Do you ever feel like you’re not as focused as you’d like to be when it comes to planning, instruction, and reflection? The ELT profession requires an ability and willingness to adapt to a variety of changes. What doesn’t change, though, is the need to support our students and ourselves so we can continue moving forward.

A focused process is necessary to get you through all of the weeks, months, and years you will serve your students in the classroom.

In this episode, I’m going to share with you the three-phase process I realized I had created that helps me stay focused at each step on my ELT journey. I believe it can help you, too, by concentrating on intentional, tangible actions at each stage.

Get ready to Plan, Do, Thrive!

You can see a visual illustration of this process by going to today’s show notes on my website at eltresourceroom.com/podcast/2-three-phase-process-for-focused-elt

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Do you have everything you need to provide quality instruction to your students throughout the term? Is there anything in your course or lesson that requires students to know how to do before they can practice what they’ve learned? How many days prior to the start of a course or lesson do you usually begin planning?

These are just some of the many reflective questions I’ll be posing to you in today’s episode where I go deeper into the first phase of the Plan, Do, Thrive Process.

Planning is the foundational phase. It’s where you set your expectations for your course or lesson and determine what is best to help your students succeed. It’s also the place where you set yourself up for success in the subsequent phases.

In the Plan phase there are four main components we’ll explore:

• being intentional,
• being realistic,
• being committed, and
• being timely.

Asking yourself the questions for each component will guide you in your thinking and evaluation of your own planning. I encourage you to block out some time to really sit with these questions and answer as thoroughly as you can.

Download the free reflective questions from the episode by going to today’s show notes on my website at eltresourceroom.com/podcast/3-the-why-how-and-when-of-planning

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What do materials, sequencing, and timing all have in common? They’re the components we use every day to create quality, engaging lessons and courses for our students.

There are many things that may come to mind when you think about instruction -- giving information, asking and answering questions, or providing students with time to practice, think and discover rules and ideas on their own.

You most likely spend a lot of time planning, so the Do phase is when you honor yourself by following through with your intentional, realistic, committed, and timely effort. This doesn’t mean you can’t and shouldn’t be flexible and make changes when needed, but it does mean you recognize what’s better for your students -- sticking to your original plan or modifying if necessary.

In the Do phase there are three main elements to keep you focused on your instruction:

• being aware of your plan,
• following your plan, and
• believing in your plan.

I invite you to download the free resource I have for you that will help you as you plan and do in the coming days. In the 12 Meaningful ESL/EFL Resources for Adult Instruction, I identify appropriate skill and level designations, explain why each resource is so meaningful, and provide you with direct links to the sources as well as several ready-to-use activities I’ve used myself. You can get the free resource by visiting my website or going to this link: https://12resources.eltresourceroom.com

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