Strategies That Help Teachers Make the Most of Time Spent Planning for Essential Standards

One of the most common challenges I and other teachers face is time… not enough time to plan, to collaborate, to fit in all of the content we need to cover. Intentionally planning around the rigor of essential standards maximizes learning for our students, and in this article, I share strategies that I’ve found make the most of instructional time.

The work of essential standards begins with a district or school identifying which standards they deem essential. Which standards will endure across grade levels and across subject areas? Which standards are needed for the next step of learning or readiness for the next grade level? While other standards are important and can be considered supporting standards, identifying the essential standards puts the focus on the highest priority—learning for students across a system.

Plan with the end in mind

Planning with intention begins when I look to the standards for the unit of instruction to plan with the end in mind. Which standards show up most across the unit, and which are essential? There are often several overarching standards for the unit, and each week I may zero in on one or two, or provide experiences in supporting standards to prepare students for the end of the unit or the next step. By planning with the end in mind, I’m developing a deep understanding of what students will be asked to do and how I can provide coherent instruction across days and weeks.

Once I’m clear on the standards, I grind in student data; this can be a pretest, a discussion, data based on prior units, etc. What do students already know and do? Is there a skill that some students will need extra practice with during small group instruction? Being certain about what students already know means I can spend less time on unneeded review or teaching.

Getting clear on the unit and weekly standards also helps me answer this question: Can some skills be integrated with each other to maximize deep learning? An example of the fourth-grade standard “Explain how an author uses reasons and evidence to support particular points in a text” can be integrated into writing, speaking, and listening standards so that students are practicing the skill in multiple ways and during the reading block and the writing block.

When I’m certain about what students need to know and do, I need to ensure that they know where we are heading. I post a big I Can Statement describing the standard in student-friendly language, near where students are seated, close to any anchor charts or mentor texts so they can refer to them often. 

I also cite the standard number, so that students see their work in the context of the standards. This helps them understand why the learning is important and helps them be able to answer why the learning is relevant. I do this by either telling them why it is important or asking them. Some of the best ideas have come from directly asking students, “Why is this important for you to know?”

Because I posted the I Can Statement, I can refer back to it throughout instruction to remind students of the focus; this helps them gauge where they are and what they need to do next. It’s important to close each lesson with a review on how students feel they did on the standard and why: How did you do? What helped, and what can you do differently tomorrow?

Meeting the standards

Equally important, if not more so, is for students to understand the Success Criteria, which provides information on what meeting the standard will sound like or look like. This doesn’t need to be something complicated every time. While it can be a rubric that the curriculum provides, that I develop, or that we co-develop, it can also be a mentor text or a quick modeling of what a skill might look like.

For example, when reinforcing the kindergarten standard, “Ask and answer questions in order to seek help, get information, or clarify something that is not understood,” I can partner with a student to show how we ask questions and listen to each other. Or two students can demonstrate this via a fishbowl where we all gather around them to observe, or we can watch a video I have from a prior partner discussion.

When I’m clear on the focus for each day, I can design scaffolds to remove barriers to learning. I don’t need to use the supports if they aren’t necessary; however, having them ready allows me to access them as needed. For example, if students need a graphic organizer to help manage their ideas before speaking or writing, I can have copies available.

In addition to focusing on priority standards, teachers can maximize instructional time by making the most of the many transitions throughout a school day. I provide Interactive Modeling to teach students how to have smooth transitions (listen to directions, quick transition, start the next task, etc.), and we practice these transitions throughout the school year. While students are making a transition, I can use the time for checking in with them to build relationships and/or to reinforce a skill they’re working on—for example, asking, “While you are lining up, think of a vocabulary word we discussed this morning and how it was used in the text.”

As teachers, we are working with precious treasure, the future generation. When we plan with intention and use time effectively, we empower students to see themselves as learners with the skills that will help them succeed in future school and life endeavors.