Ask yourself these 3 questions to keep your lessons aligned all year

Lesson planning as an ELL teacher can feel overwhelming. With limited time, diverse student needs, and endless content standards, it’s easy to feel like you’re just piecing together random activities instead of creating meaningful, connected lessons.

In this episode of the Equipping ELLs podcast, Beth Vaucher shares a simple yet powerful framework to keep your lessons aligned and purposeful all year long. She calls it your GPS: Goal, Personalize, Scaffold. Let’s dive into the three questions you can ask before every lesson to transform the way you plan and teach.

Why Every Lesson Needs a “GPS”

Think about planning a road trip without a GPS. You might reach your destination eventually, but you’ll waste time, take wrong turns, and end up frustrated.

The same thing happens in the classroom when lessons lack direction. A GPS system for your teaching gives you clarity on:

Where your students are headed
How they’ll get there
What supports they need along the way

1. What’s the Goal of This Lesson?

The first step in the GPS framework is setting a clear and specific goal.

Too often, teachers try to fit in every domain, every content area, and every activity into a single 30-minute block. The result? Students (and teachers) walk away unsure of what the actual purpose was.

Instead, zoom in on the one essential skill or outcome for that lesson. For example:

Students will be able to use sequencing words to retell a story.
Students will identify the main idea of a nonfiction passage.

A focused goal ensures your lesson builds toward something meaningful instead of scattering your efforts.

Quote to remember: “The goal gives you direction. Without it, you risk doing fun activities that don’t actually build toward anything.”

2. How Can I Personalize This Lesson for My Students?

The second question is about connection. When students see themselves in the lesson, their engagement and motivation skyrocket.

Personalization doesn’t need to be complicated. It could be as simple as:

Using a student’s name in a word problem
Choosing a passage about soccer for your soccer-loving group
Connecting a science concept to something familiar in their community or culture

Even if it’s not tailored to every single student, weaving in personal or cultural connections shows students that their experiences matter — and that builds a bridge to deeper learning.

Quote to remember: “When students see themselves in the lesson, their motivation skyrockets.”

3. What Scaffold Will I Use to Make This Lesson Accessible?

The third question focuses on accessibility. As ELL teachers, scaffolding is where we shine — but the key is to use one intentional scaffold per lesson instead of piling on too many supports.

Examples of purposeful scaffolds include:

Sentence stems
Graphic organizers
Visuals or picture support
Partner practice opportunities

The goal is to give students just enough support to engage and succeed, while still challenging them to grow.

Quote to remember: “What we don’t want is to over-scaffold where they’re really relying on us and it’s becoming a crutch to their learning.”

Using GPS at the Unit Level

This system doesn’t just apply to daily lessons — it works beautifully for entire units.

Start with your big-picture goal (e.g., students will explain how plants and animals depend on each other to survive), then break it into smaller weekly goals. From there, plan personalization opportunities (like connecting ecosystems to students’ neighborhoods) and decide which scaffolds to rotate throughout the unit.

The result? Aligned, intentional, and connected lessons that build on one another instead of feeling scattered.

Final Takeaway

If you want to keep your teaching focused and purposeful this year, run every lesson through this quick GPS framework:

What’s the goal?
How can I personalize it?
What scaffold will make it accessible?

It’s that simple. By asking these three questions, you’ll eliminate filler activities, boost student engagement, and create lessons that actually build toward long-term growth.

Quote to remember: “If you run every lesson and every unit through the simple GPS, you will keep your teaching aligned and purposeful all year long.”

Connect with Beth:

More about Equipping ELLs:

We all know that teaching isn’t easy, but it doesn’t have to be this hard. Equipping ELLs is a podcast for both ESL specialists and homeroom teachers who are looking for effective and engaging ways to support their English Language Learners without adding to their endless to-do list. Tune in each week to hear tips, strategies, and inspirational stories that will empower you to better reach your ELL students, equip them with life-long skills, and strengthen relationships with colleagues and parents.

Your host, Beth Vaucher, is the founder of Inspiring Young Learners. She is an ESL certified homeroom teacher with over 10 years of experience teaching in the US and internationally. Her background of M.Ed in ESL and Curriculum and Instruction combined with her experience has led her to develop a bestselling newcomer curriculum that has sold in over 90 countries around the globe. She brings a different perspective to teaching ELLs from her years teaching and living abroad and working with ELLs from around the world. You will walk away from each episode with the ideas and tools you need to transform your experience as a teacher and cultivate a thriving and welcoming environment for your ELL students.