1. Effective Lesson Planning and Design
Janae N. Rogers
EDU 650
Febuary 2, 2015
Joyce Frazier

2. Important Elements of Effective Lesson Design: Research
“Research is one of the most important components in effective teaching and learning(Newman, 2013) .”
When planning an effective lesson design, it is important to first research information to target the needs of students, find developmentally appropriate instruction, and cognitive development. “Gather knowledge from as many different sources as you can, not just by combing your required coursework. Ask other teachers questions, and use power of the Internet to connect with other teachers in chat rooms, websites, and through social media (Newman, 2013).” It is important to utilize all resources available to target the specific needs of the children through lesson planning. Having numerous sources, networking between coworkers, and asking questions are beneficial to successful planning.

3. Important Elements of Effective Design: Developing Learning Objectives
Common Core Standards
Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives
Ask Questions
“Developing clear learning objectives can also help develop conceptual understanding for cognition. Learning objectives should be specific enough to be measureable. They are also means by which learning is evaluated during a lesson, class period, or even on activity (Newman, 2013).” Objectives are important to grasp the concepts and ideas that learners can gather information and skills to meet goals and requirements. “Objectives can communicate to learners what is expected of them- but only if they are shared with learners in an accessible way(Newman, 2013).” Common Core Standards provide learning goals to help students and teachers prepare for learning. Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives are used to target the cognitive level of children that relates to skills mastered and goals obtained. Asking questions allows teachers to focus on what goals needs to be met when creating a effective lesson plan.

4. Good Learning Objective Example
Students will count to the number 100 using ones and tens.
Students will explore the number line to see how to get to the number 100.
Students will investigate and explore ones centi- cubes and ten rods.

5. Common Pitfalls in Lesson Planning
Accidental Learning
Breadth of Coverage
The pressure to have students perform well on high-stake tests has increased over the years causing teachers to stress over the instructions and focus on the depths of information rather then the cognitive development of their students. Accidental learning, is when teachers spend majority of their planning based off of activities instead of cognitive learning. “Students may be fully engaged in and enjoy these activities , but learning occurs only accidentally because the activity focuses on engagement rather than meaning(Newman, 2013) .” Teachers focus on themed learning that is based around activities. Breadth of coverage, “when developing plans is a focus on the coverage of material. Teachers’ efforts often focus on covering the entire textbook or all of the required material in a chapter or course without a clear purpose(Newman, 2013).” Teachers begin to stress the importance of reading or covering all material in a block or course with the impression that the children will process the information. This technique hinders the opportunity to learn and process the information with the teacher in steps.

6. Avoid Pitfalls Comprehensive Holistic Transformative
Wide-Ranging Process
“To begin with, learning should be considered a comprehensive, holistic, transformative, and wide-ranging that integrates academic learning, goal setting, student experiences, and assessment(Newman, 2013).” Lesson planning should be in place to target students cognitive learning. Students should be given information and goals that are obtainable and enhancing their knowledge to prepare them for the next level, life, and situations. In order to significantly target areas of study, teachers have to be able to determine what benefits both the teacher and the student, target skills throughout different age groups, and find ways to accommodate for the children in the classroom. “The term “learning” does not simply mean that students are engaged in activities that are fun or appear meaningful, or that they do well on test. While these factors are important, the rich definition of learning in which students should engage incorporates all of those factors, along with the goal of developing 21st century skill in which students use a range of technology and media to share their thinking(Newman, 2013).”

7. Backwards Design Step One: Identify desired results
Step Two: Determine acceptable evidence
Step Three: Plan learning experiences and instruction
The Backwards Design process is apart of the Understanding by Design process. “It emphasizes the use of learning outcomes as the driver in designing curriculum units, performance assessments, and student learning experiences. Research has shown that the UbD process is the most efficient and effective method of lesson planning overall(Newman, 2013).” Step one of the backwards design is where the teacher finds and establishes learning goals within their classroom. Stage one is put in place for teachers to determine what the children know and what they will learn. There are four filters in prioritizing curriculum: linchpin ideas, determine whether learning is at the core, determine which concepts are need deeper exploration, and identifies how the concept engages students. “By using all four filters, teachers can hone in on the big ideas and then develop essential questions that can be explored over time through lessons(Newman, 2013).”

8. Common Core Standards Initiative: Role in Effective Instruction
“The standards are informed by:
The best state standards already in existence
The experience of teachers, content experts, states, and leading thinkers
Feedback from the public”
The Common Core State Standards Initiative play a role in designing effective instructions so students, teachers, and parents know the expectation, to understand the skills and knowledge of each standard. Standards help students to prepare through the media, textbooks, technology, and other materials. “Planning for differentiated instruction requires various learner profiles to inform the process. Students demonstrate mastery of concepts/content in each step before the teacher proceeds to the next step (TEAL: Teaching Excellence in Adult Literacy, 2013).”

9. Compare/ Contrast: Backwards Design and Traditional Model