Adjustments to my Philosophy

So it has been a couple months since I last posted any comments concerning my first philosophy of education. In the past two months I have had many new experiences that have helped me refine my thoughts concerning my personal philosophy. The experiences have included four masters level courses in education and almost one hundred hours of classroom observation at a local middle school. It has been a great semester, one that has fueled my desire to teach. Over the next two or three post I want to share with you areas where my original philosophy of two months ago has evolved or been refined into its current form.

Good Lesson Plan or Bad Lesson Plan?

What makes a good teacher? Is it how well they dress? The school they graduated from? Their age? Although these attributes may be important, but I am convinced that to be a successful teacher you must have quality lesson plans. So you may ask, what is a quality lesson plan? Well, over the past few weeks I have set out to answer that very question. I have been exploring the different aspects of a lesson plan through various websites. One of the biggest obstacles I faced during my research was the plethora of information available on the web, both good and bad. Don't believe me? Try it, type quality lesson plans into Google and you will be greeted by about 7,440,000 results. My best research involved observing teachers using effective lesson plans at local schools here in Hoover Alabama.

My research and observations have made me aware of several common characteristics found in good lesson plans. I will share five qualities that lesson plans need in order to help students learn at a high level.

The first quality may seem obvious, but it is sometimes the first deterrent to implementing a lesson plan. A lesson plan needs to be easy to read in order to be effective. Lesson plans that have no organization are hard for a teacher to follow and conduct. They often lead to missed objectives, confusion, and ultimate failure.

Second, to take it a step further, quality lesson plans clearly indicate objectives, materials needed, and time needed.

Third, quality lesson plans are able to engage the students. They are entertaining and often grab the students' attention through the use of technology.

Fourth, the easiest way to engage student in your lesson plan is to make it relative. The most successful lesson plans are great at tying material to things kids experience in their daily lives.

Fifth, differentiation and accommodations for different levels of ability in the classroom can propel lesson plans to a different level.

A great website that I discovered is thinkfinity, it is a excellent resource for all teachers. If you have extra time take a look!

My hope is that these qualities and resources will help me become a better teacher. If you know of any good resources or know of other characteristics I may have missed feel free to comment.