Lesson Planning

A lesson plan should set out clear and appropriate main aims and learning
outcomes for the lesson.
___________________are concerned with what the learners will be able to do
by the end of the lessons e.g. By the end of the lesson, learners will be
better able to use present perfect simple to talk about past experiences.
___________________ generally describe the language/skill to be focused on
in the lesson e.g. To practise the meaning, form and pronunciation of
present perfect simple for past experiences in the context of travel.
***Outcomes and main aims can be combined:
By the end of the lesson, learners will be better able to talk about
past experiences. This will be achieved through practising the
meaning, form and pronunciation of the present perfect simple,
in the context of holidays.
You MUST include the following in your outcomes/aims:
The language or skill you and your learners will be focusing on in
the lesson e.g. past modals of deduction. For structures with
multiple meanings, say which one the students will be focusing on
e.g. present perfect for describing past experiences.
Specific examples of the language you aim to teach e.g. language
connected to public transport e.g take a taxi, get on the bus, an
oyster card.
Practical use/context of the language in relation to the activities
in the lesson which link to real life activities.
Subsidiary aims are the secondary aim of the lesson; less
important than the main aims, these are usually the language/skills
students need to perform the main aim of the lesson e.g. To practise
aspects of connected speech. Dont include every single thing
the students will do in the lesson. Some things are
incidental e.g. teaching one or two words so students
understand a text.
Make sure your stage aims match your lesson aims.
Possible phrasing of main aims

Possible phrasing of learning

outcomes

To present/To introduce

To revise/To review

The learners will be (better)

able to
The learners will be able to

To develop the skill/sub-skill

of.
To consolidate
To give practice in
To raise learners awareness
of
Main aims vs. Stage aims

useappropriately
The learners will improve their
ability to

When planning a lesson, you need to consider Main AIMS and STAGE
AIMS. Look at the following and decide if they are:
a) Main aims
b) Stage aims
c) Neither
1. To revise and give practice of the past simple affirmative and
question forms.
2. To get students to read a text.
3. To make the lesson more student-centred.
4. To clarify the meaning of the target language.
5. To introduce and give practice of lexis relating to trials: judge,
jury, barrister, on bail, on remand, to convict, to sentence.
6. To teach direct and indirect questions.
7. To give controlled practice of the target language.
8. To do a role-play.
9. To give students practice in listening for specific information.
10.

To drill the students.

11. To provide the students with a written record of the Target

Language.
12.

To check what the students have learnt.

Lesson Procedure
Level: Intermediate
Learning Outcome: By the end of the lesson, learners will be better able
to tell a story using past simple and past continuous.
Stage Aims

Procedure
Teacher asks learners about
their favourite stories when
they were young.
Learners volunteer stories.

Teacher gives out a short story

and asks learners to underline
examples of the past simple in
blue and examples of the past
continuous in red.

Teacher clarifies the form with

examples (she went/she was
going) on the board.
Teacher gives out a series of
rules of use of the verb forms.
Learners decide which rules go
with which verb form and pick
out examples from the text.

The teacher asks questions to

check understanding.

Learners complete sentences,

deciding whether the past
simple or past continuous is
more appropriate.

Teacher divides the class into

Timing

3 groups.
Each group makes up a story.
Teacher forms new groups,
comprising one person from
each of the other groups.
Learners tell each other the
stories.