What it does
A unit plan has a big idea, an overview, learning intentions, success criteria, key competencies, cross-curricular links and resources. Assessment points are placed in the weeks where they belong, marked as diagnostic, formative or summative.
Each lesson in the outline has a week, a title, a focus, learning intentions and activities. Choose Expand into full lesson on any of them and Heapso writes the full lesson plan, using the unit and the lessons either side so the sequence holds together.
Who it's for
Classroom teachers planning a topic, team and department leaders setting a shared unit, and secondary teachers building up to an assessment.
Example
Our changing coastline
Grade 6 Social Studies, 4 weeks, 3 lessons a week
Big idea
- People and natural forces both shape the places we live, and communities make choices about how to respond.
Assessment
- Week 1: diagnostic quiz on landforms
- Week 3: formative peer review of a cause-and-effect map
- Week 4: summative presentation
Week 1 lessons
- What is a coastline made of?
- Erosion and deposition in action
- Mapping our nearest coast
Why teachers use it
- A real progressionLessons build week by week, with assessment where it makes sense rather than bolted on at the end.
- Any length1 to 12 weeks, 1 to 7 lessons a week, and the lesson length you teach.
- Lessons on demandExpand one lesson at a time when you need it, linked back into the unit.
- Built for assessmentsAdd the standard you're assessing and the unit teaches the skills first, with checkpoints before the task.
How it works
- Set the shapeTopic, year level, learning area, weeks and lessons per week.
- Read the outlineBig idea, intentions, assessment points and every lesson in order.
- Expand and resourceWrite any lesson in full, then make slides, worksheets or a quiz for it.
Questions teachers ask
How long can a unit be?
From 1 to 12 weeks, with 1 to 7 lessons a week. For a whole term of units, use the term planner.
Does it write every lesson in full?
The unit outlines every lesson. Expand any of them into a full lesson plan when you need it, so you only make what you'll teach.
Can I plan a unit for an assessment?
Yes. Add the standard or outcome you're working towards and Heapso plans the teaching that leads up to it.
Works well with
- Term plannerA whole term of units and lessons from one brief, with optional worksheets and slides.
- Lesson plansA full lesson plan with learning intentions, success criteria and timed steps, in about a minute.
- WorksheetsDifferentiated worksheets in support, core and extension versions, each with an answer key.