Choose a topic for your lesson. Decide which content area your lesson will focus on -- for example, math, science, language arts, or history.
Determine the goal of the lesson. Decide what it is that you want students to gain from the lesson you are going to teach.
Think about how you will relate the lesson to the theme of the unit. For example, the topic of the lesson is addition, and the theme of the unit is zoo animals. Consider how to relate addition to zoo animals in a way that your students will understand. For young students, a colorful board book might combine simple counting with zoo animals.
Check with your school district's curriculum guide to ensure that your lesson is adhering to district standards, as well as the state education department.
Incorporate activities that capture students' attention. Consider your audience, and plan activities that will interest students and that will relate to their style of learning. For instance, in the example of teaching addition with a zoo animal theme, you could use zoo animal toys or pictures for teaching addition.
Assess the effectiveness of your lesson: Have students comprehended the content of the lesson? Plan a short quiz, or ask individual students to answer specific questions that relate to the lesson. Provide clarification, if needed.