Lesson Plans

Many tutors were able to turn in their lesson plans with last month’s hours. Many did not, and some of you are new tutors to the program. At training on Saturday, I found that our link to browse and upload your lesson plan as part of your tutoring report had mysteriously disappeared. Lest you worry, the tutor report form (http://project-read.com/report.html) now includes a place where you can upload your lesson plan and it will go directly to the Project Read staff. I would like to give a few lesson planning tips:

Lesson planning is clearly a critical aspect of tutoring. Without careful preparation and flow from one lesson to the next your student will not progress as rapidly as they may be capable. How do you put together an effective lesson plan? Planning is dynamic. It involves preparing the lesson, doing the lesson with the learner, and evaluating the results. It is not a linear process; rather, it is a series of connected loops, as one lesson leads into another, building on previous material and preparing for lessons to come.

Plan the lesson.

In preparing each lesson plan, consider these questions: What are the learning objectives? What will the learner accomplish? What materials will you use? What activities and teaching techniques will you use? How can you integrate listening, speaking, reading, and writing in the lesson? How much time will you spend on each activity? How will you and the learner answer the question, “Was it a good lesson?”

Do the lesson.

Evaluate the lesson.

Assess the effectiveness of the lesson by talking with your student, asking your student to record thoughts in a journal or dialog journal, making notes in your tutor log, and/or writing ideas for the next lesson.

If you need additional ideas or tips or sample lesson plans, please refer to your Tutor Training Manual or ask the Project Read staff for a sample lesson plan.

Happy tutoring!