How primary teachers can plan a good lesson in accordance with Ofsted

Lesson planning is a vital part of a primary teacher’s arsenal, as delivering fun and engaging lessons for pupils is far easier when planned in advance.

Ofsted also outlined a new Education Inspection Framework (EIF) for the 2019-2020 academic year, detailing what inspectors look for in lessons, which can be used for guidance.

Delivering lessons following Ofsted’s guidance helps primary teachers to get into good habits, while it also benefits their young pupils.

What do primary teachers need to consider when lesson planning?

When devising lesson plans, teachers should keep in mind several key considerations, especially around how they can keep pupils engaged and interactive throughout.

It’s important to think about how pupils might be inspired by any lesson content and what activities might encourage them to contribute, as well as considering how all pupils can be challenged by the work set.

Any activities and resources in lesson plans should be appropriate for the year group and must be incredibly varied too, as this is a pivotal part of keeping the class engaged.

Showcasing knowledge and building understanding

Primary teachers will be expected to use their expertise to guide young pupils through the key aspects of any particular topic, before then overseeing activities that can enforce understanding.

Interactive play and quiz elements can act as an informal means of testing that understanding, and of ensuring that pupils are meeting the desired lesson objectives/outcomes.

Good lessons will also include recaps from previous lessons – pupils can be encouraged to discuss what they learnt previously as this is another way of grasping how much they have understood.

Communicating tasks and ideas

Given that there are many different ways of communicating subject matter, primary teachers will want to look at what props or additional resources can be used, so to best deliver opportunities for learning.

A range of tasks and actions also helps to challenge pupils and act as a source of inspiration if it leads them to question what they are learning.

Where youngsters have short attention spans, teachers should also consider whether they can boost engagement among their class by introducing activities in different ways, or by introducing fun or games elements into otherwise basic tasks.

Structure and building blocks

Lesson structure plays a key role too, as a lesson should follow a logical route that gives pupils the necessary foundation knowledge that can then be added to with homework or in future lessons.

An element of flexibility is needed though, as it may not always be possible to deliver the desired learning outcomes if a lesson plan is stuck to rigidly.

Primary teachers may wish to create lesson plans by dividing the time up into blocks for certain tasks and activities, which can then be switched around should the direction of a lesson alter slightly.

To recap, good lessons for primary pupils will provide numerous opportunities for learning, will be packed with fun and imaginative tasks and activities, and will encourage pupils to remain engaged by involving everyone.

Advice and guidance on creating the perfect lesson plan are available from NEU, including all of the key pointers that primary teachers may want to consider.

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