Two years of apps and not a Lesson Plan app that fit my needs!
We are all responsible to write our weekly lesson plans. There never seems to be enough space in the lesson plan box. You cannot clearly state how long you will be working on the concept, what resources you will be using, who is in your class and more.
iPlan Lessons $9.99 The price may seem high but consider that you buy this once and you never have to buy lesson plan books again (here's a selection of lesson plan books and their costs).
So what does this app offer? First, you can enter all of your students from all of your classes. Next put in the class you are teaching and tick off each student in that class. Then add the resources you will be using for the lesson, whether it's a book, app or website. In the notes, you can add more information, such as what chapter you will be using when you teach the lesson.
The next area is category. If you are doing a specific lesson on a subject you may want to add what categories you want to cover within the category. Lessons are the next topic. This is the area teachers need to have space to write their ideas. First you name your lesson then add your primary subject followed by categories. There is an option to have a target date and duration of how long the lesson will last. If your lesson due date ends on a weekend, iCal will push the date to the following Monday. Within the lesson you can add your objectives, standards, and assignments. You can also note at the end of the lesson the status of the lesson. Finally there is a calendar that looks just like the iCal calendar. It marks the calendar as it does on your regular iCal. If you touch the date the name of the lesson appears. Most important -- just press a button and email your chairperson your lesson plans!
Teachers need tools just like the students. Here is an opportunity for teachers to have an organized space for their lesson, a calendar with all of their lesson plans and all of their students in one app.
Vicki Windman is a special education teacher at Clarkstown High School South.
