Writing Effective Lesson Aims: The One Sentence That Drives Everything
⏱ 5 Minutes · Teacher Training
In the feedback room after a lesson observation, the first question is always the same: ‘What was your main aim?’ If you can’t answer in one clear sentence, the lesson was probably unclear. I had to learn this the hard way during 120 supervised teaching hours. A good aim is not what you will do. It is what learners will be able to do.
By the end of the lesson, learners will be better able to [do something specific].
Key words: by the end (measurable) · learners (not ‘students will have been taught’) · better able to (acknowledge prior knowledge) · specific verb (use, describe, write, ask, distinguish — not ‘understand’ or ‘know’)
| Weak (avoid) | Strong (use) |
|---|---|
| Students will learn about the present perfect. | Learners will be better able to use the present perfect to talk about life experiences. |
| To teach vocabulary about food. | Learners will be better able to use 8 food adjectives to describe dishes in spoken English. |
| Students will understand passive voice. | Learners will be better able to use passive constructions in formal written descriptions. |
Improve these aims:
- Students will know about modals.
- We will do a reading lesson.
- Students will understand how to give advice.
💡 Check Answers
- Learners will be better able to use modal verbs (should/ought to/had better) to give written and spoken advice.
- Learners will be better able to identify the main idea and specific details in a newspaper article.
- Learners will be better able to give formal and informal advice using a range of modal structures.
Independent project — not affiliated with, endorsed by, or accredited by Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Confers no qualification.
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