Lesson Planning

Do you write up detailed lesson plans for each and every lesson. Here are my thoughts.

Jul 21, 2025

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When I first started out as a teacher, I had the luxury of not having to write up and submit lesson plans. However, I did this anyway - it really helped me as a young teacher, sort out the “problems” I’d likely encounter during the lesson. It also gave me more confidence, something I could quickly reference when in doubt, off task, teacher lost. I still have these stacks of these hand-written plans!

It was a simple lesson plan, much like this one.

I do agree that teachers should keep some kind of record of their teaching, even if only short notes or a weekly summary. It makes one accountable to all stakeholders. However, as one develops and learns as a teacher “in situ” in class - I don’t think explicit lesson plans, in detail, make any sense. And especially if you are getting them from generative AI!

The realities of the classroom are immense. A teacher should learn to be an artist, a lesson is not a series of strict steps, a cookie cutter and paint by numbers activity. No, it is transactional. Teachers need to be allowed to go where the winds of learning go.

I will be back teaching next week and my planning is based on the needs assessment I fortake of my students, the first few weeks of school. After that, I teach to my strengths, my lesson resource toolkit. I also put the onus on students to “create” and participate and not be mere vessels of knowledge. I even get Ss teaching the class! It’s empowering for them.

All this said, however, at all times in the curriculum developement process, I ask myself these 3 questions: