If you are an English teacher, then you know how frustrating it can be to plan fresh, new classes for your English students each week. Even though your teacher book gives you some great ideas not all of them are practical enough for your classroom. You often have to come up with a few exercises and ideas of your own to fill in as needed.

The first thing you need to do is to get away. Go somewhere quiet where you can really focus and concentrate. Do not forget to take a notepad and some pens. That is about all you will need for now.

First, take a moment to clear your mind of all other distractions and prepare yourself mentally for the task at hand. Okay! Are you ready? Good!

Now think about the first group of students you need to plan for. Think about their needs. What do they know? What do they need to know to become more fluent and proficient speakers of the English language? How can you teach them what they need to know?

Just brainstorm for a few minutes and see what comes up. Write everything down. No idea is too crazy or unimportant. Once you have drained your brain...write out your best ideas on a separate sheet of paper. These are the ones that you will implement in your classes during the following week.

Do not throw away the ideas that are left over though. Save them in a safe place for you to refer to during future planning sessions. This will keep you from having to think so hard the next time.

Now, go to your computer and do some research on the Internet. Take each of your ideas to the next level. Drill down into each one of them vertically. Go just as deep as you can. Then find other ideas that you can add on horizontally to broaden your lesson plans. These are all ideas that complement your original, brainstormed ideas.

If you have made it this far...then the rest is a piece of cake. Just pick out the best of the best of your ideas and add them to your lesson plans. Prepare the materials and resources you will need for each exercise. Make copies of any handouts you intend to pass out to your students.

Do this for each group of students you teach. Once you are done, organize everything in a handy place like a folder or filing cabinet. Do a quick check to make sure you did not forget anything.

Now you can go grab yourself a big, cold cup of coca-cola (or other beverage of choice) and relax until it's time to teach your classes.