# UDL Lesson Plan: [Lesson title]

> Lesson plan template structured by the Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
> Guidelines 3.0 from CAST (released 2024-07-30). It starts from a clear goal,
> anticipates barriers in the lesson design rather than in the learners, and
> plans options for engagement, representation, and action and expression,
> then checks the timed sequence and assessment against them. Replace every
> `[bracketed]` value and every row marked *Example*.

<!--
Guidance: How to use this template
- Separate the goal from the means. Keep the goal firm and make the ways of
  reaching and showing it flexible. If the goal is "understand food webs",
  writing a paragraph is one means, not the goal.
- Look for barriers in the materials, tasks and environment, not in
  individual students. Do not record diagnoses or other personal data in a
  shared lesson plan; follow individual support plans through the proper
  channel.
- You do not need an option for every guideline in every lesson. Pick the
  few that remove the biggest barriers for this goal.
- The worked example is a 50-minute lower-secondary science lesson on food
  webs for a class of 28. Replace it with your own lesson.
-->

## Document control

<!-- Guidance: Identify the lesson and where it sits in the unit. Shared plans need an owner and a version so colleagues reuse the latest one. -->

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Plan ID | [LP-UDL-2026-012] |
| Teacher | [@teacher] |
| Co-planner or support staff | [@name] |
| Subject and level | [Science, Grade 7] |
| Unit and lesson | [Ecosystems, lesson 5 of 10] |
| Date and duration | YYYY-MM-DD, [50 minutes] |
| Class | [7A, 28 students] |
| Curriculum reference | [Standard or curriculum code] |
| Version | [1.0] |
| Status | [Draft / Ready / Taught / Reviewed] |
| Last updated | YYYY-MM-DD |

### Revision history

| Version | Date | Author | Change summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | YYYY-MM-DD | [@teacher] | First version |
| 1.1 | YYYY-MM-DD | [@teacher] | *Example:* Card-sort option added after reflection on lesson 4 |

## Contents

<!-- Guidance: Keep this list in step with the headings. -->

1. [Goal](#1-goal)
2. [Anticipated barriers](#2-anticipated-barriers)
3. [UDL planning grid](#3-udl-planning-grid)
4. [Lesson sequence](#4-lesson-sequence)
5. [Assessment](#5-assessment)
6. [Materials and accessibility check](#6-materials-and-accessibility-check)
7. [Reflection after the lesson](#7-reflection-after-the-lesson)
8. [Glossary and references](#8-glossary-and-references)
9. [Standard and licence note](#standard-and-licence-note)

## 1. Goal

<!-- Guidance: Write one goal that states what students will know or be able to do, separate from how they will do it. Share the goal with students in plain words, and explain why it matters. -->

| Item | Entry |
|---|---|
| Lesson goal | *Example:* Explain how energy moves through a food web and predict what happens when one population changes |
| Student-friendly version | *Example:* "I can show how energy moves from one living thing to another, and say what happens if one of them disappears." |
| Why it matters | *Example:* Links to the local wetland study in lesson 8 |
| Success criteria | *Example:* (1) Arrows point in the direction energy flows. (2) Producers, consumers and decomposers are identified. (3) One prediction is justified with the web |
| Prior knowledge needed | *Example:* Food chains from lesson 4; vocabulary: producer, consumer |

## 2. Anticipated barriers

<!-- Guidance: Ask: where could a student who wants to learn this get stuck because of how the lesson is designed? Think about reading load, vocabulary, sensory access, working memory, motivation, language, physical access and anxiety. -->

| ID | Barrier in the design | Who it could affect | Option that reduces it |
|---|---|---|---|
| BAR-01 *(Example)* | The textbook diagram is dense and small | Students who find dense text or small images hard to process | Enlarged, colour-plus-label diagram and a tactile card version |
| BAR-02 *(Example)* | New vocabulary (herbivore, decomposer, trophic level) | Students learning the language of instruction, students who missed lesson 4 | Illustrated word wall and a glossary card with home-language column |
| BAR-03 *(Example)* | Written paragraph is the only way to show the prediction | Students whose writing lags behind their understanding | Choice of written, drawn-and-labelled or recorded spoken explanation |
| BAR-04 *(Example)* | Open task with no checkpoints | Students who find planning a multi-step task hard | Three-step checklist on the desk and a timer on screen |
| [BAR-NN] | [Barrier] | [Who] | [Option] |

## 3. UDL planning grid

<!-- Guidance: Record the options you will actually offer, linked to the UDL guideline they support. The guideline numbers and names below follow UDL Guidelines 3.0; check https://udlguidelines.cast.org/ for the current version and the checkpoints under each guideline. -->

The UDL Guidelines 3.0 group nine guidelines under three principles:
Engagement (guidelines 7 to 9), Representation (1 to 3), and Action and
Expression (4 to 6). Each guideline has numbered checkpoints, for example 7.1
under guideline 7, that suggest concrete design options.

| Principle | Guideline (3.0) | Option planned for this lesson |
|---|---|---|
| Engagement | 7 Welcoming Interests and Identities | *Example:* Students choose to build the web for a wetland, a forest or a city park |
| Engagement | 8 Sustaining Effort and Persistence | *Example:* Mixed-ability pairs with defined roles; feedback against the three success criteria |
| Engagement | 9 Emotional Capacity | *Example:* Brief check-in on how confident students feel before and after the task |
| Representation | 1 Perception | *Example:* Diagram on screen, on paper and as tactile cards; video with captions |
| Representation | 2 Language and Symbols | *Example:* Word wall with images; arrow convention explained explicitly ("arrow means energy goes to") |
| Representation | 3 Building Knowledge | *Example:* Link to last lesson's food chain; highlight the pattern "producers at the bottom" |
| Action and Expression | 4 Interaction | *Example:* Build the web with cards, on a tablet app or drawn on paper |
| Action and Expression | 5 Expression and Communication | *Example:* Prediction as written paragraph, labelled drawing or 60-second audio |
| Action and Expression | 6 Strategy Development | *Example:* Desk checklist: place producers, add consumers, draw arrows, check |

## 4. Lesson sequence

<!-- Guidance: Plan timed activities. Note for each step which options are available and how students know about them. Check that the total matches the lesson length. -->

| Time | Minutes | Activity | Options available | Guideline links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-5 *(Example)* | 5 | Hook: short captioned video of a wetland; goal shared | Transcript on paper; goal read aloud and displayed | 1, 7 |
| 5-15 *(Example)* | 10 | Mini-lesson: from food chain to food web, worked example | Word wall; paused questions; diagram handout | 2, 3 |
| 15-30 *(Example)* | 15 | Pairs build a food web for their chosen habitat | Cards, tablet or paper; desk checklist; timer | 4, 6, 7, 8 |
| 30-40 *(Example)* | 10 | Gallery walk: pairs give one piece of feedback using the success criteria | Sentence starters for feedback | 8 |
| 40-47 *(Example)* | 7 | Show what you know: "What happens if the frog population falls?" | Written, drawn or recorded response | 5 |
| 47-50 *(Example)* | 3 | Reflection: confidence check and one question for next lesson | Thumb scale or written note | 9 |
| **Total** | **50** | | | |

The diagram shows the lesson flow and where students choose a path.

```mermaid
flowchart LR
  H["Hook and goal"] --> M["Mini-lesson"]
  M --> B{"Choose habitat and tool"}
  B --> C["Cards"]
  B --> T["Tablet"]
  B --> P["Paper"]
  C --> G["Gallery walk feedback"]
  T --> G
  P --> G
  G --> S{"Choose response format"}
  S --> W["Written"]
  S --> D["Drawn and labelled"]
  S --> R["Recorded"]
  W --> X["Reflection"]
  D --> X
  R --> X
```

## 5. Assessment

<!-- Guidance: Assess the goal, not the format. Use the same success criteria for every response format, so a recorded answer is judged on the science, not on the medium. -->

| Evidence | Format options | Criteria | How feedback is given |
|---|---|---|---|
| *Example:* Food web from the paired task | Cards (photographed), tablet export, paper | Success criteria 1 and 2 | Peer feedback in gallery walk; teacher spot checks |
| *Example:* Prediction about the frog population | Written, drawn and labelled, or recorded | Success criterion 3 | Teacher comment before lesson 6 |
| [Evidence] | [Formats] | [Criteria] | [Feedback] |

For a scored task, describe the criteria with `education/rubric`.

## 6. Materials and accessibility check

<!-- Guidance: List every material and check it before the lesson. Digital materials should meet your institution's accessibility standard, for example WCAG 2.2 Level AA. -->

| Material | Format | Accessibility check |
|---|---|---|
| *Example:* Wetland video | MP4 | Captions checked; transcript printed |
| *Example:* Food web cards | Printed, large type; tactile set | Labels in text as well as colour |
| *Example:* Tablet app | Class tablets | Works with keyboard and screen reader; offline copy |
| *Example:* Desk checklist | Printed and on screen | Plain language, numbered steps |
| [Material] | [Format] | [Check] |

## 7. Reflection after the lesson

<!-- Guidance: Fill within a day. Note which options students used and whether the barriers you anticipated appeared. Feed changes into the next lesson plan. -->

| Question | Notes |
|---|---|
| Did students reach the goal? What is the evidence? | [*Example:* 22 of 28 predictions met criterion 3] |
| Which options were used, and by whom (in general terms)? | [*Example:* About half used cards; 6 recorded their prediction] |
| Which barriers appeared that were not planned for? | [Notes] |
| What will I change next time? | [Notes] |

## 8. Glossary and references

<!-- Guidance: Define UDL terms for colleagues who are new to the framework. -->

| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| UDL | Universal Design for Learning: a framework for designing learning that works for the full range of learners from the start |
| Learner variability | The normal, expected differences in how people learn |
| Firm goal, flexible means | Keeping the learning goal the same for everyone while offering several ways to reach and show it |
| Barrier | A feature of the design, materials or environment that blocks learning for some students |

References:

- CAST (2024). *Universal Design for Learning Guidelines version 3.0*.
  https://udlguidelines.cast.org/
- Related templates: `education/lesson-plan`, `education/lesson-plan-ubd`,
  `education/unit-plan`, `education/assessment-blueprint`.

## Standard and licence note

Structure aligned with the UDL Guidelines 3.0 published by CAST (2024),
cited by name with the guideline numbers and short names only; the
checkpoint text and graphic organiser are not reproduced. Check
https://udlguidelines.cast.org/ for the current version. The guidelines are a
design framework, not a legal accessibility standard; disability and
accessibility obligations depend on your jurisdiction and institution. This
template is original text written for this collection; the example lesson is
illustrative. Template licence: MIT.