✏️ 101 Random Lesson Plans (No AI)

What if you started your teaching career with a lesson plan catalogue like a recipe book?

Teach Writing Tomorrow addresses major myths and misconceptions about teaching writing. It will move from attitudes to actions and mindset to methods, showing how any teacher, regardless of their own perceived ability or creativity, can teach writing tomorrow.

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Series Preview

Teach Writing Tomorrow just concluded a three-part series explaining why and how every class should start with writing. So what next? What does writing every day look like after those first five minutes? How does writing integrate with other activities?

✏️ How to Write Every Day (Student Writing Notebooks) (1/3)

This next series will explore the daily lesson plan as an extension of how we experience information. We will use James Moffett's theory about language, coding, and media to anchor writing in speaking and build concrete lesson plans around simple categorical activities.

This post will introduce a thought experiment from my first year of teaching, leading to the 101 Random Lesson Plans. As I work forwards and build backwards, chronicling my steps in future posts, I will write towards a purposeful 101 English Lesson Plans. (This will apply across subjects.)

Imagine starting your career with a catalogue of lesson plan starters!

In the meantime, it’s not just teaching writing, but understanding how writing integrates with other activities. Frankly, that means studying possibilities—especially the random ones at first.

Update: Have you read “How to Lesson Plan Once (And Never Again)”?

✏️ How to Lesson Plan Once (And Never Again)

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“Your Class is Boring” (Series Overture)

Chefs have cookbooks, musicians have sheet music, and builders have blueprints, but teachers? They start with nothing.

Consider cooking. Cookbooks catalogue dozens of recipes. When themed, similarities in ingredients, spices, and steps reveal common patterns. Once you understand the basics, steps become references rather than guides.

Now consider teaching. Books on content and teaching content exist, but not like recipe books. Instead, well-meaning teachers speak in generalities only. Writing lesson plans means the stereotypical twenty-page lesson plan, which fails before day one of 180.

Maybe this makes sense: Being a student of teaching isn’t being a teacher of students. Each requires a different skill set. Reworded, we might get this: Teaching teaches teachers to teach. All else is studying school.

My problems with teacher's education represented no flaws in my professors, who were and are wonderful people. They instilled invaluable career advice. Rather, devouring countless teaching books led to mental indigestion. I had whats without whys, knowing many specific activities without any mental models to organize them.

And, you know, more specific lesson plans to study might have helped.

My first year in the classroom (2013-2014) featured existential crises around classroom management and basic planning. Planning consumed my weekends and my students were unruly. Both converged one day when a student openly complained:

“Your class is boring. We just do the same things every day.”

They weren’t wrong. As my first semester ended, I jotted a mission statement of sorts and then compared what I actually taught. The problem? They didn’t match. This gap forced some soul searching. Then I found another problem: I desperately wanted simple, example lesson plans to study. So where were they?

My early efforts left me frustrated and frazzled. Eventually, I settled on a simple question and thought experiment: What if I could lesson plan once and never again? As I explored and filled notebooks, I asked the following questions:

• What are the mental steps to lesson planning? Which takes the most effort?

• Name every teaching activity you know. How do you organize them?

• What if you could take the mental effort of planning and push it forward?

Teaching, I realized, doesn’t happen within a vacuum like college lesson plans. Instead, it happens nested within courses, within schools, and within communities. As my thought experiment spiraled outwards, I thought about planning from an informational standpoint. I generalized and distilled my ideas to the following:

• 1. All subjects have fairly predictable, content-specific activities.

• 2. Lesson plans sequence activities for given content. As such, two things follow:

• 3a. The same steps often recycle for different content. (Same steps, different stuff.)

• 3b. Different sequences become different lesson plans. (Different steps, same stuff.)

Aside: Years later I would read Thinkertoys and realize my thought experiment roughly moved from the Idea Box (117) to a simplified Brutethink (147). That is, I start from basic categories and progress through incremental and meticulous variations.

What if you could lesson plan once and never again? Restated: What if you could begin with subject-specific activity categories and sequence possibilities into catalogue form? To some extent, it’s a purely mechanical proposition. What if a line of code could accomplish the work? What if you could randomize hundreds of results as a starting point?

This isn’t just for one subject. The thought experiment applies to every teacher, every grade, and every subject. Whether you’re in college or cruising as a veteran, studying seemingly chaotic results force unlikely combinations and jolt creativity.

My initial meticulous, handwritten results solved the “boring” problem, but otherwise my results collected digital dust. After all, who would listen to a first year teacher asking if they could only lesson plan once?

Years later, while exploring functions in Microsoft Excel, I stumbled upon INDEX and RANDARRAY. I remembered my 2013 thought experiment and began experimenting with combinations to randomize text. The results?

A single formula could instantly generate hundreds of randomized results (lesson plans).

But how does it work? (If Excel bores you, then skip the next section.)

✍️ Feedback: Would anyone want to play with the spreadsheet?

Try It Yourself: From Thought Experiment to Code

This formula randomizes text—with duplicates—across a determined number of options. When programming, allow one field to include a range of activities while another includes the number of activities per result. The code goes as follows:

=TEXTJOIN(", ", 1, INDEX (activity range, RANDARRAY(1, number, COUNTA(activity range), TRUE)))

Note: I’ve recently programmed the “number” cell as a dropdown menu, which automatically adjusts the number of results per line. Seven tends to work best.

That said, be warned: The functions will constantly scramble the results. Since the results depend on hitting Fill (rather than expend mental energy), I often like 100 or 200 results each time. How do you manage them?

• For such large results, use conditional formatting to highlight duplicate results. Go to Format > Conditional Formatting > Highlight Cells Rules > Duplicate Values.

• To save your results, simply hitting copy-paste within Excel won’t work. Instead, go to Edit > Paste Special > Values.

• As personal taste, when saving on a Word Processor, I copy-paste my fields used and the date and time of the result set. But that’s just me.

Update: I’ve decided to post my lesson plan spreadsheet in a follow up post.

🖥️ Lesson Plan Randomizer Beta (+ Download)

Using the 101 Lesson Plans

The following section contains 101 Random Lesson Plans. These plans were created not to plan, but stimulate creativity. They began with the following fields:

• Fields (14): Silent Reading, Partner Reading, Group Reading, Class Reading, Writing Alone, Partner Writing, Group Writing, Class Writing, Reflection, Partner Discussion, Group Discussion, Class Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Acting

Note: I will explain the fields in upcoming posts, but until then “Acting” refers to performing a text. Embodied cognition remains an untapped continent for most classrooms!

Using them requires sifting through the duplicates and looking for the unlikely combinations. I’d recommend the following:

• 1. Read up and down, left and right, and diagonally, looking for unlikely options.

• 2. Read activities categorically, replacing them with more specific activities.

• 3. Eliminate options, making them fit your allotted class time.

101 Random Lesson Plans

1. Reflection, Class Reading, Writing Alone, Class Writing, Silent Reading , Class Discussion, Silent Reading

2. Class Writing, Group Writing, Group Reading, Partner Discussion, Partner Reading, Class Writing, Partner Writing

3. Group Reading, Class Writing, Partner Discussion, Class Writing, Reflection, Group Reading, Partner Reading

4. Class Writing, Class Discussion, Group Writing, Group Reading, Class Discussion, Class Reading, Writing Alone

5. Silent Reading , Acting, Class Writing, Group Discussion, Class Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Socratic Discussion

6. Silent Reading , Partner Writing, Partner Discussion, Class Reading, Class Discussion, Writing Alone, Acting

7. Reflection, Class Reading, Partner Reading, Class Writing, Partner Writing, Acting, Writing Alone

8. Group Reading, Class Discussion, Class Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Reflection, Partner Writing, Partner Reading

9. Silent Reading , Socratic Discussion, Class Reading, Group Reading, Class Writing, Partner Discussion, Writing Alone

10. Writing Alone, Silent Reading , Group Discussion, Partner Reading, Reflection, Silent Reading , Class Writing

11. Group Writing, Partner Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Partner Reading, Partner Writing, Group Reading, Class Discussion

12. Class Writing, Acting, Socratic Discussion, Group Writing, Reflection, Acting, Socratic Discussion

13. Partner Writing, Group Discussion, Class Reading, Group Reading, Writing Alone, Partner Reading, Group Reading

14. Reflection, Socratic Discussion, Class Reading, Class Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Silent Reading , Acting

15. Class Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Class Writing, Group Discussion, Silent Reading , Partner Writing, Partner Discussion

16. Group Discussion, Class Writing, Partner Writing, Group Discussion, Reflection, Partner Reading, Class Reading

17. Acting, Group Discussion, Group Writing, Reflection, Partner Reading, Writing Alone, Silent Reading

18. Partner Discussion, Group Reading, Class Reading, Reflection, Class Reading, Socratic Discussion, Group Writing

19. Silent Reading , Class Reading, Socratic Discussion, Silent Reading , Reflection, Socratic Discussion, Writing Alone

20. Class Writing, Class Writing, Writing Alone, Socratic Discussion, Class Writing, Socratic Discussion, Partner Discussion

21. Partner Reading, Group Discussion, Acting, Partner Writing, Silent Reading , Class Discussion, Class Discussion

22. Partner Reading, Class Discussion, Partner Discussion, Partner Writing, Reflection, Class Writing, Acting

23. Acting, Group Writing, Class Reading, Writing Alone, Class Writing, Group Writing, Socratic Discussion

24. Group Reading, Partner Discussion, Partner Reading, Class Reading, Partner Discussion, Writing Alone, Partner Discussion

25. Acting, Class Reading, Silent Reading , Group Reading, Partner Reading, Partner Discussion, Group Writing

26. Acting, Class Discussion, Class Writing, Class Reading, Writing Alone, Writing Alone, Writing Alone

27. Partner Writing, Group Discussion, Group Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Acting, Acting, Partner Discussion

28. Partner Writing, Class Writing, Socratic Discussion, Writing Alone, Partner Discussion, Class Writing, Group Reading

29. Class Discussion, Partner Reading, Acting, Partner Reading, Silent Reading , Reflection, Group Reading

30. Partner Writing, Class Reading, Class Reading, Writing Alone, Class Writing, Partner Reading, Partner Reading

31. Writing Alone, Group Reading, Silent Reading , Partner Reading, Partner Reading, Socratic Discussion, Acting

32. Class Reading, Partner Reading, Class Discussion, Class Discussion, Class Discussion, Class Reading, Reflection

33. Group Reading, Group Discussion, Group Reading, Partner Reading, Class Discussion, Partner Writing, Partner Discussion

34. Socratic Discussion, Group Discussion, Class Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Group Discussion, Socratic Discussion

35. Acting, Reflection, Writing Alone, Writing Alone, Partner Writing, Partner Reading, Partner Discussion

36. Partner Discussion, Group Discussion, Group Reading, Class Reading, Group Discussion, Writing Alone, Writing Alone

37. Group Discussion, Group Writing, Acting, Acting, Partner Reading, Socratic Discussion, Group Discussion

38. Silent Reading , Silent Reading , Class Reading, Class Writing, Class Discussion, Partner Writing, Socratic Discussion

39. Socratic Discussion, Partner Writing, Reflection, Reflection, Group Writing, Partner Writing, Partner Discussion

40. Class Writing, Silent Reading , Class Reading, Partner Discussion, Group Discussion, Class Discussion, Socratic Discussion

41. Writing Alone, Group Discussion, Acting, Class Discussion, Partner Reading, Silent Reading , Acting

42. Socratic Discussion, Partner Discussion, Group Discussion, Class Discussion, Acting, Partner Reading, Socratic Discussion

43. Class Writing, Partner Reading, Partner Discussion, Class Discussion, Acting, Group Writing, Writing Alone

44. Partner Discussion, Acting, Class Writing, Group Reading, Writing Alone, Silent Reading , Group Discussion

45. Class Writing, Class Writing, Class Discussion, Acting, Reflection, Socratic Discussion, Silent Reading

46. Acting, Group Writing, Group Writing, Class Writing, Class Writing, Partner Discussion, Writing Alone

47. Partner Discussion, Acting, Group Writing, Writing Alone, Socratic Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Partner Discussion

48. Partner Discussion, Reflection, Partner Writing, Class Writing, Class Discussion, Class Writing, Partner Discussion

49. Class Discussion, Partner Writing, Silent Reading , Class Writing, Class Reading, Writing Alone, Acting

50. Socratic Discussion, Writing Alone, Class Writing, Partner Discussion, Group Discussion, Group Reading, Class Discussion

51. Socratic Discussion, Writing Alone, Class Reading, Group Writing, Class Reading, Class Reading, Group Discussion

52. Acting, Group Discussion, Group Reading, Partner Writing, Class Reading, Silent Reading , Group Reading

53. Writing Alone, Partner Reading, Partner Discussion, Partner Writing, Silent Reading , Partner Writing, Group Discussion

54. Partner Reading, Acting, Partner Writing, Group Reading, Writing Alone, Socratic Discussion, Partner Discussion

55. Group Reading, Class Writing, Group Discussion, Group Discussion, Class Discussion, Acting, Writing Alone

56. Acting, Class Discussion, Group Reading, Partner Writing, Partner Writing, Class Writing, Class Discussion

57. Group Reading, Group Reading, Group Reading, Acting, Group Discussion, Group Discussion, Class Reading

58. Group Writing, Group Discussion, Partner Discussion, Group Reading, Class Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Reflection

59. Acting, Acting, Silent Reading , Socratic Discussion, Partner Reading, Reflection, Class Writing

60. Class Writing, Group Reading, Silent Reading , Group Reading, Class Reading, Class Discussion, Class Writing

61. Silent Reading , Group Discussion, Partner Reading, Acting, Class Reading, Partner Reading, Writing Alone

62. Writing Alone, Acting, Partner Reading, Partner Writing, Partner Reading, Class Writing, Partner Discussion

63. Partner Writing, Class Reading, Partner Writing, Group Discussion, Silent Reading , Class Discussion, Partner Discussion

64. Writing Alone, Reflection, Group Reading, Class Discussion, Acting, Group Writing, Class Writing

65. Class Discussion, Silent Reading , Class Reading, Partner Writing, Silent Reading , Partner Discussion, Group Discussion

66. Reflection, Class Writing, Class Discussion, Silent Reading , Group Writing, Partner Reading, Reflection

67. Partner Reading, Reflection, Class Discussion, Silent Reading , Class Writing, Class Writing, Class Reading

68. Partner Writing, Class Discussion, Partner Writing, Class Writing, Class Discussion, Group Reading, Socratic Discussion

69. Writing Alone, Group Discussion, Group Writing, Socratic Discussion, Class Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Socratic Discussion

70. Partner Discussion, Group Writing, Class Reading, Partner Reading, Group Writing, Group Discussion, Partner Writing

71. Group Writing, Acting, Silent Reading , Partner Reading, Reflection, Class Reading, Group Reading

72. Class Reading, Partner Writing, Partner Discussion, Silent Reading , Group Discussion, Group Reading, Writing Alone

73. Partner Writing, Group Writing, Partner Writing, Partner Writing, Group Reading, Group Writing, Class Reading

74. Partner Reading, Class Discussion, Reflection, Group Discussion, Class Reading, Reflection, Class Reading

75. Partner Writing, Partner Reading, Group Discussion, Partner Reading, Writing Alone, Reflection, Class Writing

76. Class Reading, Group Writing, Class Reading, Partner Discussion, Acting, Partner Reading, Writing Alone

77. Class Writing, Partner Reading, Class Discussion, Group Reading, Class Writing, Class Writing, Group Writing

78. Partner Discussion, Writing Alone, Partner Writing, Class Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Partner Reading, Class Reading

79. Silent Reading , Class Discussion, Group Reading, Silent Reading , Class Discussion, Reflection, Group Writing

80. Socratic Discussion, Group Discussion, Reflection, Partner Reading, Reflection, Class Reading, Partner Discussion

81. Partner Discussion, Partner Discussion, Class Reading, Group Writing, Class Reading, Silent Reading , Partner Discussion

82. Partner Writing, Writing Alone, Reflection, Reflection, Partner Reading, Acting, Class Discussion

83. Partner Reading, Socratic Discussion, Reflection, Group Reading, Partner Discussion, Reflection, Class Discussion

84. Reflection, Partner Reading, Partner Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Group Reading, Acting, Group Reading

85. Acting, Writing Alone, Partner Reading, Partner Reading, Partner Writing, Silent Reading , Partner Writing

86. Socratic Discussion, Reflection, Partner Reading, Group Reading, Socratic Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Silent Reading

87. Partner Writing, Class Discussion, Partner Reading, Group Writing, Reflection, Group Writing, Partner Discussion

88. Reflection, Group Reading, Socratic Discussion, Reflection, Class Discussion, Silent Reading , Reflection

89. Acting, Class Reading, Class Writing, Group Writing, Group Discussion, Reflection, Acting

90. Class Reading, Class Writing, Partner Writing, Group Writing, Writing Alone, Partner Reading, Partner Discussion

91. Partner Reading, Partner Writing, Writing Alone, Partner Discussion, Partner Reading, Class Writing, Writing Alone

92. Group Discussion, Writing Alone, Silent Reading , Socratic Discussion, Class Writing, Partner Writing, Socratic Discussion

93. Class Reading, Class Reading, Partner Reading, Acting, Socratic Discussion, Socratic Discussion, Partner Writing

94. Group Reading, Writing Alone, Writing Alone, Group Writing, Class Writing, Partner Writing, Silent Reading

95. Class Reading, Acting, Reflection, Group Writing, Silent Reading , Acting, Acting

96. Class Writing, Class Writing, Group Writing, Partner Writing, Class Reading, Partner Discussion, Group Reading

97. Partner Writing, Reflection, Socratic Discussion, Partner Discussion, Class Discussion, Acting, Writing Alone

98. Partner Reading, Partner Discussion, Group Writing, Silent Reading , Partner Reading, Partner Reading, Partner Discussion

99. Class Writing, Group Reading, Group Reading, Group Reading, Acting, Class Reading, Writing Alone

100. Acting, Class Discussion, Partner Reading, Partner Writing, Writing Alone, Partner Discussion, Partner Discussion

101. Group Reading, Writing Alone, Class Discussion, Writing Alone, Socratic Discussion, Writing Alone, Socratic Discussion

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New to the blog? Explore some other favorites!

✏️ Need a place to start? Check out my ongoing series, Teach Writing Tomorrow.

• 20 Tips for Teaching Writing Tomorrow (#1-10)

• 20 Tips for Teaching Writing Tomorrow (#11-20)

• Preview: Help! I don't know how to teach writing!

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🗞️ Crave honest education news? Check out The Honest School Times.