Unit Planning vs. Lesson Planning: What's the Difference (and Why It Matters)?
- literacytales
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
At the beginning of my teaching journey, I would sit and begin my planning. I would always wonder, Am I planning a unit or a lesson right now? Whether you're a new teacher or a veteran, you're not alone — we all still find ourselves figuring it out sometimes.
Keep reading because I'll break it down super simply — honestly, teaching is already busy enough!
What's Unit Planning?
Unit planning is all about seeing the big picture — when you sit down and start thinking about where you'll begin and where you want to end up. It's like mapping out a road trip. There's a starting and ending point, and all the stops you wish to make along the way.
When I'm planning a unit, I'm asking myself:
What are the standards I am covering?
What are the major skills and concepts I want my students to master?
What essential questions are going to guide our conversations?
How will I know if they actually "got it"?
And how do all these lessons connect so it feels like one smooth journey, not just random stops?
A good unit plan usually covers about 4 to 6 weeks of instruction. It ties everything back to the standards we need to hit, keeps me focused, gives my students a clear path, and makes teaching less stressful.
Think of it this way: you're pulling together the big questions, the academic vocabulary, the weekly reading skills, the main texts, and the genre you'll cover — and you're making sure everything connects back to how you'll assess them at the end. It's the foundation on which everything else builds.
Now that we have the big picture, let's discuss what lesson planning looks like.
What's Lesson Planning?
Lesson planning involves taking a piece-by-piece approach to my unit and zooming in on it to see the details.
It answers questions like:
What exactly am I teaching today ( objective)?
How am I introducing it (background knowledge)?
What activities will we do?
How will I know students understood today's goal (assessment)?
A lesson plan is about one day (or maybe a few days if it's a multi-day lesson) and is more detailed than unit Planning. It's where you get into mini objectives, step-by-step instructions, materials needed, and specific exit tickets or checks for understanding.
Unit Plans vs. Lesson Plans
Why You Need Both?
You can't build a house without the blueprint (unit plan), and you can't build a wall without a plan for the bricks (lesson plan). They work together to make teaching smoother and help your students connect everything they're learning.
Unit plans give you confidence because you know where you're heading.
Lesson plans provide clarity so you can teach with purpose every day.
Don't stress about making them perfect. Start with the unit plan — set the goals, map out the main points — then zoom in and build your daily lessons. Teaching is a journey, and good planning makes the ride smoother (and much more fun).
I hope this breakdown makes planning feel a little lighter, because we already carry enough as teachers. You've got this!