Better copywriting = leaner lesson plans ?

 If you are a copywriter, you better rewrite the overly-wordy content of a website to boost much-desired engagement. What do you do if you get ultra-wordy as a lesson designer ?

I admit to over-written lesson plans and the advice does strike a chord with me.  Counter-intuitively, I don`t believe in less is more. Less has never been more. But lean and airy is better than overloaded and stuffy.

The copywriting tips made me rethink my lesson planning ways. How do they translate into leaner lessons (planning and performance)?

Let me summarize and paraphrase:

1 Know your call to action, express it clearly and plan around it: What do you want your students to do with the language on the menu today?

2 You have somewhere between 2-8 seconds to capture the attention of students. Plan your lesson starters in detail.

3 Plan with emotional triggers in mind: Which emotions do you want to appeal to? Which emotions are you going to trigger to entice students to want what you want , and how will you trigger them? Stories, anecdotes, multisensory experiences, competitive spirit, facts and figures, exam prep rigour – which of these set your students on fire?

4 While appealing to certain emotions, you need to be providing something meaningful to the student, solving the problem she/he is facing. Get to know them. Discover why they need the language. Once you know what someone wants, it is much easier to give it to them.

5 Keep the tone personal. This is how you strum the heartstrings of your students.

6 Now you are ready to take out, chop off, delete  anything on your lesson plan that isn’t necessary. Keep it nice and lean before and during the lesson.

 Click here to read the original copywriting tips.