Introduction to Lesson Plan – Date
Lesson Plan – Date clarifies the correct date to write on a lesson plan for the week. Date is one of the most straightforward components of any good lesson plan. Yet, some teachers still find it confusing. This is especially so for new teachers – particularly those that did not study education.
The confusion is somewhat justifiable. This is in spite of the fact that there are more than one dates that one could write in a lesson plan.
For instance, one could write the date on which s/he is developing the lesson plan. Or, a teacher could also write the date s/he will deliver the lesson. There is a third possibility. That is the date s/he submits the lesson plan.
So, which is the correct option? I always get this question. Therefore, I provide the answer in as simple term as possible in this post.
Reason for Date in Lesson Plans and Lesson Notes
Knowing the reason for writing date in lesson answers the most part of the question. So, let us start from there. Why do we write date in lesson plans? What is the rationale for date in lesson notes? This is obvious too. But congruity, I will itemize some reasons below.
The reasons for date in lesson plans and lesson notes include:
1. Time Management
The first reason for writing date on lesson plan is that it helps teachers to manage time. Dating lesson plan is more or less like booking an appointment. Once you have booked to do certain thing on a fixed date, it helps you plan for it. Whatever else you do, you ensure that other activities do not encroach into the time of the appointment. In other words, you learn to manage your time.
Similarly, dating lesson plan helps teachers in the same way. There are many duties a teacher performs. This is why teachers specify date to deliver a particular lesson plan. Doing so enables teachers to plan ahead of the lesson. This may include gathering and setting up necessary instructional materials for the lesson.
2. For Proxy
In early post, I discussed that the one of the reasons for lesson planning is for proxy. That is, if a teacher is absent and another has to deliver the lesson in their place. Lesson plan helps them to be able to deliver the lesson effectively. Without date on lesson plan, the teacher that is teaching by proxy may not know when to deliver the lesson.
3. Lesson Duration
Dating lesson plan also gives teachers insight into the duration of the lesson. It is from the date that teachers calculate the duration of the lesson. This helps them to further plan better for the lesson.
4. Teacher Assessment
Date on lesson plan also helps in teacher’s assessment. Education supervisors use the date to verify what the teacher has taught over time. Often, supervisors compare date on students’ notebooks with the dates on lesson plans. They do so to verify that the teacher actually taught the topic.
5. Student support
The essence of lesson plan is for the benefit of the student. Should any student be absent with leave, date on lesson plan help teachers to quickly identify what such student miss – and determine the content of make-up classes.
6. Relevance of content
Finally, date on lesson plan determines the relevance of the content. This is important in re-using of lesson plans. From the date on lesson plan, teachers are able to tell if there has been a change in the curriculum since its development. Thus, the date indicates the relevance of the content.
Lesson Plan – Date: What is the correct date to write in lesson plan?
From the reasons above, the correct date to write on lesson plan is clear. It is definitely not the date that the teacher submits the plan. And it is not the date that the teacher wrote the lesson plan either. This is because neither of these two dates aligns with the reasons for writing the date.
Thus, the correct date to write on lesson plan is the date that the teacher [hopes to] deliver the lesson. It is this date that can help teachers plan ahead. Similarly, it is only by knowing the date that a teacher delivered a lesson that inspectors can tell what the teacher has taught over time.
Although one may argue that it is the date that a teacher wrote a plan that determine its relevance; this does not invalidate the date of delivery for same purpose. On the contrary, this date of development only serves one of the reasons and not the others.
Lesson Plan – Date: How to write date on lesson plan
Now we know the reasons for writing date on lesson plan. In addition, we know the correct date to write on lesson plan. But what is the correct way of writing date on lesson plan?
The general way of correctly writing date on lesson plan is simple. You can get the date from the time-table. Look up which day of the week your subject is allocated and then what date that is on the calendar.
Teachers may also write the date as a range. If you are writing lesson plan for week 4, the ideal practice is for you to check you timetable; see the day(s) of the week your subject appears on the timetable. Then write the date. If, however, your subject appears multiple times on consecutive days – 15th, 16th, 17th and 18th of May; it is also appropriate to simply write May 15 – 18.
Conclusion on Lesson Plan – Date
In this post, we discussed date as a component of any standard lesson plan. The post state the reasons for writing date on lesson plan. It also clarifies the correct date to write on lesson plan. Finally, the post describes the correct way to write date on lesson plan.