Outdoor/Environmental
Education
LESSON PLAN
FORMAT
The following is an outline designed to guide you in
developing lesson plans. The lesson plan is an effective tool used to enhance
your instruction. Please approach it as a tool rather than a burden. Think of it as a road map to guide the
journey!
I. Title—Name it!
Be creative, draw the reader in!
Goals are the general rationale or purpose of what you want
to teach. Goals speak to the broad
outcome of a lesson.
Example: “This lesson
will encourage sensory awareness toward natural objects.”
Objectives are the measurable and observable outcomes of
your lesson. They are the specific reason/s the lesson is created/used.
Example: From this
lesson, students will be able to:
a)
Describe five
different natural objects.
b)
Describe their
awareness clearly in a brief essay.
c)
Describe a
different object using each of the human senses.
IV. Audience identified—Your
students.
a)
Age group
b)
Affiliation,
e.g. Boy Scout troop, recreation undergrads, grade 5 class, etc.
c)
Number
V. Duration—Time involved.
a)
How long is
the lesson? (preparation included)
b)
How long will
it take to get to the site? (travel time)
c)
How long will
it take to follow up the field experience or lab experience?
VI. Location—Where?
a)
Where will the
lesson be taught?
b)
How will you
get there?
VII. Content—The substance of your presentation.
This is a major portion of your lesson plan. Think of the content as the background; the
content is the information that serves as the foundation of the lesson…the
what!
Include the information that is readily usable for your
presentation (background), the information you want to impart to the
students. Content is identifying the
factual knowledge or relevant background. This information must be organized
into a usable form for you, the presenter. Further, include additional
background information designed to support other educators preparing to use
this lesson.
VIII. Methods/Procedure—How you will teach your lesson!
The method is the teaching approach/instructional strategy
that will be used in order to reach the objectives…the how!
Describe the methods that will be used to present the
information and facilitate the experience, ultimately to work toward
achievement of the objectives. The
lesson’s methods are a blending of the content into a conceptual plan so that
the receiver can make sense of it. That is, learning through integrating
content with personal meaning and building on past experiences. For example, if you are teaching tree
identification, explain how you will teach tree identification and describe the
specific activities that might be a part of this (games, role-play,
experimentation, demonstration, observation, reflection…).
In addition to the methodology, provide specific directions
of procedure to accomplish the planned lesson…Step 1, step 2…part a, part b…This
specific step-by-step is the procedure.
A peer educator should be able to pick up your lesson plan,
understand your content and be able to follow your procedural steps to
successfully present the lesson.
Depending upon your audience, you will need to consider different things for management of the group and prevention of injuries.
a)
How will you
manage the group (keeping the group together, rules, discipline, supervision,)
b)
What are
potential risks at the site you are using with the activities you are
conducting? How will you minimize the
student’s exposure to the risks?
X. Equipment—What you need!
a)
What equipment
or materials will be needed?
b)
List each
specific item and quantity.
XI. What is a weather alternative?
How can you adjust if the weather conditions do not match
your plans?
XII. Evaluation—Assessing learning.
Provide a specific plan for assessing learning. The plan may be a test, a group discussion, a
rubric, a product completed for the student portfolio, demonstration of
ability, a game, etc. Be deliberate
about how the learning will be assessed, your tool should help you address the
following questions:
a)
How do you
know that the lesson was successful?
b)
Were your
objectives met?
c)
How were you
successful as an instructor?
XII. Follow up—What’s next?
Each lesson should link to the next lesson of a deliberate
sequence (scope and sequence) within a broader context. This is especially important for all formal
and non-formal educators – lessons are rarely stand-alone, without a connection
to other learning.
a)
What is the
next lesson?
b)
How will you
prepare your students for the next lesson?
XIV. Reference—Materials to support your lesson.
a)
Lesson plans
must have some reference source that supports your content. The reference must be valid (books,
journals). Unless a person is recognized
in their field as a leading expert, people are not necessarily valid resources
(i.e. the camp director at
b)
Provide any
source information and cite it properly!
c)
List at least
3 references for additional information.
XV. Standards
As you develop your instructional skills and progress into a
variety of formal and non-formal learning environments you need to be aware of
existing professional educational standards.
This awareness will allow you to connect your lesson/s to a broader
scope and sequence. You will notice that
many curriculum guides highlight connections to state or national standards; this
professionalism is a reminder of two key points: