How to Write an ESL Lesson Plan: A Simple Template

A good lesson plan answers three questions: what can learners do at the end that they could not do at the start, what will they do to get there, and how will you know. Everything else in the plan supports those answers. Keep it to one page, and plan for the learners in front of you.

Start with the aim

Write one sentence that describes a real outcome: by the end, learners can order food in a café, or by the end, learners can describe what they did last weekend using the past simple. Avoid aims such as practise the past tense, which describe an activity, not an outcome.

Then note the level, class size, age, lesson length and what learners did last time. Anticipate what they may find difficult: pronunciation, a tricky form, vocabulary they have not met.

Stages of a lesson

This is one common structure and it is not the only one. Some teachers begin with a task and teach language after seeing what learners need. Whichever you use, keep the sequence clear, with time on learners using the language, not on teacher explanation.

A plan template

• Aim: one outcome sentence.
• Learners: level, number, age, first language.
• Timing: total minutes and approximate time per stage.
• Materials: handout, pictures, audio, board.
• Stages: what the teacher does, what learners do, how they interact (individual, pairs, groups).
• Anticipated problems and solutions: one line each.
• Spare activity: something to add if time is left, and a stage you will cut if running late.
• Review: how you will check the aim was met.

Trinity's CertTESOL requires trainees to keep a teaching journal with lesson plans and reflections, and CELTA assesses teaching practice, so most course trainees plan in this way. If you did a course without observed practice, writing plans like this is the quickest way to build the habit.

Common planning mistakes

• Too much content for the time. Cut it.
• Instructions that are long or unclear. Write them as short steps and plan a demonstration.
• No check that learners understand before practice.
• Teacher talk dominating. Plan pair work early.
• No plan for early finishers or for overrunning.

A short worked example

Aim: by the end of the lesson, elementary-level adult learners can ask and answer questions about their daily routine. Lead-in: learners tell a partner what time they get up. Presentation: a short text about a person's day with the target questions on the board (What time do you...? When do you...?). Controlled practice: matching questions to answers, then asking a partner. Freer practice: each learner interviews three others and reports one fact. Feedback: write two correct sentences and one mistake you heard on the board, and ask learners to correct it. Closing: learners say one thing they can now do. Anticipated problem: adding -s to he and she forms, so plan a quick drill and a board reminder.

Adapting the plan

For a one-to-one lesson, shorten the stages and spend more time on the learner's own materials. For a large class, use pair and group work so everyone speaks, and plan simple routines for handing out and collecting materials. For online lessons, put the key language on a shared slide, share your screen sparingly and plan tasks that need talk, not just reading. Whatever the setting, test your materials beforehand and keep a paper version in case technology fails.

When the lesson ends, write two lines: what worked and what you would change. After a few weeks these notes become your best training. For the first weeks in a new school, see your first month teaching. For children, adapt the structure with shorter activities (young learners).