Choosing Your Plan Book

It's that time of year again... time to choose your lesson plan book.

We should have a quiz here. You would put in your answers to searching questions about your favorite fruit, your early dating experiences, and your astrological sign, push a button, and up would pop the perfect plan book for you!

Not gonna happen.

But I can give you the details on some of the most popular ones, and some criteria for choosing, so you can think about it and make the best possible choice.

First choice... do you want a separate planbook, or do you want it combined with the record book?

If you like the combo, then you can choose from several different designs from Teacher Created Resources. All of them have the gradebook section in the front and the planbook in the back. There are still some choices, though: you can have the days of the week across the top and the periods of the day down the side or vice versa. You can have Susan Winget, sunflowers, school books, or apples. There are different combinations of front matter like conflict resolution forms, seating charts, and sub plan pages. There are different colors of print. The one pictured here is Susan Winget's design.

Second choice... if you like a separate planbook, do you want it 8.5x11" or oversized?

Carson Dellosa does a large book called The Complete Plan Book. The pages are 10x13" with the days of the week down the side. Each day has a box for the date and absences, a box for notes, and then a long lined section across two pages. The vertical lines are shadows, so you can ignore them if you want, but they are divided into 11 subjects. The right-hand page has tips and a "things to remember" box. The front matter includes monthly calendars, classroom management/modification record forms, and reproducible templates for class newsletters and parent notes.

Another oversize option is CTP's Lesson Plan Book. This one is slightly larger than Carson's offering and uses green print rather than blue. The days are down the side and there are no vertical divisions at all -- a help for those who like to write a lot or who have different schedules on different days. The front matter includes a U.S. map, definitions of current educational buzzwords, and a sub form. There are pockets on both the front and back covers for paper storage.

One more oversize example is TCR's "Anything is Possible" plan book. The cover is Mary Engelbreit's optimistic design, and inside is plain black on white grids. Days of the week are down the side, and the vertical divisions make 8 boxes across the two pages. There are notes and tips on the right hand side, and the front matter includes a KWL chart and other reproducibles, plus a seating chart.

Scholastic also does an oversize planner, and Teacher's Friend does one especially for preschool that has the daily grid on one page and a centers organization page facing it.

You'll have noticed by now that these books are much of a muchness. You basically get a collection of grids in covers. The front matter is handy, but you can find these things elsewhere, and in fact you probably do find them elsewhere. I've never met anyone whose preference in plan books was based on the seating chart. So the cover is the last big choice.

The Mary Engelbreit and Susan Winget covers are very popular, but some people like plain. 

Scholastic's Daily Planner is about as plain as they come. The cover is plain solid blue, each page spread is a 7 by 5 grid, and you'll find a  seating chart and a class list page at the front.

Not plain enough? The Ward plan books are downright homely. You get a vinyl cover that looks and feels like an avocado skin, a plain grid, and a seating chart at the back. This is the least expensive option we've found, at $4.15, and probably the best choice for those inclined to spill coffee on their desks.

Ward also does a planner especially for school counselors, which is a bit different on the inside. Its cover looks like a brown avocado skin.

Tune in next time for the next thrilling chapter -- gradebooks!