Week Lesson Plan Template for SPED

What is a weekly lesson plan?

A week lesson plan template is a snapshot of a teacher’s plans for Monday through Friday.  

The plans are an outline of the main happenings for each subject. 

Important details such as the title of a worksheet or the page numbers of chapters in a book are included. 

However, details such as a script that the teacher might read are not included. 

The lesson plans that most education majors were asked to write in college are not found in the week lesson plan.  (And thank goodness!  Those were cray-cray.)

This gets the teacher a quick overview of what the class is for working on, what needs to be done, and the main events for that week.

How do you write a week lesson plan?

To write a week lesson plan, start with a week lesson plan template that works for you.  

I prefer to use a blank style paper that’s divided into 5 columns. Within these columns I can either type or hand write out the activities that I’m doing that week. 

Many elementary teachers add a space for English language arts and one for math. 

However, if you’re team teaching and you only teach one of those subjects, omit the other. 

The same goes for science and social studies as many elementary teachers don’t teach both science and social studies in the same day. 

I recommend looking back at what works for you and making your template adjust to your needs. 

Lesson components and strategies with notes are always include in my week lesson plan template. 

Within the components section, I’ll noting the main area of the lesson and anything else I specifically need to remember. 

For strategies and notes, I indicate if it’s a small group or whole group. Next, I add what specific strategy I’ll be using for that lesson. 

For example, if I’m teaching rhyming I might use the strategy of oral close. 

The next day while still teaching rhyming, I might change that strategy to initial sound substitutions. 

The notes section is just a handy little spot to remind me of a thing that I’m likely to forget when I’m in the middle of managing an entire classroom. Can I get an amen?

This could include who needs to go to the nurse’s office to take their medicine at a certain time or if there’s an additional activity I want the students to do if we end up having extra time.

Google Doc Lesson Plan Template

To make the week lesson plan template easy to use and modify, turn it into a Google Doc.   

My go to is sitting on the couch on a Sunday evening working on my lesson plans. No judgments please! 

I enjoy typing my lesson plans out because it’s actually easier for me to read. 

My handwriting is a struggle for even me to read sometimes and I like the crisp calm look a Google doc week  lesson plan template provides me. 

I can also modify it each time so that some of the notes I need will be there without me typing them out each time. 

My school district is a Google using district. Having a Google doc lesson plan template makes it easier for my grade level team members and I to share lesson plans. 

This can also be extremely helpful if I, for some reason, I need to get my plans to the teacher next door so I don’t have to trek into the school when I’m sick or during an emergency. 

My plans will automatically show up if I share them with that other teacher so they can hand them to my substitute teacher.

If you are required to share you lesson plans with your administration, I suggest uses this format as well.

Lesson Plan Template for Word

The same type of week lesson plan template can be created and edited in Microsoft Word.  

Okay I’m going to admit that besides the sharing feature from Google Docs, I actually enjoy Microsoft Word a bit better. 

I can share a week lesson plan template forward via an email attachment. A USB flash drive is another option but it’s just not as fast and easy to do.

 While I absolutely write  lesson plans in both Word and Google, if you made me pick one I probably pick Word. 

But the same format goes when providing a week lesson plan template in Word as a does in Google. 

Start with a template that works for you and then save it each week.  Make it easier on yourself by saving and deleting individual items as you go. 

Recycling Your Weekly Lesson Plan Template

The success of any teacher has a large amount to do with her classroom behavior management along with her organization.  

The number one thing but I choose to be organized with is my electronic filing system. 

I have every school year that I have ever taught organized by school years. Within the school year is every weekly lesson plan that I’ve created. 

Recycling your weekly lesson plan template is unbelievably helpful. 

If I’m getting ready to do a Crazy Color Creatures unit for a kindergarten classroom, I open up the lesson plan that I used from the year before.

Next, I pull out what I need and I paste it into this year’s weekly lesson plan. 

I make changes and I congratulate myself on my ability to be so organized and the master of my own universe.   

Even if you hand write out your lesson plans, I suggest you save them and file them in order of the weeks of the school year. 

If you can find your week lesson plan template from the whole school year and you’re able to type them into either a Microsoft Word or Google Docs template it’ll be even better. 

And here’s why: use the search feature in tag your doc with keywords. 

So, if I’m doing Crazy Color Creatures again, because it’s amazing, I probably won’t remember what week I did that last school year.

But, if I add Crazy Color Creatures to the title, when I search it’ll come right up. 

The find feature is a game changer. 

Do Special Education Teachers Write Lesson Plans?

Special education teachers are often writing lesson plans but they look a little different than the general education teacher’s typical lesson plan. 

 A special education teacher’s lesson plan is more than likely going to focus on small group or individual lesson plans. 

Because of this, a special education teacher might have a week-long plan for language arts intervention. 

There might be a second week lesson plan template for a math intervention. 

Now, many special education teachers run their own classroom and or co-teach with a general education teacher. 

If a sped teacher is running her own classroom, she most certainly will have her own lesson plans. 

I recommend having week lesson plan templates with the option of attaching standards along with the general overview of the week. 

If a special education teacher is co-teaching with a general education teacher, she might be sharing an exact week lesson plan with the general education teacher. 

Many duos create a week lesson plan template together with a special education teacher focusing on certain areas.

Special education teachers are likely to focus on the modifications of lessons as well as the accommodations. 

This will help her meet the needs of her students with IEPs.  This will also give students without IEPs additional ways to learn the material.

Sub Plans

Get your sub plan template ready, too!   Sub plans have to be a little more detailed then your week lesson plan template is. 

However, I have found that along with my sub plans it’s best if I leave a copy of my week lesson plan as well. 

This gives a substitute teacher the additional information that they need to help my students have a successful day. 

When creating your sub plans, make yourself a template as well. 

Make sure you include your classroom number along with the phone number and extension number to your classroom.  This means that you need to include your school’s phone list and cheat sheet on how to use the phones. 

One of the first things I do at back to school time is create my detailed sub plans.  This includes lunch times, recess times, special times, arrival, and dismissal times.

Add in all those other important details that go along with a school day. 

Alright, it’s your turn!  Create your lesson plan template or click here to get Caroline’s week lesson plan template.