Writing an objective every day was something that I was told was “just good practice” when it came to teaching. But it took me a couple years to really understand why.

My first year of teaching was full of frustrated floundering as I navigated the daily storm of doubt. I didn’t understand what I was teaching because I didn’t understand the end goal. I didn’t want every year to feel like that first one, so I have made a conscious effort to write an objective every day. It has not only transformed my ability to understand and focus on the task at hand, but it ensures my lessons are functional, and helps build a classroom community.

Focused and Functional

When I write an objective every day, it keys me in on the essential skills we want to cover and what it will take to get there. Without it, I am back to questioning “why” and I immediately feel less effective. This daily process makes sure that all my lessons are focused and functional, which then transfers to my students’ ability to carry what we do in class into their lives outside of high school.

The objectives, which I proudly display on the board next to the weekly agenda, also give the students an idea of what to expect from the day before I even begin teaching. I often catch students looking at the board for an idea of what is coming next. When they feel prepared, we can better jump in to what we need to accomplish.

“We” Instead of “Students”

When I started writing objectives, I wrote “Students will…” After a few years of that, I felt completely removed from the work going on in my classroom. I changed to “We will…” and felt a deeper sense of community building.

By adding myself back into the equation and changing just one word, there is more involvement in our day-to-day operations.

Use Verbs

One way to improve writing objectives is to use present tense verbs to actively describe what the students will be accomplishing that day. 

For example:

• We will write and explain how characters are affected by the setting.

• We will use context clues to analyze new vocabulary terms in order to make connections to a text.

• We will read and annotate a mentor text to search for elements of setting that affect the characters.

Verbs like write, explain, analyze, clarify, compare and contrast, discuss, revise, read, etc. help clarify how students show their learning while the rest of the objective shows what they will have learned.

Finally, A Word of Caution

Don’t let objectives frustrate you. They are a tool that helps you and your students find daily purpose in the work you’re doing. If you forget to write a new objective on the board, shake it off and try again tomorrow. This is a year-long process and weekly mental challenge – but it is one that has great, long-lasting impacts on every mind in your room. 

Let me know how you utilize objectives in your classroom.

Happy teaching!

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