There are both formal and informal ways to evaluate your lesson plans. Formal evaluations are usually conducted by someone else, such as your supervisor, department chairperson, administrator or teacher mentor. When conducting a formal evaluation, the evaluator usually looks at your lesson plans in advance and then observes your classroom to see the plans in action. While this process may make you feel anxious, it is definitely to your advantage in the long run to receive constructive feedback now on this critical aspect of teaching. You may feel more comfortable approaching an experienced teacher to look over your plans and discuss with you any obvious problems before your formal evaluation. Informal evaluations are the ones that you conduct yourself. You know your lesson plans have problems if: Your students are bored, inattentive or acting out in class. You run out of things to do ten minutes before the bell rings. Your students are not able to perform well on assessments. Writing them is so time-consuming that you are way behind on writing out your daily plans. The homework you assign is not connected to classroom work. Your daily plans are not strongly tied to yearly goals. If you are experiencing any of the descriptions listed above, you need to take the time now to review the materials on this website and seek assistance from your administrators or colleagues. Everyone connected with your school, including teachers, students, parents and administrators wants you to be successful in the classroom. Carefully planning and evaluating your lesson plans are valuable skills that you can acquire with practice.