrance in each lesson. By doing this, the teacher can also be sure to bring variety to the class room and not focus on one type of exercise or activity. lesson plans give the teacher a structure to refer to during class. This is especially important for new teachers who do not yet know what challenges or problems may arise. It gives them something to fall back on in difficult situations. The problem with lesson plans arises when teachers rely too heavily on their lesson plan and are unable to deviate from it. It is important that the teacher be able to be flexible while in class and be able to respond to the needs of the students. If a certain activity is going well and the students are readily participating, the teacher should not end the activity just because they are out of the allotted time set by the lesson plan. Instead, the teacher should be flexible enough to take extra time with the activity and move on when he thinks the class needs to. Another reason that lesson plans are beneficial to teachers is that they allow them to prepare for challenges that might arise in class. If the teacher has the activities and exercises planned out, he can attempt to anticipate problems that might surface as a result of certain exercises or activities. This will give him a chance before the class actually begins to come up with a solution to possible problems. Although he will not be able to foresee every problem that may arise, this planning can save a lot of time in the classroom. By listing what preparation needs to be done and what materials are needed for the activities, the teacher can also avoid the embarrassment of forgetting material necessary for class. Before class, the teacher can just scan the lesson plan to make sure he has everything that he will need. By writing down and understanding the objectives that the teacher wants the students to achieve, the teacher can focus through the lesson on doing his best to help the students achieve that objective; whether this means spending more time or less time on certain activities. If the students prove to be very able at writing about the subject, but they are struggling to speak the language, the teacher could spend extra time on exercises that promote speaking. Overall, the lesson plan is an indispensible tool for teachers with and without class room experience. It allows teachers to plan for challenges, record their successes and failures, and stay focused on their objectives. The only major problem can arise if a teacher relies too heavily upon the lesson plan and is bound by the structure. However, if a teacher is aware of this possibility and maintains his flexibility then he should be able to avoid this problem.
