Weekly Lesson Planning: A Template and Process That Saves Hours

Planning day by day means you're always reacting. You don't know if Tuesday's lesson connects to Thursday's assessment. You can't see whether you're spending too long on one skill and skipping another.

Weekly planning gives you a bird's-eye view. You can see the arc: introduce on Monday, practice Tuesday-Wednesday, apply Thursday, assess Friday. Adjustments happen at the week level, not in a panic at 7 AM.

Step 1: Identify the week's objective. What should students know or be able to do by Friday that they can't do today? One clear objective for the week.

Step 2: Backward-plan from assessment. If Friday is a formative check, what do students need to have practiced by Thursday? What do they need to have learned by Wednesday? This gives you the daily progression.

Step 3: Fill in daily activities. Now that you know the learning arc, choose activities for each day. Keep it simple: each day needs an opening (5 min), a core activity (25-30 min), and a closure (5-10 min).

Step 4: Add differentiation and materials. Scan each day for students who will need scaffolds or extensions. List any materials you need to prep — copies, slides, manipulatives.

Monday — Introduce: Hook + direct instruction + initial practice. Assessment: observe and note misconceptions.

Tuesday — Build: Guided practice with partner work. Assessment: circulate and check 5 students' work.

Wednesday — Deepen: Independent practice or small-group task. Assessment: exit ticket on the core skill.

Thursday — Apply: Application to a new context or problem. Assessment: peer review or self-assessment.

Friday — Check: Formative quiz, discussion, or portfolio entry. Use results to plan next week.

Front-loading content: Spending Monday through Wednesday on instruction and cramming practice into Thursday-Friday. Flip it — students need practice time early.

No flex day: Leave at least one day with a lighter plan that can absorb overflow from earlier lessons.

Ignoring the assessment connection: If your Friday check doesn't measure Monday's objective, the week didn't build toward anything.

Use LessonCraft to generate the daily lesson plans for your week. Each plan includes timing, differentiation, and assessment criteria. Generate the week's plans in one session, then adjust as you go. Pro users can also generate exit tickets and vocabulary lists to support the week's instruction.