LESSON PLAN ADVICE

A. FACTUAL INFORMATION
Valeriia Svitanko
Friday March 20th; 13:25-14:40 (504)
Secondary 5 Core
great students; used to classroom routing; overall intermediate level with a couple of almost bilingual as well as low
pre-intermediate; few students with manageable behavioral issues;
B. OBJECTIVES AND PROBLEMS
Theme
Advice
General aim
TO DISCOVER TEENAGERS GENDER-ROLE CONCEPTS AND EXPAND THEIR IDEAS AND WAYS OF
THINKING
specific objective(s): By the end of this lesson, the learners will be able to:
Demonstrate their ability to understand the text through a reinvestment assignment.
Engage in the oral interaction on the topic provided:
Elaborate on a variety of issues and ideas and support their viewpoints.
Consider the audience (i.e. other speakers) and purpose in order to interact appropriately.
Discuss issues connected with the topic of the oral presentation of the classmates.
Make connections between the information discussed during previous class and their personal points of view.
Evaluation criteria (how will you know that the students have learned?)
Formative Evaluation (C-1)
Formative Evaluation (C-2)
Formative Evaluation (C-3)
related content/essential knowledge:
functions, grammar/structure, vocabulary, phonology
Modals for giving advice: should; ought to; had better
anticipated language
unpredictable
anticipated problems and solutions
Students are likely not to be willing to work in pairs and/or individually, as they are used to group work. (During group
work tend to speak French (first language) 90% of the time). Might form groups with number of students of their
preference (5 instead of 4; 3 instead of 2 for pair work; few people do not participate in group activities). Some students
might resist participating in the learning activities.
I will not force unwilling students to work in groups; however will offer help. If students form groups randomly, task
requirements will be adjusted accordingly. I will do my best to keep students engaged and provide a variety of activities
that facilitate speaking English.
C. COMPETENCIES COVERED
ESL-SPECIFIC (AND THE KEY FEATURES): C-1 INTERACTS ORALLY IN ENGLISH; C-2 REINVESTS UNDERSTANDING OF
TEXTS;
CROSS-CURRICULAR ( IF NEEDED): CCC-4 USES CREATIVITY; CCC-9 COMMUNICATES APPROPRIATELY;
CCC8 COOPERATES WITH OTHERS; CCC3-EXERCISES CRITICAL JUDGENMENT
D. MATERIALS AND AIDS
multimedia:

Handouts on the SmartBoard

handouts (always attach copies to the lesson plan)
Giving Advice: Modal Verbs RULES
Problem Cards
Case Studies
Discussion Questions
Worksheet 2 (Advice Column)
E. STRUCTURE OF THE LESSON
What the teacher does
Activity # 1
Timing 10 min
Grammar Introduction
Pre HOOK

While
DEVELOPMENT

What the students do

Handouts are distributed

before the class

Sit down

Introduces the grammar;

Asks students to give
examples

Listen to the teacher;

Give examples
Ask questions
WHOLE CLASS;
RANDOM STUDENTS

Post CLOSURE

While
DEVELOPMENT

Gives instructions for the

activity
Distributes Problem Cards

Listens to the students;

Corrects mistakes;
Asks guiding questions

What the students do

Listen to the
instructions;
Read the problems and
think of solutions they
could suggest
WHOLE CLASS
Read out loud the their
cards;
Give advice

EVERY STUDENT
Post CLOSURE

Makes students curious

about the topic of the
class;
Saves time
(preliminary
distribution)
Prepares students for
the activity;
Provides opportunity
to practice new
grammar;
Students familiarize
themselves with new
grammar

Makes transition to the next

activity
What the teacher does

Activity # 2
Timing 15 min
Problem Cards
Pre HOOK

Rationale

Rationale

Prepare to participate
in the activity

Provides an
opportunity to practice
new grammar, give
advice and interact in
the target language
Students get a chance
to check their
understanding of the
grammar and
practically apply it

Makes transition to the next

activity

Activity # 3
Timing 10-15 min
Problematic Situations
Pre HOOK

While
DEVELOPMENT

Post CLOSURE

What the teacher does

What the students do

Rationale

Gives instructions;
Organizes students into
groups;
Distributes Problematic
situations
Monitors students progress;
Provides assistance if/when
needed;
Circulates among the students;
Answers students questions;
Notifies students about the
time left;

Get settled in the groups;

Start reading their
situations;
Clarify the instructions
(if needed)
Students read the
situations provided in
groups;
Share their opinions;
Discuss possible advice;
Get ready to present
their situations and the
advice to the whole
class.

Prepares students for

the activity;
Organizes the activity
Answers questions (if
any)
Provides an
opportunity for
students to share ideas,
interact and elaborate
on their prior
knowledge about the
topic.

Listens; Corrects; Gives

feedback

What the teacher does

Activity # 4
Timing 10-15 min
Advice Column
PRE HOOK

WHILE
DEVELOPMENT

POST CLOSURE

Asks if the students know

what an Advice Column is.
Explains the activity and gives
instructions
Distributes letters of people
asking for advice. (1 letter per
group)
Monitors students progress;
Provides assistance if/when
needed;
Circulates among the students;
Answers students questions;
Notifies students about the
time left;
Groups read their responses to
the whole class

GROUPS
Each group presents
situations and the advice
to the whole class
What the students do

Answer;
Listen to the
instructions;
Ask questions for
clarification (if needed)
Read the letters in
groups; brainstorm
possible advice; write
group responses

GROUPS

Provides opportunity
to practice new
grammar; share
opinions
Rationale

Prepare students for

the activity.

Provides an
opportunity for
students to share their
opinions, ideas and
practically apply the
new grammar through
a writing assignment
based on reading and
discussion.

Given the teaching situation, was the lesson plan realistic?

Good time management is critical for both lesson planning and teaching and
productive learning. The activities should be carefully selected for each class. This
lesson plan in particular, was specially designed for a certain group of students and
was carried out exactly according to the plan. Hence, I can conclude that it was
realistic, fruitful, engaging and entertaining. It also addressed all the competencies that
should be targeted in an ESL classroom.
Did I in fact follow the lesson plan as intended? If not, why not?
The flow of the lesson depends on many factors. To consider a few: general
group dynamics, time of the day, students motivation, weather, etc. Hence, teaching
and learning does not always go as planned. However, this lesson went exactly as
intended. The main reason, I suppose is the number of students present in the class.
(Only 20 students out of 36 were present that day, due to special circumstances). The
lower number of students, dramatically reduced class management issues; it provided
an opportunity for more open discussions; I was able to give more attention and
feedback to students; we also changed the classroom setting (put desks in a circle). It
helped me to connect better with the students.
How could my lesson plan have been better? What could/should I have anticipated?
I could have introduced the grammar in a different way, to involve students more
in to creation of the rules, rather than just showing them a Power Point and explaining.
Overall, what did I do that worked really well?
4

In my opinion the activities were thought through and very well perceived by the
students. There are several reasons that made the difference: the content was
entertaining; students got to talk about problems that are relevant to them; the timing
and pace were appropriate; the activities were quite dynamic (every 15 minutes there
was something new for them to do); the lesson was well organized and structured.
Overall, what do I still need to work on?
My biggest concern is that I need to improve class management in order to be
able to have similar success in the future with bigger groups.
How effective was my teaching overall?
I think that overall, my teaching was very effective, because the lesson was
student centered; the students were motivated, productive and willing to participate,
discuss, express their opinions, exchange ideas; all the subject specific competencies
were addressed.