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edTPA Lesson Plan Template

A lesson plan template with the sections edTPA Task 1 asks you to think about: central focus, academic language, planned supports and assessment.

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The big idea of the learning segment this lesson belongs to.

The standards the lesson addresses: Common Core or state standard codes, with a short description.

What students will be able to do by the end. Start with a measurable verb: "Students will be able to…"

What students already know and can do that this lesson builds on.

Academic language

The key verb students use to show learning: analyze, explain, justify, compare…

Words, sentence structures and ways of talking or writing the task needs.

Sentence frames, word banks, modeling, graphic organizers.

Lesson

Instructional strategies and learning tasks

Launch, instruction, structured practice and closure, with timings.

Whole class, small groups, students with IEPs/504 plans, English learners. Describe needs, not names.

Informal and formal assessments and what counts as meeting the objective.

Everything you need to prepare: texts, slides, manipulatives, handouts, tech.

Why these strategies suit these learners (principles or research you draw on).

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    Week

    Plans appear on the day set in their Date box. Click a plan to open it.

    What is an edTPA lesson plan?

    edTPA is a performance assessment for student teachers. In the planning task you plan a learning segment of three to five connected lessons and explain your choices. An edTPA lesson plan shows the central focus, standards, objectives, academic language demands and supports, learning tasks, planned supports for different learners and assessments for each lesson.

    edTPA was developed by Stanford University's SCALE center with the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE). The edTPA handbooks don't require a single lesson plan format, so many programs give students their own template. If yours does, follow it; this template covers the same thinking and is useful for drafting.

    Key sections

    • Central focus: the big idea of the whole learning segment, not just today's lesson.
    • Prior academic learning: what students already know and can do, based on evidence.
    • Academic language: the language function (the key verb, such as interpret or justify), the vocabulary, syntax and discourse the task needs, and the language supports you'll give.
    • Instructional strategies and learning tasks: what you and students do, step by step.
    • Differentiation and planned supports: for the whole class, small groups and students with specific needs (IEPs, 504 plans, English learners, students who need more challenge). Describe needs, not names.
    • Assessment: informal and formal checks and the criteria you'll use.
    • Research and theory: the principles that justify your choices, which you'll expand on in your commentary.

    Tips

    • Make the three to five lessons build on each other. Use Week view to lay them out and check the sequence.
    • Keep student information anonymous. Never include names or identifying details in edTPA materials or in this tool.
    • Several states have changed or dropped edTPA requirements in recent years, so check what your state and program currently ask for.

    Worked example: edTPA lesson plan

    Here is a complete example made with the maker above. Use it as a model, or load it into the form and change it to suit your class.

    edTPA lesson plan

    Slope as a rate of change

    SubjectMathGrade8
    DateLength50 minutes

    Central focus

    Students understand linear relationships by connecting tables, graphs and equations, and interpreting slope as a rate of change in context.

    Standards

    CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.8.EE.B.5 (graph proportional relationships, interpreting the unit rate as the slope).

    Learning objectives

    Students will calculate the slope of a line from a graph and a table and interpret it as a rate in context (e.g. dollars per hour).

    Prior academic learning and prerequisite skills

    Unit rates, plotting points, reading tables. Some students still confuse x and y when describing change.

    Academic language

    Academic language: language function

    Interpret: explain what the slope means in a real situation.

    Academic language: vocabulary, syntax and discourse

    Vocabulary: slope, rate of change, rise, run, per. Syntax: "For every ___, the ___ increases by ___." Discourse: justify with evidence from the graph.

    Language supports

    Sentence frame on the board; word wall with visuals; teacher models the language before students use it.

    Lesson

    Instructional strategies and learning tasks

    TimeActivity
    5 minLaunch: two babysitting job offers shown as a graph and a table. Which pays more per hour?
    12 minInstruction: rise over run on the graph; change in y over change in x in the table; connect both to "dollars per hour".
    20 minStructured practice: card sort matching graphs, tables and stories; pairs justify matches using the frame.
    8 minIndependent: two context problems.
    5 minClosure: answer the launch question with evidence.

    Differentiation and planned supports

    Whole class: frames and visual word wall. Small group: graph paper with axes labeled. Students with IEPs/504 plans: follow accommodations (extended time, reduced problem set). English learners: partner who shares a language where possible.

    Assessment and evaluation criteria

    Informal: listen to justifications during the card sort. Formal: exit problems. Meets the objective if the slope is correct and interpreted with units in context.

    Materials and resources

    Slides, card sort sets, graph paper, exit slips

    Research and theory

    Multiple representations deepen understanding of function; structured talk with sentence frames supports academic language development.

    Planned time: 50 minutes of 50

    Common Core State Standards codes are cited for reference only; see the official Common Core site for the full standards. © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved.

    Frequently asked questions

    Does edTPA require a specific lesson plan template?

    No. The edTPA handbooks list what your plans must address but don't mandate a format, so most programs provide their own template. Check your program's handbook and use their headings if they have them.

    What is academic language in edTPA?

    The language students need to take part in and show their learning: a language function (such as compare or justify), vocabulary, and syntax or discourse. You plan supports to help students use it.

    How many lesson plans are in edTPA?

    The planning task covers a learning segment of three to five consecutive lessons, or up to five hours of instruction for some subject areas.

    What is a central focus?

    A description of the important understandings and skills the whole learning segment develops, written for your subject area. Each lesson's objectives should connect to it.

    Other lesson plan models

    5E modelEngage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate. The inquiry model for science.Madeline HunterThe classic seven-step plan for direct instruction.UDLUniversal Design for Learning: plan for every learner from the start.SIOPContent and language objectives for teaching English learners.UbD / backward designBackward design: results, then evidence, then the learning plan.DanielsonMapped to Domain 1 of the Framework for Teaching for observations.ASCA (school counselor)Mindsets & Behaviors standards with a plan for participation and outcome data.Components of a lesson planThe ten parts of a lesson plan, each explained.