Free Lesson Plans For English Teachers

Elizaveta Pachina TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Being an ESL teacher is not an easy task, especially if you work as a freelancer TEFL teacher online. In this case, you have to be even more organized to provide better services to your students. This blog post offers you 3 apps for digital ESL lesson plans that will save you a lot of time. I know that many teachers still prefer to write their notes and plans on paper because it's the best way to make imagination flow. However, there is a considerable disadvantage with this approach: even if you are a very organized person, in time, it becomes challenging to figure out your thoughts on scattered lesson plans. A digital planner can help you...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas When I first started as an EFL teacher two years ago, my senior colleagues would often advise me to create a lesson plan well in advance of an upcoming lesson. Having had no formal teaching experience back then, it surprised me because I assumed that simply creating lesson materials for students was sufficient. I did not think that lesson plans were necessary because when I was a student, I had never seen any of my teachers referring to them on the job. It seemed to me that teachers were natural improvisers and could deliver lessons without any referenced document. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Qi Lin L. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Lesson planning is, at least to some degree, a vital function of teaching. The degree to which a lesson plan is necessary is often directly proportional to the teaching experience of the teacher. The less experience the teacher has the more necessary and beneficial the lesson plan is and vice versa. Lesson plans give the class structure, hold the teacher accountable, and function as a helpful aide, overall adding to the effectiveness of the class and the student’s opportunity to learn. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Katie A. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Unit 9 from this course points out that lesson plans can range...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas The lesson plan functions as a roadmap for the teacher, providing an organized framework for the planning, preparation, and execution of the lesson and serving as a record of what has been completed. It should not be a detailed script, but rather a guide that allows for flexibility and adaptation in the classroom. The plan is a living document that may continue to be refined and enhanced after execution, incorporating lessons learned. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Simona H. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Through the process of developing a plan, the teacher will be able to organize their thoughts on the lesson objectives...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas It has often been said that ships cannot navigate at nights without a lighthouse; In the same way, an instructor of learning will find it difficult to operate without a lesson plan. The lesson plan can be described as the teachers' GPS. What then is a lesson plan? The lesson plan is a useful or structured guide that outlines a step by step approach of delivering a subject matter or content. A lesson plan is made up of some key components like objectives, procedures, and assessments. The actual process of writing the plan is lesson planning. Lesson planning plays a crucial role in the teaching-learning situation. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Bevan S. Please note that this blog post might...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences A lesson plan is a detailed description of outlining instructions, various steps, and activities of what is to be thought in a lesson. Lesson plans can take on various styles based on the topic, type of activity or the learning objective of the teacher. Each teacher will have their own unique way of structuring their lesson plans. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Shanieka P. How detailed a lesson plan is, can be dependent on a number of factors. These factors may be, the length of the lesson, the objective of the lesson or whether the teacher is new or experienced. When writing a lesson plan, one should ensure that it is clear and easy to read. A good lesson plan should also incorporate...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In my experience and the experience of my teacher colleagues, lesson planning has never been among the most interesting or engaging activities. The reasons are always different: some believe that lesson planning is not effective because a teacher cannot predict the direction of the lesson. Others think that it is a complete waste of time because the process of planning a lesson may seem boring and time-consuming. As a beginner teacher, I had a false belief that lesson planning is not important for an ESL teacher, especially if the group of students has a high level of English. However, after teaching for a longer period, I have realized that only with a certain amount of planning can an ESL lesson be not only...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Every great teacher knows that the secret to a successful lesson is a solid plan. There is more to teaching than what happens in the classroom. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Madisen H. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Teachers spend lots of time outside of class analyzing student needs and getting creative to prepare the ideal lesson for their students. Many important things should be included in these plans. Lesson planning contributes to both the day-to-day success of a class, as well as its long term success. Without lesson plans, classes would be disorganized and unproductive. Also Read: Can I teach English abroad...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas A good teacher will bring their own passion, style, and experience in every lesson. Some teachers may have a great deal of teaching experience, while others may be new to the role. The teachers with less teaching experience may find great benefit in putting time and effort into their preparation through Lesson Planning. While more experienced teachers may be able to naturally feel their way through a lesson, perhaps even the syllabus, and frown upon Lesson Planning as being too rigid or structured, for a new teacher I believe it is a necessity to achieving their success. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Peter O. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or...  [Read more]

Federico Riva TEFL Information Teaching Ideas In this blog post, we are going to have a look at some of the reasons why we plan lessons. We suggest there are three main reasons why we need to plan our lessons. First and foremost perhaps, is that it's going to create a logical sequence for our lessons. If we didn't have a lesson plan it is quite possible that we could go all over the place and it would become confusing for the students. By having this plan, what we've created is a structure that we can work from. In effect the lesson plan itself is a working document, which we can refer to it at various times in a lesson. If ever we're not quite sure what we're supposed to be doing next, we can just take a quick look at our plan...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas When teaching English as a foreign language, teachers need to create lesson plans. Lesson plans not only to help the teacher succeed in teaching her students but also helps the students learn the language more effectively. With lesson planning, teachers can set goals for students, stay organized when teaching, and learn how to be flexible when it comes to spending more time on a topic than previously predicted. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Brittany L. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Each lesson should include goals of what the teacher wishes her students to accomplish during that class session. This can include learning...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences A lesson plan is the instructor’s road map of what students need to learn and how it will be done effectively during class time. Then, you can design appropriate learning activities and develop strategies to obtain feedback on student learning. Having a carefully constructed lesson plan for each 3-hour lesson allows you to enter the classroom with more confidence and maximizes your chance of having a meaningful learning experience with your students. A successful lesson plan addresses and integrates three key components: Learning Objectives, Learning Activities, Assessment to check for student understanding. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Elorm D. Please note that this blog post...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Lesson planning is not a task that should be taken lightly; it is the foundation for all EFL classes and plays a significant part in determining how successful students will be. While motivation and desire to learn are factors in each student’s success, a good teacher should be able to inspire motivation through interesting and student-centered lessons. However, this can only be achieved through careful consideration of all lessons. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Natalie M. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. First, teachers need to understand the general format for EFL lessons. Lessons should always begin with an Engage...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Lesson planning is a topic that has a lot of controversy in the teaching community. A lot of people believe that lesson planning is a waste of time and some believe that it is the most important thing to have when conducting lessons in a classroom. According to the E-learning Network, “Lesson planning is a significant element of the teaching-learning system. A lesson plan is a step-by-step guide that provides a structure for essential learning. Before planning a lesson, it is essential to classify the learning outcomes for the class. It is important because it helps the teacher in maintaining a standard teaching pattern and does not let the class deviate from the topic.” From my experience, I believe that...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas To effectively teach it is widely considered important that a plan is in place before commencing a lesson. This essay will provide evidence for this statement. First, the structure of a lesson plan and its effects will be examined and then contrasted with teaching by improvisation and its effects before presenting a final cost-benefit summary. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Christopher B. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Lesson planning simply refers to the practice of structured preparation before conducting a class. The form that this take is not set and while many templates exist to assist one in the planning of a lesson,...  [Read more]

Jon ITTT Alumni Experiences There are various thoughts among teachers on the use of lesson plans. Some believe that a lesson plan concentrates too much on the teacher and on what the teacher wants to accomplish and they think that this approach has the potential to neglect the students needs. On the other hand, some believe that a teacher should dictate what the students need most in a lesson. Personally, I believe that there needs to be a balance between a teacher being prepared by having a lesson plan but also have the flexibility to meet the students needs as the lessons progress. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Ismael S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. ...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Lesson planning is at the heart of being an effective teacher. It is a creative process that allows us to make our understanding of second language acquisition and language teaching pedagogy with our knowledge of our learners, the curriculum, and the teaching context. It is a time when we foresee the learning we want to occur and analyze how all the pieces of the learning experience should fit together to make that learning a classroom reality. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Eddy P. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. There are several benefits to writing a lesson plan. First, lesson planning produces more unified lessons It...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences For any work to yield the best results, it has to be efficiently executed for which meticulous planning is a must. Teaching is a very responsible work which decides the careers and hence the lives of students. Teaching is not just a routine job that can be done impromptu. Hence it has to be planned. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Eshita P. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. A teacher teaches different classes each day. Each class has its syllabus which has to be completed within the stipulated time like an academic year, trimester, or semester. A teacher has to plan how he is going to complete the syllabus within the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences In a society where it is much easier for us to become increasingly distracted by some of the banalest things (such as videos of cats playing the keyboard on YouTube), my generation, in particular, needs to establish a strong sense of organization and focus to ensure that these distractions do not leak into our work lives, causing a decline in our professionality and work ethic. Therefore I believe lesson planning is an effective tool in helping to create a stronger sense of organization within the teacher, both in and out of the classroom. In addition to providing a general layout of the teacher’s lesson (including grammar points and step-by-step instructions for particular activities that are more complex...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In all times when we need to do some activity, we need to think about what to do first, what to do second and what to do last. The same thing when we want to teach; we need to think about the order and the content of this lesson. In other words, we need to plan our lessons. A lesson plan is a detailed tool gathered in a soft or hard form to give instructions to the teacher. So, why planning lessons is important? This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Mouslim E. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. It first starts with a pre-planning. It revolves around many factors; teachers should take to account the level of students so that they...  [Read more]

Mark Crocker Teaching Ideas For many new and experienced EFL teachers, one of the most challenging aspects of their career is coming up with lesson plans that are both engaging and effective. Even if your employer provides a specific textbook to follow as a curriculum, you will often find that this can be rather dull for the students unless you spice things up by adding in some fun and original ideas from an outside source. By searching online you will find a huge amount of sites offering all manner of resources of varying quality and relevance. To save you the hassle of searching through them all, we have listed our 5 favorite websites that you can use to find quality lesson plans free of charge. This very useful website offers teachers a wealth...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences A lesson plan is one of the English teacher’s most useful tools. A lesson plan makes a teacher think concretely about what they want the students to have learned by the end of the lesson, and the steps for making that possible within the allotted timeframe. It allows a teacher to estimate how long various activities will take, and to think about what students will ideally learn from each activity. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Katherine V. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. A lesson plan also functions as a record, helping a teacher to remember exactly what was covered, and when. Such a record will show the teacher...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences This blog post will focus on answering why lesson planning is important. The fundamentals of lesson planning will be discussed while also covering topics such as teacher demeanor, necessary preparation, and flexibility. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Hannah C. Firstly it’s important to point out that lesson planning isn’t seen as a necessary tool for all teachers yet is largely considered helpful and if done so effectively, ensures the smooth running of a class. This means not having a rigid, unchangeable plan but instead somewhat of a guide to keeping a lesson on track, ensuring students are getting the most of the lesson and reaching their learning objectives. Flexibility is key...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Lesson planning is perhaps one of the most core fundamental things that a teacher must do. It should never be anything that is overlooked. Of course one can not plan every little detail of each minute of class, nor should they try. However, coming to class with a solid outline with goals and activities is crucial to teaching effectively. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Justin S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. There will be countless factors that will affect how you plan your lesson. Things such as age, culture, different language levels, student goals, class size, are just to name a few. There can never be a “one size...  [Read more]

Jon ITTT Alumni Experiences Lesson planning is an indispensable part of successful lessons. Generally speaking, lesson plans have various functions that are conducive to the classes. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Juan W. First and most importantly, lesson plans can help teachers think and deliver classes logically through different stages of the classes. It can also give teachers hints needed. When teachers plan lessons, there are several aspects that need to be taken into consideration, such as lesson objectives, possible difficulties and skill and so on. Second, It’s a record of classes that have been done and materials have been used. On the one hand, even though teachers have good memory, it is almost impossible...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Teaching English as a foreign language in another country can be overwhelming for someone without any teaching experience, specifically English teaching. Planning for lessons is very critical for good lesson plans to help to improve the efficiency of students’ English learning. There are a couple of aspects to consider to ensure a good lesson plan. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Dakota H. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Based on how long each class is, how many classes in total, and how long the course lasts, making a teaching plan according to clear teaching goals is significant. There will be the time that the lesson...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Lesson planning is an essential part of ensuring that lesson objectives are met and that lessons are successful. There are two extreme approaches one could take to planning but, usually, an approach somewhere between both is best. The lesson plan serves several important functions regardless of which approach is taken. Most of all, lesson planning seeks to ensure that all students are actually learning from the lesson and making continual progress toward their language goals. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Sergio M. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Before writing down your lesson plan, there are some basic principles worth...  [Read more]

Federico Riva Teaching Ideas I’m extremely grateful for the review of lesson planning. I learned a lot of useful things in this course especially lesson planning. Lesson planning is a significant element of the teaching-learning system. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Thu N. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. First of all, a lesson plan is a step-by-step guide that provides a structure for essential learning. It helps the teacher in maintaining a standard teaching pattern and does not let the class deviate from the topic. It tells the teacher how the teaching should progress with the contents of the lecture. It helps teachers ensure that the day-to-day...  [Read more]

Mark Crocker Alumni Experiences When I was young, I dreamt about thousands of different jobs, but being an online English teacher was never one of them. However, I’ve had the opportunity to work with Chinese students ranging from 5 to 13 years old and it has been one of the best experiences of my life so far. How am I going to communicate with them? Am I ready to be a teacher? How will I transmit what I want to teach? These are some of the questions that went through my mind before accepting the job, but when I finally decided to take it and started to be an ESL teacher I knew I was doing what I love the most, transmitting knowledge. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Karla V. I first started teaching with a Chinese...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Lesson planning is a frequently used tool by teachers to provide a lesson’s direction, aim, activity outline and a record of the material taught. It tends to be a very individual exercise with some teachers preferring to do little planning and others preferring to plan thoroughly. Factors that might impact on this preference are likely to be a teacher’s level of experience and also possibly the school’s requirement for a teacher to follow a set syllabus. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Alex W. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Those that argue against lesson planning believe that a lesson plan discourages teachers from...  [Read more]