A fast lesson plan template for teachers
A good lesson plan answers six questions: what will they learn, how will you hook them, how will you teach it, how will they practice, how will you support everyone, and how will you know it worked?
Updated 2026-10-17 · By the Skip the Gatekeepers team
The template (45 minutes)
| Part | Time | What to write |
|---|---|---|
| Objective | - | "Students will be able to [verb] [content] by [evidence]." Add the standard. |
| Hook | 5 min | A question, image, demo or short clip that makes them want to know. |
| I do | 10 min | Model the skill. Think aloud. One or two worked examples. |
| We do | 10 min | Practice together. Turn-and-talk, whiteboards, partner work. |
| You do | 15 min | Independent practice while you pull a small group. |
| Exit ticket | 5 min | 1–3 questions that directly test the objective. |
Add these three lines
- Materials: everything you need to print or open.
- Differentiation: one support (sentence frames, a word bank, chunked steps, read-aloud) and one extension.
- Check for understanding: where in the lesson you'll check, and what you'll do if most students miss it.
Worked example: 5th-grade science, photosynthesis
- Objective: Students will explain how plants use light, water and carbon dioxide to make food by labeling a diagram and writing a 2-sentence explanation (NGSS 5-LS1-1 connection).
- Hook: Show a big tree. "This tree weighs tons. Where did all that stuff come from? The soil?" Quick vote.
- I do: Draw the inputs and outputs. Think aloud: "Light is the energy, water comes up from the roots, carbon dioxide comes in through the leaves."
- We do: Partners sort input/output cards, then share.
- You do: Label the diagram and write the explanation. Support: word bank and frame "Plants use ___, ___ and ___ to make ___." Extension: explain why a plant in a dark closet dies.
- Exit ticket: "Where does most of a tree's mass come from?"
Tips that save time
- Write the exit ticket first, then plan backward.
- Reuse the same structure for every lesson so students know the routine.
- Keep one plan per page. If it doesn't fit, the lesson is probably two lessons.
Planning for students with IEPs? See IEP goal examples so your lessons line up with their goals.
Frequently asked questions
What should be in a lesson plan?
An objective tied to a standard, a hook, modeling (I do), guided practice (we do), independent practice (you do), differentiation, a check for understanding and an exit ticket.
How long should it take to write a lesson plan?
With a reusable template, about 10 to 15 minutes. A generator can draft one in under a minute for you to edit.
What is I do, we do, you do?
A gradual release model: the teacher models the skill, the class practices it together with support, then students practice independently.
More free guides
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