EP 138 What to Do Instead of Summer Lesson Planning
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You are an amazing and hard-working educator. The work that you are doing for your students is appreciated. Thank you for your dedication and the time you put in to ensure your students succeed.
In this week’s episode, I will share strategies for spending your valuable time in the summer instead of creating lesson plans.
The problem that many of us encounter in the summer with planning is that it’s the summer. Which is not a problem but more like a relief that we can get a break. The last thing we want to be doing is planning for the upcoming year. Our time in the summer is precious and I can imagine that the last thing that you want to be doing is scrolling the internet for lesson plans.
Another perspective is that a lot of times ESL teachers are not aware of their schedules, groups, and even at times grade levels until the beginning of the school year.
My solution to this problem is simple. I do as little lesson planning as possible and instead plan for my routines and procedures. By planning for your routines and procedures, you allow more time for teaching. Let me share some simple strategies that you can use to plan for your yearly routines and procedures.
2-3 three weeks before you return to school, schedule 10-15 minutes 3 times a week to plan for your routines and procedures. Blocking this time out will help you be accountable and ensure that you complete the tasks.
During this time, brainstorm the routines and procedures that you might have for the school year. This will look at how the students will go to the bathroom, how will they enter the classroom, etc. Then create a plan around those routines.
Once you have the routines and procedures listed, then you will need to develop a plan on how to teach the routines and procedures. One of my favorite ways to teach routines and procedures is to show the students what to do vs. what not to do. I do this three times and end on a positive note of how this should look. So, I put in my plans which routines I will be practicing and modeling with the students.
My last summer tip that you can easily plan right now is your building relationship activities. These are the activities that you are planning on doing to get to know your students. These are easy to plan and get together. They also do not require a lot of time in the summer to prep. I like to do these about two weeks before the school year starts.
I genuinely hope these strategies and tips help you plan for the upcoming school year.
If you found value in today’s episode, go to myadventuresinesl.com/store to get the full detailed lesson plan which includes 2 full weeks of lesson plans and activities.
