There are probably a billion different ways to create long-range plans.
I have found them to be indispensable when it comes to lesson planning. It takes some time to sit down and plan things out, but it's well worth it in the long run.
Here's how I make mine. 👇
You don't just get in the car and start driving without a destination. You need to know where you're going.
Are you going to the grocery store?
Are you going to Alaska?
How long is this drive gonna be?
And what route are you taking to get there?
You need all the details!
Your destination is the final exam, unit test, IPA, final project, or whatever cumulative assessment you are using to evaluate students' knowledge.
Your long-range plans will be your map for how you're going to get to your final "knowledge destination", what route you're gonna take, where you're gonna stop, and how long each stop will be.
Your daily lesson plans are exactly what hotel you're going to, exactly what restaurant you'll eat at, what games you'll play in the car. We're not talking about those details today.
A scope & sequence just lists the grammar, vocab, and culture topics in a given curriculum and the order in which they should be taught.
Long-range plans break down those topics over how many days you'll need to teach each topic.
What are long-range plans?
They are your road map for the month, unit, school year, or whatever time period you decide.You don't just get in the car and start driving without a destination. You need to know where you're going.
Are you going to the grocery store?
Are you going to Alaska?
How long is this drive gonna be?
And what route are you taking to get there?
You need all the details!
Your destination is the final exam, unit test, IPA, final project, or whatever cumulative assessment you are using to evaluate students' knowledge.
Your long-range plans will be your map for how you're going to get to your final "knowledge destination", what route you're gonna take, where you're gonna stop, and how long each stop will be.
Your daily lesson plans are exactly what hotel you're going to, exactly what restaurant you'll eat at, what games you'll play in the car. We're not talking about those details today.
What about a scope and sequence?
Long-range plans are more specific than a scope and sequence.A scope & sequence just lists the grammar, vocab, and culture topics in a given curriculum and the order in which they should be taught.
Long-range plans break down those topics over how many days you'll need to teach each topic.
What should you include in your long-range plans?
- a topic or objective for your classwork and lesson each day
- which days you're giving a homework assignment, quiz, project, or assignment that you don't necessarily give every day
I also have an idea of what vocab and/or grammar I'm going to teach each day.
What do you want your students to be able to DO?
If you are given a final exam or unit tests (like from your department chair for example), then start with those and comb through them.
Make a list of every vocab word and grammar topic and culture point you HAVE to teach. If you don't have a test you have to use, then create your own.
Either way, start with the destination. Know where you're going before you get in the car.
Group your vocab words together into themes and add more to flesh out students' learning.
Aim to teach 10-12 vocab words every few days, with activities that recycle them over and over again in different ways so students learn them well.
Match your grammar topics up with vocab so that students aren't memorizing strings of random words, but are using those words to create meaning in a meaningful way.
Figure out how many days you need for each topic. You want to give students enough time to learn the vocab and grammar without getting bored of it.
If you have a CI-centered way of teaching, then check out Allison's suggestions for long-range planning on her Mis Clases Locas blog!
I use a month-long calendar in Word and I block out all the days school is closed for holidays and then I start adding topics to each day.
Hey, look! You're almost done with your long-range plans!
Have you ever gotten to the end of the marking period and realized you only gave your students 2 homework assignments the entire quarter? A full 10% of their grade is homework. Crap.
Add quizzes and homework (and any other special assignment categories you don't give regularly) to your long-range plans and color-code them so you can easily see how many quizzes you're giving, how much homework, etc.
Long-range plans are a lot of work up front, but they get easier as the year goes by and after a few years you won't hardly need them because so much of your lessons will run on auto-pilot.
I know you thought I was done with the car metaphor, but I wasn't!
What suggestions do you have for making long-range plans? Please share in the comments!
How do you create long-range plans?
Start with the end in mind.What do you want your students to be able to DO?
If you are given a final exam or unit tests (like from your department chair for example), then start with those and comb through them.
Make a list of every vocab word and grammar topic and culture point you HAVE to teach. If you don't have a test you have to use, then create your own.
Either way, start with the destination. Know where you're going before you get in the car.
Group your vocab words together into themes and add more to flesh out students' learning.
Aim to teach 10-12 vocab words every few days, with activities that recycle them over and over again in different ways so students learn them well.
Match your grammar topics up with vocab so that students aren't memorizing strings of random words, but are using those words to create meaning in a meaningful way.
Figure out how many days you need for each topic. You want to give students enough time to learn the vocab and grammar without getting bored of it.
If you have a CI-centered way of teaching, then check out Allison's suggestions for long-range planning on her Mis Clases Locas blog!
I use a month-long calendar in Word and I block out all the days school is closed for holidays and then I start adding topics to each day.
Hey, look! You're almost done with your long-range plans!
Have you ever gotten to the end of the marking period and realized you only gave your students 2 homework assignments the entire quarter? A full 10% of their grade is homework. Crap.
Add quizzes and homework (and any other special assignment categories you don't give regularly) to your long-range plans and color-code them so you can easily see how many quizzes you're giving, how much homework, etc.
Long-range plans are a lot of work up front, but they get easier as the year goes by and after a few years you won't hardly need them because so much of your lessons will run on auto-pilot.
I know you thought I was done with the car metaphor, but I wasn't!
What suggestions do you have for making long-range plans? Please share in the comments!
No comments
Post a Comment