Detailed Lesson Plan: Format, 4As Structure and a Complete Sample
How to write a detailed lesson plan and a semi-detailed lesson plan, the 4As structure (Activity, Analysis, Abstraction, Application) and a complete editable sample.
Draft My Lesson Team
A detailed lesson plan describes a lesson step by step, including what the teacher says and what learners are expected to do. A semi-detailed lesson plan keeps the same sections but summarizes the procedure. Both formats are widely used in teacher education and in schools in the Philippines. This page explains the parts, the popular 4As structure and gives you an editable template with a complete sample.
Check your school's requirement first. In public schools in the Philippines, daily lesson preparation is framed by DepEd Order No. 42, s. 2016, which describes the Daily Lesson Log and the Detailed Lesson Plan. Requirements and templates can change and may be set by your division or school. Use the official template you are given; the files on this page are practice and drafting aids, not official DepEd forms.
Parts of a detailed lesson plan
| Part | What to write |
|---|---|
| I. Objectives | Two or three measurable objectives: what learners will know or be able to do |
| II. Subject matter | Topic, references, materials and key concepts |
| III. Procedure | The teaching sequence, with teacher and learner activities |
| IV. Evaluation | How you check that the objectives were met |
| V. Assignment | Practice or preparation for the next lesson |
For measurable objectives, see our guide to lesson plan objectives with the ABCD model and a verb bank.
The 4As structure
Many detailed lesson plans organize the procedure in four phases:
- Activity: learners do something that raises the lesson question, such as a game, an experiment or a short task.
- Analysis: guided questions help learners reflect on what they did and noticed.
- Abstraction: the teacher and learners state the concept or rule in clear terms.
- Application: learners use the concept in a new situation.
A detailed plan writes the expected teacher questions and learner answers for each phase. A semi-detailed plan lists the activities and key questions without scripting the dialogue.
Detailed versus semi-detailed lesson plan
| Detailed | Semi-detailed | |
|---|---|---|
| Procedure | Scripted teacher and learner lines | Main activities and key questions |
| Typical use | Student teaching, observations, demonstration lessons | Regular planning by experienced teachers |
| Length | Several pages | One to two pages |
Sample: Grade 5 science, food chains
- Objectives: Learners will identify producers, consumers and decomposers in a local ecosystem; build a food chain of at least four organisms; explain what happens when one organism is removed.
- Subject matter: Food chains and food webs. Materials: organism picture cards, string, chart paper.
- Activity: In groups, learners sort picture cards into "makes its own food" and "eats other living things".
- Analysis: Which cards were hard to sort? Where does the energy in a plant come from?
- Abstraction: Define producer, consumer and decomposer; model one food chain on the board with arrows showing what is eaten.
- Application: Groups build a four-link food chain from a local rice-field or garden ecosystem and predict the effect of removing one link.
- Evaluation: Five-item quiz: label organisms and complete a food chain.
- Assignment: Draw a food chain found near home.
The downloadable sample includes the full scripted procedure and an answer key for the evaluation.
Draft a lesson plan faster
Draft My Lesson drafts an editable lesson plan with objectives, activities, assessment and student materials from your topic, grade and duration. It does not produce an official DepEd form: copy what you need into your required template and review it before teaching. Your free account includes two complete lessons. For a weekly log format, see our daily lesson log template.
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