A well written objective is imperative to a well planned lesson. An objective informs students of the purpose of the lesson. Writing the objective on the board helps to focus students on the purpose of each lesson and provides some information as to what skill or knowledge they will obtain by the end of the lesson
The lesson plan objective also provides direction and focus for the teacher. Without this direction and focus, the lesson will be a waste of time, both for the students and the teacher. Knowing the end goal of each and every lesson will provide teachers the direction as they plan the rest of the lesson.
Writing an appropriate lesson objective requires knowledge of the lesson assessment. The assessment is a visual representation of what the teacher wishes the students will know or be able to do by the end of the lesson. Once this is known, the teacher simply writes this down in words.
- Students will label a map with all the states and capitols of the United States.
- Students will identify the difference between nouns and verbs in a sentence.
- Students will be able to identify the parts of a frog.
The verbs used when writing the objective should be specific and measurable. Stating that students will “know the parts of a frog” says nothing specific about how they will know this information. Instead, teachers should use the following measurable verbs as a guide:
- identify
- state
- choose
- label
- explain
- write
The more clearly defined each lesson objective is, the better the lesson plan, and subsequent lesson will become. It is important for teachers to think through a clear objective in order to provide a path for decisions on how to teach the lesson and assess student learning.
