Happy Valentine’s Day! Can you believe I forgot to wear red or pink today? It’s just not like me. I’m such a holiday gal. My sis would tell me that before I hit the sack I should know what I’m going to wear the following day. This just doesn’t happen in my home, especially on a Sunday night. I’ve always been a Sunday night scrambler. It’s pretty amazing what all I can accomplish between 7 and 10 p.m. on a Sunday!
For some reason this makes me think of lesson plans. (Hmmm…can you figure out that connection?) When do you work on your lesson plans for the following week? 
Do you plan before school starts, during scheduled planning periods, after your students go home, at home, or all the above? In other words, how do you get everything ready for Monday morning?
Hope your day is supersweet!
Diane
I plan during free periods, at night, after school on Saturday and Sunday. I am learning a new grade level.
Does anyone ever feel completely ready?? We are now using leveled readers from A to Z with our groups as well as our reading series leveled readers so I am constantly running off more books as the kiddos’ levels change-which is good but prep is ongoing!! We are also using Common assessments with Math this year. I plan big time on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and every evening as well. I review my Smart Board lessons for each day the night before…make changes to meet the needs of students.
I lose my planning break 3 days a week because music has to be in my room..not a good situation!
I feel like I am planning or thinking about it all the time. We have monthly staff meeting so I have a pretty good idea what the month will bring. It’s when you get to the nitty gritty. I love my planning time, but I start thinking about all the things we can do I get overwhelmed and can’t pick what I really want to do. I keep a notebook so I can jot all these ideas down then I know depending on my class from year to year I can do different things. My planning period is Monday morning so it is a big help to get my started for my week. And then some time at the end of our day.
I am planning all the time. But actually writing the plan takes place at home. I find it hard to do anything at school due to the phone ringing/ parents wanting to talk which is the joy of teaching preschool.
I am lucky that I have to have my plans in place a month ahead of time so they can be placed in the newsletter.
One way I try to manage my time better is to write a month whenever we have a break like mid winter.
I give out a newsletter on the first of the month that includes a calendar with each day’s topic (we do a letter a week for two weeks and the third week is a review week with a theme) so I know WHAT I’ll be teaching but I must admit I never grow tired of planning the activities to go along with our lessons and the centers I want to incorporate.
I do the bulk of my actual lesson planning during my daily prep hour and for about 30 minutes at the end of each day, just before leaving school. I try to use what I did the year before as a starting point. I always make note of what worked and what didn’t and since each year is a new group of preschoolers with a new set of skills and personalities, planning ALWAYS need to be done!
And I admit, it’s one of my favorite things to do!
I do it when I get a chance after school, before school, at home, on the weekend I might come in for a while. It all depends on how much preparation I have to do. If I have left overs from last year it’s a blessing.
I think I am with ‘Ann’, ‘Colleen’, ‘Angie’. I am always planning, always thinking, and Sunday night is definitely push comes to shove time. It is always a 80 hour work week for a beginning teacher.
I plan for a month in advance but have to make adjustments each week (snow days are a big thing). This helps make the week a little easier to get through the week. There are so many things that have to be done in Kindergarten!
I really plan the bulk of my activities by the beginning of the year. I provide a yearly calendar for our families. Then year after year I just expand on my plans a little tweaking them to perfection…lol
I am always planning an looking for ideas to improve my lesson plans. I try and pick out the themes at the beginning of september and improvise and change as i go along
I work on lesson plans on Thursday night so that on Friday afternoon I have time to do copying, set out visuals and curriculum materials for the following week. Over the weekend I finish my webpage and grade papers. The sooner I get it all finished, the sooner I can enjoy the rest of the weekend and be available for my family.
I make a list of themes at the beginning of the school year to give me a guideline. I keep my lesson plans from year to year and all crafts and papers with them. Each week I revamp what I did last year and add any new ideas I have found along the way. I do a much as I can during rest hour on Mondays which is the only day they go down for a nap. Rest of it is done at home. I have everything ready for Monday before I leave on Friday.
I plan at home! I’m with my students all day, and I can’t focus on paperwork when they’re in the room. They’re only out of the room for 10-25 minutes at a time, just long enough for me to go potty and do a few quick errands for the rest of the day’s lessons.
It’s so relaxing to plan at home, next to my hubby, with a cup of on the table, the calendar on my lap, and a file cabinet full of fun worksheets (from the Mailbox, of course!) and crafts and books.
I do most of my planning at home. I like others try to have it finished before the weekend but this doesn’t always happen. I finish up the loose ends on Sat. Sunday is the day of rest for me:)
I usually stay late on Wednesday or Thursday night during the week and plan so that I don’t have to worry about it on the weekend. Even if I have a weekend with no plans something always seems to come up!