Unit 18

1. THE KENNEDY INSTITUTE’S
TEACHING KNOWLEDGE TEST
PREPARATION AND CERTIFICATION COURSE
MODULE 2 – UNIT 18:
LESSON PLANNING
IDENTIFYING AND SELECTING AIMS

2. To identify main, subsidiary,
stage, and personal
aims in lessons
and the factors that influence
the choice of these aims.
LESSON OBJECTIVE

3. LANGUAGEREFLECTION
The great aim of education is not
knowledge but action.
- Herbert Spencer

4. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
What are aims?
AIMS are what we want learners to learn and
be able to do at the end of a lesson, sequence or
course.1
LEARN and DO
Ask yourself:
What do your students already know about the subject?
What can they already do with the knowledge they have?
What do they need to know?
What do they need to be able to do?
1 Pulverness, The TKT Course, 2005 p.86.

5. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
Create a brainstorm and mention at least 7
purposes for writing aims before planning a
lesson.
Why are lesson aims important?
Pause the video here while you create your brainstorm.

6. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
1. provide a purpose and direction for teaching
and learning.
2. They enable teachers to focus on what their
learners need to achieve.
3. They help teachers to adapt textbooks to their
learners’ needs.
4. They provide a framework for the lesson
Lesson aims…

7. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
5. They help teachers to select appropriate
materials and activities.
6. They help teachers to anticipate possible
problems and build in solutions.
7. They can serve as a reference point for teachers
to measure learners’ achievements.

8. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
Why is setting lesson aims important?
Setting lesson aims allows you to
establish a direction to guide
learning2.
When teachers communicate
student learning objectives and
outcomes, learners are able to
connect what they are doing to
what they are supposed to learn.
2 Pintrich & Schunk, 2002

9. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
What can aims be?
Aims can be knowledge of a language item such
as grammatical structure, lexis or vocabulary ; a
competency or develop a language skill.
2 Pintrich & Schunk, 2002

10. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
What type of aims are there?
There are 3 types of aims for a lesson:
• Main aim
• Subsidiary aim
• Personal aim
• Stage aims

11. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
What is the main aim?
This is what the students will be able to do (SWBAT)
(or do better) by the end of the lesson or sequence.
The main aim is worded very
specifically. It will always state:
1. The language the learners
will use or comprehend;
2. The context in which the
language is used;

12. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
What is the main aim?
Learners will be able to order food in a restaurant using
the modal “would like + noun”.
Ask yourself:
What do I want my students to know or do?
What language do know?

13. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
What is the main aim?
The main aim must be achievable AND they must meet
your students’ needs.

14. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
What is a subsidiary aim?
It is the second guiding component in the lesson plan.
It states the background language or skills
development linked to achieving the main aim of the
lesson.
This may include:
1. Grammatical structures
2. Lexemes
3. Phonology
4. Functions

15. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
What is a subsidiary aim?
Example subsidiary aim:
Grammar: review of modal auxiliary “would”;
Lexis: preference verbs; lexical sets and collocations
associated to meals and ordering food;
Phonology: /w/
Ask yourself:
What aspects of language do my students need to
know and use/practice?

16. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
What are personal aims?
This is an aim that the teacher sets in order to improve
his/her teaching skills and strategies.
Some examples of personal aims:
1. Organizing the whiteboard
2. Calling on less participatory students.
3. Be more clear when giving instructions.
4. Motivate Ss for increase time on task.

17. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
What are stage aims?
These are micro-aims or specific purposes for each of
the stages in the lesson plan. A stage aim is the
purpose behind each procedure on the lesson plan.
The TKT Course, Modules 1, 2, & 3 (2005) p. 128

18. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
What are stage aims?
Stage aims assure us that there is a specific and clear
purpose for each of the activities that are planned.
Remember, each stage aim should contribute to
furthering the main aim of the lesson.
The TKT Course, Modules 1, 2, & 3 (2005) p. 128

19. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
How do the aims fit together?

20. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
Final thoughts…
Aims help the teacher to prepare appropriate activities that are
effective for the learner and help them to achieve the goal.
Planning aims depends on:
1. syllabus (course program)
2. textbooks
3. approach (method)
4. assumptions on the learners
5. learners’ need.

21. IDENTIFYINGAIMS
Final thoughts…
• Aims must be specific enough to be able to be evaluated
after the session
• The amount of aims are directly related with the length of
the lesson and the learners’ level
• Learners should know the lesson aims before and while
doing activities
• For younger learners aims should be described in simple
language and form.

22. END OF PRESENTATION
This presentation is designed for the exclusive use of
The Kennedy Institute for the
Teaching Knowledge Test
Preparation and Certification Course
All rights reserved. 2016