No matter your subject, some of the events in the first part of 2020 that won’t be named will allow you to rock the new school year in general. Curriculum planning became easier and there are now new tools familiar to everyone that will make your flow better than ever before.

Primarily, there are apps. Because of the push for online learning and classes, you can use that to assist in your plan. Having everything listed up online will also help your students, as well as their guardians, know what is going on.

Additionally, there are personal teacher tools that will help you follow your plan. By using AI assistance, you can know exactly when is the time to push, and when you are ahead of schedule.

Finally, schools are now much more open to new approaches. This will help you with your classroom management and give you even more benefits. By using new techniques, you won’t need to focus as much on solving social conflicts in your class, but rather focus on the curriculum.

Festina Lente

Meaning “to haste slowly.” This Latin oxymoron describes what you want to achieve in your class perfectly. You want to make good progress with your curriculum without adding unnecessary stress to either you or your students.

The best way to do this is to have your materials prepared well in advance. This includes your lectures, but also the things you will be putting online for individual or group projects. Every class should start with you already knowing what will happen.

The biggest benefit of this approach is that you won’t need to have the whole time during class used at peak efficiency. There will always be issues, problems, and slacking, and you want to have the time to calmly address these issues the moment they pop up, without compromising your curriculum planning and class dynamics.

Everything is Online

Both students and teachers are served the same sauce when it comes to modern education. There is a lot of information that needs to be retained. It is not always accurate, and you seldom know how it is useful.

But there is also a good solution. Mainly, you shouldn’t expect your students to retain information verbatim, but rather to learn how to connect it. This can be done easily if everything is stored online.

By having your classes and materials recorded and uploaded, your students can quickly find the information they are missing and incorporate them into what they have already learned.

Consider Your Apps

Depending on the composition of your class, there are various apps that you can use. Having your students use Bullet Journal is great for language classes and is slightly more inclined towards female students. But, the boys in your class will still be able to use it effectively.

Otherwise you can have everything stored in your Google Classroom and available through that medium. This solution applies to any type of class and is a great way to augment your teaching.

Ironically, this might mean that you will want your students to use their phones during class. Maybe this way they will learn that smartphones can be used for education and not only for taking selfies.

Use an AI Assistant

Regretfully, artificial intelligence hasn’t yet advanced enough to finish all aspects of curriculum planning on its own. But, it is a great tool for teachers to know what they are doing and what should come next.

You can use Siri, Google Assistant, or even Bixby, and they will all help you follow your plan. With such help, you can plan everything months in advance, and your AI will help you remember exactly what you wanted to do, and how.

Curriculum Planning for Groups and Projects

Having your curriculum planning include working in group projects will work wonders for your time management. Instead of needing to focus on every individual for every aspect of the class, you can simply focus on the few groups that will be created.

The amount of curriculum you can place in group efforts and projects will depend on the subject. But even fairly individualistic classes like writing and physiology can benefit from such an arrangement.

Ideally you will want the groups to be formed as early as possible. You might need to experiment to know how to best form them. Mixing up students that excel with those that have average grades will force a solid dynamic where everyone is pushing forward.

Make Everything More Fun

This includes making everything fun for both yourself and the students. Your curriculum planning should include projects and rewards that are off the books. And while the rewards should be tangible and wanted by the students, they don’t need to be straight out of your pocket.

Giving out virtual rewards can be just as effective as sharing physical prizes.

Also, there might be a possibility for hands-on experience through these projects. Try connecting with the community to see how you can apply some of the things your students are learning for the common good.

Members of the community might be willing to give rewards for these tasks, and this is the best way for your students to understand that they are not learning something just for the grade. Even liberal arts can be used where your students can read to the elderly or perform for a younger class.

Show them that their academic efforts are not just for paper, but are actually applicable in the real world.

Consult with Students and Guardians

Although most teachers will have a carte blanche when it comes to their curriculum planning, you will want to test the waters first. Consult with your students and their parents or guardians to know what is acceptable.

This way you will also get some information about the particular needs and abilities of your students. This info can later be used to tailor your plan and the projects within it. Placing a shy student with a kind introvert might be the best thing that ever happened to both of them, in and out of class.

Conclusion

Modern teachers have a lot on their plate. If you are not willing to adapt and use the available tools, the expectation might prove to be overwhelming. But if you are open to new ideas, you can rock 2020 as a teacher and become the best at what you do.

Using new software is very helpful, especially when it comes to AI. But you shouldn’t stop at only the apps you will give to your students. Some options will help you as a teacher and cut down your time focusing on organizing your class.

Finally, curriculum planning is easier if you are working with small groups and not individuals. Recent events allowed us to delegate a bit and give more freedom to our class. If you use this, the next school year will flow more smoothly than any year that preceded it.