PRINCIPLES OF LESSON PLAN

PRINCIPLES OF LESSON PLAN

1.     Preparation/Instruction:

It pertains to preparing and motivating children to the lesson content by linking it to the previous knowledge of the student, by arousing curiosity of the children and by making an appeal to their senses. This prepares the child's mind to receive new knowledge. "To know where the pupils are and where they should try to be are the two essentials of good teaching."

Lessons may be started in the following manner:

a. Two or three interesting but relevant questions

b. Showing a picture/s, a chart or a model

c. A situation Statement of Aim: Announcement of the focus of the lesson in a clear, concise statement such as "Today, we shall study the..."

2.     Presentation/Development:

The actual lesson commences here. This step should involve a good deal of activity on the part of the students. The teacher will take the aid of various devices, e.g., questions, illustrations, explanation, expositions, demonstration and sensory aids, etc. Information and knowledge can be given, explained, revealed or suggested.

The following principles should be kept in mind.

a. Principle of selection and division: This subject matter should be divided into different sections. The teacher should also decide as to how much he is to tell and how much the pupils are to find out for themselves.

b. Principle of successive sequence: The teacher should ensure that the succeeding as well as preceding knowledge is clear to the students.

c. Principle of absorption and integration: In the end separation of the parts must be followed by their combination to promote understanding of the whole.

3.     Association comparison:

 It is always desirable that new ideas or knowledge be associated to daily life situations by citing suitable examples and by drawing comparisons with the related concepts. This step is important when we are establishing principles or generalizing definitions.

4.     Generalizing:

This concept is concerned with the systematizing of the knowledge learned. Comparison and contrast lead to generalization. An effort should be made to ensure that students draw the conclusions themselves. It should result in students' own thinking, reflection and experience.

5.     Application:

 It requires a good deal of mental activity to think and apply the principles learned to new situations. Knowledge, when it is put to use and verified, becomes clear and a part of the student's mental make-up.

6.      Recapitulation:

 Last step of the lesson plan, the teacher tries to ascertain whether the students have understood or grasped the subject matter or not. This is used for assessing/evaluating the effectiveness of the lesson by asking students questions on the contents of the lesson or by giving short objectives to test the student's level of understanding; for example, to label different parts on a diagram, etc.

7.      Coherence and flow:

This means that the lesson is connected together and not just a sequence of discrete units. At the macro level, links should connect the various lessons over the days and weeks of a course. At the micro level, each activity has a rationale which students need to understand. There should also be transitions from one activity to the next.

8.      Variety:

It is applicable at both the micro and macro levels. Although a certain amount of predictability is comfortable for the students, lesson plans should not follow the same pattern day after day to avoid fatigue and boredom. On a macro level, there should be variety in topics (content), language and skills covered. On a micro level, each daily lesson should vary in terms of time spent on activities, classroom organization (whole-class, small-group, pair work or individual activity), and mood of the class. Mood shifts can reflect a teacher’s disposition on a certain day, the chemistry of the mix of students, the weather, current events or just something in the air! The percentage of teacher talk and student participation should also vary from lesson to lesson; there are days that we want active student participation, but there are other days that we want them to just sit and listen.

9.      Flexible:

Lesson plans are not meant to bind teachers to some pre-ordained plan. Good teachers think on their feet and know when to stop or adapt an activity, regardless of the lesson plan. Sometimes forsaking what has been planned and pursuing an instant idea is well worth the risk.