How to organize the time of the class?

The time in the classroom is essential to organize the activities you want to work with the students. You don't want to extend the time for a certain activity because they will get bored, and if you go so fast, students will get lost.

In the same way you have a lesson plan with the contents, you need a plan for the time of every class. This is what I personally do:

1.- Administrative time: It is the time given to wait the students in the classroom, let them take and organize their own material, I check the attendance, and I set my own material too.

2.-Introduction: I explain what we will do and how, the kind of evaluation, and the most important thing... the goal of the class. They must know that if they will do an activity, it is because there is a clear reason for it. (I told my students that they have the right to do nothing if they don't know the goal of the class).

3.-Content and activities: As a teacher of English, this is the time I use to work with the students. Starting with a listening comprehension activity, then, reading comprehension, writing and at the end, as a way to show what they did, oral activities. They must speak in English.

4.-The reinforcement: Actually the Oral activity is the one I choose to reinforce all the previous work done in the class.

5.-Summary Tip: Students must write the summary of the class or summary of the unit.

I know there must be different ways to organize the time. But it is important to have a clear plan to use every minute wisely. So, don't forget to have a clock or watch at your side.