Research Guides: Education Research Guide: Lesson Planning

Multidisciplinary - Lesson Planning Resources

What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) - Institute of Education Sciences Search the WWC and access its Resources Page to find the information you need to make evidence-based decisions in your classrooms and schools. Additionally, WWC Practice Guides present recommendations for educators to address challenges in their classrooms and schools. They are based on reviews of research, the experiences of practitioners, and the expert opinions of a panel of nationally recognized experts.
PBS Learning Media Find free, standards-aligned videos, interactives, lesson plans, and more just for California teachers in science, math, ELA, and more.
CK-12 provides free and customizable K-12 open educational resources aligned to state curriculum standards.

Literacy & Language - Lesson Planning Resources

Learning for Justice (Teaching Tolerance) Free educational resources—articles, guides, lessons, films, webinars, frameworks and more—that help foster shared learning and reflection for educators, young people, caregivers and all community members.
Facing History and Ourselves Find compelling classroom resources, learn new teaching methods, meet standards, and make a difference in the lives of your students. This collection of educator resources includes a wide range of flexible materials. You will find resources that support teaching a complex moment in history or addressing today's breaking news.
ReadWriteThink mission is to provide educators, parents, and afterschool professionals with access to the highest quality practices in reading and language arts instruction by offering the very best in free materials.
Literacy Interventions provides educators and parents with access to the highest quality practices in reading and language arts instruction by offering the very best in free materials. This includes a series of reading lessons to support special education instructors, reading interventionists, and others working with students who struggle with reading.
UFLI Foundations Toolbox The University of Florida Literacy Institute (UFLI) is an ongoing effort by UF faculty and students to improve literacy outcomes for struggling students by addressing two key areas: reader development and teacher development. This toolbox contains all the lesson resources to accompany the lesson plans provided in the UFLI Foundations manual.

Social Studies - Lesson Planning Resources

Learning for Justice (Teaching Tolerance) Free educational resources—articles, guides, lessons, films, webinars, frameworks and more—that help foster shared learning and reflection for educators, young people, caregivers and all community members.
Facing History and Ourselves Find compelling classroom resources, learn new teaching methods, meet standards, and make a difference in the lives of your students. This collection of educator resources includes a wide range of flexible materials. You will find resources that support teaching a complex moment in history or addressing today's breaking news.
Smithsonian Educator Resources A wealth of resources and digital tools support inquiry-based learning and active engagement to spark creativity and curiosity. The Smithsonian Learning Lab allows you to create personal collections and individualized educational experiences. Smithsonian's History Explorer offers hundreds of free, innovative resources for learning about American history.
San Diego County Office of Education - American Indian Education. Includes resources for educators to teach Indigenous Peoples' Day and Thanksgiving.

Science & Math - Lesson Planning Resources

California Academy of Sciences - Science Lesson Plans includes short, lively activities to focus your class trip, or full-period lessons to integrate into your yearly curriculum.
National Science Teaching Association - Lesson plans from the National Science Teaching Association (NSTA), a community of science educators and professionals committed to best practices in teaching science and STEM and its impact on student learning.
Math Lesson Planning Guides from the Colorado Department of Education includes math-specific tools designed to help teachers think about, plan, and enact high-quality lessons.
Smithsonian Educator Resources A wealth of resources and digital tools support inquiry-based learning and active engagement to spark creativity and curiosity. The Smithsonian Learning Lab allows you to create personal collections and individualized educational experiences. The digital Game Center of the Smithsonian Science Education Center offers fun experiences for the young STEM learner.

Apps for Digital Lesson Planning

CommonLit is a comprehensive literacy program with thousands of reading lessons, full-year ELA curriculum, benchmark assessments, and standards-based data for teachers
Newsela is an instructional content tool that allows teachers to find articles with appropriate reading levels for their students. Newsela articles also feature questions and writing prompts that align with common core standards.

Websites with Free Premium Features for California Teachers

Try using your Cal Poly Humboldt email address to register and utilize features on the following websites:

Lexile The Lexile frameworks for reading and listening help educators and parents match students to materials at the right level of difficulty.
California State Library - Databases for K-12 Students and Educators California offers — at no cost to public schools, districts, local libraries or students — access to online educational content from Britannica, ProQuest, TeachingBooks and Gale for use by every public K-12 school and student in the state.