Good morning, teachers! You’re listening to episode # 6.

Today...I am giving you a sneak peek into my planning process and how it has evolved over time...and I’ll share the four things I always do when planning and think you should do too!

I am really excited about this episode because truth be told... I can geek out over the standards ...and love to organize lessons and materials so that math is attainable for kids! No matter what subject you teach, you can apply my planning process. 

Let’s jump in!

I want to tell you a very brief horror story about my first year teaching to illustrate the importance of planning...First, you need to know that I never student taught...though I received my degree in math and science education...I participated in a year-long internship program that allowed me to have my very own classroom... for an entire year... with a mentor from the district office...Cindy, a wonderful experienced math teacher.

So that first year...I taught 5 sections of on-level 7th-grade math and one section of pre-ap Algebra 1 to 8th graders... It was tricky because there was another Algebra 1 teacher who taught the remaining sections... but we didn't have a common planning period... and she coached, so she frequently had responsibilities before and after school...which made planning together almost impossible. Plus, it was my first year... and I was struggling with all the common first-year teacher challenges. It was a recipe for a disaster! 

So the first unit is coming to an end and I plan to give a unit test...you know...because that is what you do...and ask me if it occurred to me that I should give my students a review...or take time to review in class...of course not...obviously I had not worked with 8th graders much in my career. 

Well...when I realized that the other Algebra teacher was giving a review and then a test, I started to panic...I didn’t even think about reviewing...I didn’t have a review... or a plan for reviewing...I was just following the district-provided scope and sequence and there wasn’t a day for review.

The other Algebra teacher graciously shared her review and test with me...which then had me even more freaked out... It looked nothing like mine...this wasn’t aligned to my test...it would have been pointless to give that as a review.

So leaving from a late-night training... I called Cindy in tears...exhausted...and she said “Noelle, I will be there tomorrow. Let’s give your test as a review and then we can write a new test together”... Bless her! She not only helped me survive my first year, but she gave me the gift of loving to teach math.

I share this story with you...mostly so we can discuss all my mistakes and learnings...but also because you may have made some of those mistakes as well...we all have...because while you can go to school to learn to teach and you can study teaching methods...there is something about teaching children that really can’t be replicated...in this profession, you learn so much more by doing.

For today’s purposes, we are talking about planning... everything that is involved from first looking at the standards to materials in front of a student and how I like to go about that process.

Hopefully, you can take a few things away...avoid my mistakes...and shave time off of your planning time.

First, I firmly believe in backward planning, sometimes also referred to as Understanding by Design. 

The idea behind it is that as you are looking at the standard and breaking down what students need to be able to do...you are also looking for examples of how students are asked to show mastery in that...this could be a state assessment question, a project or PBL that requires application of the concept, if you are a math teacher, it could be a 3-act task.  Your goal here is to see the thinking required by a student to show mastery of the concept.

Two of my favorite websites are Lead4ward for Texas Teachers and Achieve the Core for those of you outside of Texas. They both have a very distinct breakdown of the standards and show the progression of standards from one grade level to the next, and even between concepts.

If you are driving or washing dishes or folding laundry, don’t worry all of the links are available at maneuveringthemiddle.com/episode6.

If you have taught before, you want to look at how your students performed historically and determine what went well and what should change. I encourage you to try soooo hard to keep doing what is working so that you avoid reinventing the wheel over and over again...sure you can tweak those lessons to make them better or more engaging. Just remember that your time is valuable and working to improve upon a standard or lesson is not equal...you have to choose wisely and focus on those lessons that historically show a need for improvement.

Okay, so we have looked at those standards closely and we have seen how students are expected to show mastery...Now, I love to take a 30,000-foot view of the unit. 

I typically view or print a calendar for the entire grading period...not the month...this is important because you need your grades, assessments, projects, etc to fall in line with the grading period. 

The last thing you want is to end up with a test on the last day of the grading period. Trust me...I have also made that mistake.

So we have our calendar laid out, we can now sketch out a very generic plan for the unit….literally penciling concepts and standards into the calendar. Being specific as to what part of the standard or concept will be taught each day. 

So rather than saying I will spend a week on solving one-step equations, it would say something like...Monday, introduce adding and subtracting one step equations with Algebra tiles, then Tuesday would say... adding and subtracting one step equations, Wednesday might be adding and subtracting one step equations with positive rational numbers...and so on and so forth. You get the idea!

 I love to include the following in my planning.

• A flex day -- there will be kids out, there will be a field trip, or an alternative schedule, or a pep rally, so the flex day keeps me on track and prevents reworking everything when a change happens.
• A reteach day -- this goes along with the idea of a flex day, but more focused on spiraling or reteaching any content before moving forward...this might look like test corrections or a day in stations where everyone is working on something different 
• My grading requirements -- whatever your school requirements are, keep them in mind. If you are supposed to have two tests, then make sure they are on the calendar. While you are at it, make sure there is not an assessment in the last week of grading. It will literally save you so many hours and scurrying around trying to get absent students to take an assessment

So now I have my calendar with topics, a flex day or two, my assessments. Next, I look for concepts that work well as a collaborative activity! 

This way you can be sure you are incorporating collaboration in a purposeful way! We need to build to the rigor of the standards so you want to be cautious that you are planning for that on your calendar. 

For example, if your students love playing Quizzes or Gimkit, which typically have more skill-based questions, keep that in mind and plan accordingly so that you are building to the rigor of the standards.

You now have a plan for an entire grading period sketched out, and now you can work that plan. And if you didn’t get my reference, be sure to check out episode 1 where I talk about making a plan and working your plan.

Now you can move onto the next phase of planning where you gather your materials. This is where I really encourage you to find a reliable resource to use. Obviously, I firmly believe in our MTM curriculum because it is standards-aligned, student-friendly, and constantly being updated. We literally want to do the heavy lifting for you when it comes to planning and prepping your materials. 

We have done this planning process and while it may still need to be tweaked for your students...you can count on a majority of the prep being lifted. 

Or maybe your district has something for you...great! Try to make small tweaks and changes without starting from scratch...or at the very least...choose wisely what you start from scratch on. 

This will help you to stay focused and on track and minimize your hours at school. 

One thing that always helps me...is to have a checklist for each unit, so that I am not constantly having to think about what else I need to do. Now...you should have a list of things you need to pull together for your unit.

And this is where I am going to talk about batching again...If you want to know more about batching...check out episode 1. 

 Instead of trying to go day by day through your calendar, trying to finish everything for the day, try and work on an entire week, working up towards the entire unit.

For example, while you are sorting through your materials, you can be pulling questions for your assessment or review. That way you can ensure your assessment matches what you are teaching and you aren’t left to create a test at the end of the unit. Remember pulling questions from an assignment and then making small tweaks for an assessment is much more efficient than sitting down to a blank screen to write an assessment.

Or perhaps you know you need two collaborative activities and a review activity...you can search for those activities all at the same time... cutting down your time spent scouring the internet for help. 

Lastly, you want to prioritize what still needs to be done... At one of my schools, we had a copy room volunteer who would come on Tuesdays and Thursdays...this literally was the driving force behind me getting my materials together. I did not want to have to make my own copies. 

You may want to prioritize getting your materials together before the end of the week so that you can load them to your LMS for the upcoming week. 

If you remember from Episode 1, I talked about creating a plan for the week and then working your plan. Well...this is a great example of something that can be thought out and planned in advance....this keeps you from wasting time after school when you are tired and your brain isn’t at full capacity.

Whatever it is for you, keep in mind the most important and critical pieces of lesson planning and focus on those. It is sooooo easy to focus on the little things that don’t have a big impact on your classroom… but remember that ever-present 80/20 rule. 20% of the things you do will yield 80% of the results...so really focus on that 20% that will have the biggest impact on your students, your planning time, and your overall quality of life. 

Also, remember that this might change from unit to unit! Let’s say that you have a unit that you love and the kids have been so successful with. Amazing! That might be a unit that you want to add a little more to...maybe an extension lesson or project...or potentially a fun out-of-the-box engagement piece to draw students in!

The day that I set my classroom up like a grocery store with different items was so fun and took very little time! It wasn’t something that I labored over, but it did add an engaging element that I hadn’t tried before.

Whew! That was a lot to take in!

So as a quick recap... these 4 steps have helped me to master my planning … First, consider taking a backward planning approach by looking at the standards and how students are expected to show mastery, second… take a 30,000 foot view to plan your unit giving yourself a flexible plan, third...find a reliable resource like our MTM curriculum that you can use and/or reference, and forth...batch and prioritize gathering any necessary materials.

Remember that ever famous 80/20 rule and focus on the 20% of things that will have the biggest impact on your students, your classroom, and your overall quality of life. 

We are several weeks into our Good Morning Teacher podcast, and it has been a joy to record these for you! I am hoping that they are making your commute to work a little more enjoyable and that you are able to take ideas and make them work in your classroom.  If you have been loving the podcast, then we would love a five-star review! It helps us to get found by other teachers!  For more all of the links, resources, and freebies mentioned today in one easy place, so check out maneuveringthemiddle.com/episode6. 

I’m Noelle Pickering… and you’ve been listening to the Good Morning Teacher podcast… Until next time, friends, make it a great week!