Lesson Plan Templates: How to Plan Effective Lessons

What is a Lesson Plan Template and How to Use it?

Starting with a blank lesson plan can be quite a daunting prospect. On one level, we want to make sure that our students are really thinking through the lesson content and this requires a well thought out plan of action. On the other hand, this takes a lot of work and classroom teachers are notoriously pushed for time. So how can we create teaching resources with clear learning objectives that can carefully guide our class to successful learning outcomes? In this article we explore some common myths associated with the lesson plan and offer a new way of creating what we call thinking guides. Plenty of organisations offer lesson plansand but most of them failed to provide a uniform way of designing lessons.

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How Do You Use a Blank Lesson Plan Template Effectively?

Start by identifying how you want students to think about the content rather than what activities to include. Use the Universal Thinking Framework to drag and drop thinking actions that create consistent, rigorous lessons across all subjects. This approach transforms planning from a time drain into powerful learning design that takes just minutes.

Starting from scratch is hard work and in this blog post you can download a template that will help you create a daily lesson plan or scheme of work plan for your class. Many so-called experts offer what they call the holy grail of lesson planning, indeed, some of these are comprehensive. However, anyone working in education knows that it's not one size fits all. Our approach is to use the Universal Thinking Framework for designing a simple lesson plan. The process can be used to guide lesson activities in meaningful ways that produce an exceptional learning experience. You don't have to reinvent the wheel, you just have to apply a little creativity to create a perfect 5-minute lesson plan.

The first question you want to ask is 'how do you want them to think'? Once you have established where the meaning is in the lesson, you can use the adaptable lesson plan template along with the universal thinking framework to create a sequence of learning rich in critical and creative thinking. This approach to lesson planning means that your learners will become well acquainted with the language of learning. In this sense, the method means that as well as ensuring the coverage of the curriculum, your class will also become more familiar with the process of learning.

You might also want to think about these areas:

• Is there any specialist vocabulary that we need to think about?
• Is there an overarching concept that my learners need to understand?
• How does the lesson link to the previous lesson?
• How can I stretch my most able students?
• How can I scaffolding my learners who need extra support?
• Could we build in any opportunities for students to take the learning in a different direction?

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What Steps Create an Effective LearningSequence with Templates?

Begin by mapping out the thinking skills students need to develop throughout the lesson sequence. Plan learning actions first before creating any resources or PowerPoints to ensure students actively engage with content. Structure each lesson to build on previous thinking skills while introducing new challenges progressively.

Once you have downloaded a blank lesson plan template from our website, you can begin to think about a rigourous journey through the lesson content. The universal thinking framework learning actions can be inserted into the principal lesson plan template. This drag-and-drop approach to designing instructional teaching resources means that you'll always end up with a learning journey that can be adapted to all teaching styles, perfect for your PPA cover! 

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How Can Teachers Learn to Use Comprehensive Lesson Plan Templates?

Teachers should start with the Universal Thinking Framework which provides a consistent structure across all subjects and key stages. Practice using thinking guides that focus on learning actions rather than traditional activity-based planning. Regular use builds familiarity with how learning actually works while reducing planning time to just five minutes.

Depending on the lesson context, the generic lesson plan template can be used in a variety of different settings. This can be used to reduce lesson anxiety and build that essential familiarity that our learners enjoy. For experienced teachers, this approach can be used to create a sequence of lessons that ensure a deep learning experience for the whole class. Reducing the burden for teachers is a big advantage to planning in this way. One of the issues in teacher education is how to introduce concepts like this. For both student teachers and season teachers, having a uniformed way of working will make sure that all students receive a consistent education experience.

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What Is the First Step When Starting a Blank Lesson Plan Template?

Ask yourself 'How do I want students to think about this content?' before planning any activities or resources. Identify the specific thinking actions needed for deep understanding using the Universal Thinking Framework. This mental shift from activity planning to thinking design creates more effective lessons in less time.

A great exercise to do for both teacher education and teacher professional developmentin general is to sit everyone down in the same room preferably and ask them to design a series of lessons that tackle the same topic. What are you will find is that everyone approaches at differently. A film teacher will approach this differently to an English school teacher. The key stage one teacher will approach it differently to a key stage to teacher. The point is, what you will be left with is a consistent design using the same simple lesson plan template. This teacher training exercise enables educators to understand that we all think differently and educational experiences need to reflect this if you want to create inclusive classrooms.

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How Do Lesson Plan Templates Create Better Teaching Resources?

Effective templates guide you to plan learning actions first, which naturally leads to creating resources that students actually remember. The Universal Thinking Framework ensures consistency and rigor while eliminating the need for time-consuming PowerPoint creation. This approach produces thinking guides that serve as powerful resources for both teachers and students.

Designing learning experiences such as a conventional lesson plan or a scheme of work does take a lot of effort. Starting from scratch requires a lot of focus, we want to design dynamic lesson plans but sometimes there isn't enough time. This is where instructional teaching resource websites fill the gap. They offer an immediate solution such as a PowerPoint which we can begin to use immediately. The problem with this approach is that the learning is directed by the resource as opposed to a clear academic rationale. An exceptional learning experience should be underpinned with a thoughtful way through the content, children remember what they think about so we have to cause them to think. We encourage our members to initially park the resources and the creative design. Start by bringing our attention to the learning actions that will drive the students understanding. What are these and in what order should we sequence them? Once we have established our 'mental satnav' we will be in a much better position to think about assessment opportunities and the resources we need to support the lesson.

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How Can Schools Implement the Universal Thinking Framework Successfully?

Schools should introduce the framework by demonstrating how it reduces teacher workload while improving learning outcomes. Start with a pilot group using the drag-and-drop approach to create thinking guides for their daily lessons. Expand implementation gradually as teachers experience the five-minute planning revolution and see improved student engagement.

If you want to reduce teacher workload and join the thousands of teachers using the universal thinking framework then we would welcome a conversation. This tried and tested approach to create broader learning experiences has enabled classrooms around the world to flourish in what recently have been quite difficult times. If you want to see how the framework has been embedded into other learning activities then please do visit the graphic organiser page to see how this works.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Universal Thinking Framework and how does it differ from traditional lesson planning?

The Universal Thinking Framework is a drag-and-drop approach that focuses on planning how you want students to think about content rather than what activities to include. Unlike traditional planning that starts with resources or PowerPoints, this framework prioritises thinking actions first, creating more consistent and rigorous lessons across all subjects whilst reducing planning time to just five minutes.

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How can teachers move away from activity-based planning to thinking-focused lesson design?

Teachers should start by asking 'How do I want students to think about this content?' before planning any activities or resources. This mental shift involves mapping out the specific thinking skills students need to develop throughout the lesson sequence, then planning learning actions first before creating any materials.

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What are the main problems with using ready-made PowerPoints and resources for lessons?

Ready-made PowerPoints drive poor learning outcomes because the learning becomes directed by the resource rather than a clear academic rationale. These resources fail to create lessons that students actually remember, as they don't focus on the thinking processes needed for deep understanding of the content.

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How can lesson plan templates reduce teacher workload whilst maintaining lesson quality?

The thinking guide approach using templates can transform planning into a five-minute process whilst ensuring deep learning experiences for students. The Universal Thinking Framework provides a consistent structure that works across all subjects and key stages, reducing lesson anxiety and creating uniform educational experiences without sacrificing rigour.

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What key questions should teachers consider when using a lesson plan template effectively?

Teachers should consider specialist vocabulary needs, overarching concepts for understanding, and how the lesson links to previous learning. They should also think about stretching able students, scaffoldingsupport for those who need it, and building in opportunities for students to take learning in different directions.

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How do thinking guides help students become more familiar with the learning process?

Thinking guides ensure students become well acquainted with the language of learning by consistently using the same thinking framework across lessons. This approach means that as well as covering curriculum content, students develop familiarity with how learning actually works, building their metacognitive awareness of their own thinking processes.

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What makes this approach suitable for both new and experienced teachers?

The framework provides a uniform way of working that benefits both student teachers and experienced educators by creating consistent educational experiences. For experienced teachers, it offers a way to design deep learning sequences, whilst for new teachers it reduces the overwhelming nature of starting with blank lesson plans and provides structure for effective planning.