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The 9th unit covers the topic of planning lessons. I agree that it is necessary for the teacher to be prepared to deal with some of the language problems that may arise during a lesson. Planning helps with the entire planning process and creates a record of what the class has covered. There's also a document to refer to during the lesson, which might be very useful. There are some basics of lesson planning, like keeping it clear and simple, making it flexible because it is important to be able to adapt to the needs of the class. There should also be a good mix of skills throughout the lesson and it should be structured, but there is no need to script the whole lesson. I find it also important to ensure a smooth running lesson and this can be achieved by being organized and making sure that you have your lesson plan, that you have all the necessary and working aids and materials at hand. It may also be a good idea to be ready to chat with the students as they arrive in class. There are certain pieces of information that are normally included in a lesson plan, like learning objectives (what you want the students to be able to do), language point, teaching aids, anticipated problems, personal aims for the teacher, procedure with its timing, phase, the kind of interaction (student-student, teacher-student), etc. This unit is very useful as it contains an example of and a blank of a standard lesson plan structure which can be used for planning my future lessons. I find it also very useful that there is a self-evaluation form because I totally agree that the teacher needs to improve his or her skills in order to make classes as enjoyable as possible. Henceforth the need to evaluate his or her lessons and make notes of what went well and what did not. It is also pointed out that the teacher should plan a sequence of lessons considering the flexibility and the need to make changes to plans during lessons, the goals, the need for revision and a variety and balance in skills and activities. The tasks at the end of the unit are very helpful and give the opportunity to have a try at making your own plan for a lesson.
