Planning  and Preparation

When it comes to planning and preparation I think there are three main branches in which you should be well versed in to produce effective instruction: the content area, your students, and how to think on your feet.

Content area: When creating a lesson or unit plan, it must have a focus, an objective, and practice a skill that corresponds with a Common Core standard. The focus is where you implement the required or chosen curricula, and the objective is standards-based. As a teacher, you must think of creative ways to have students practice a required skill all based on your content.

Your students: Without knowing your students, you cannot create an effective plan to have them reach their goal. Not every student uses the same learning methods to reach the objective, so as a teacher we must recognize this in planning. By using multiple modalities and changing up teaching style, we are able to reach all of our students. 

Being Flexible: Although it is essential to plan, not every class will match up with the plan that is being executed. Being flexible is such an important part of being a teacher, because you must think on your feet everyday to adapt the lesson plan to your students.