Common Core Lesson Plan Template: Free Download and Example
A Common Core lesson plan starts from one standard, written out in full with its code, and builds the objective, the evidence and the lesson from it. Download our free template, then use the decoded codes and the 4th grade example below.
How to read a Common Core code
Every standard has a code that tells you the grade, the domain or strand, and where it sits. Copy the code and the full text into your plan, so anyone reading it knows exactly what you are teaching.
Math: CCSS.Math.Content.4.NF.A.1
- 4
Grade 4
- NF
Domain: Number and Operations, Fractions
- A
Cluster A: extend understanding of fraction equivalence and ordering
- 1
Standard 1: explain why a/b is equivalent to (n × a)/(n × b)
ELA: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.2
- RL
Strand: Reading Literature
- 5
Grade 5
- 2
Standard 2: determine a theme and summarize the text
Full text of every standard: thecorestandards.org.
The eight Standards for Mathematical Practice
In math, every lesson should also build at least one practice. Name it on the plan and say where students will use it.
Mathematical practices
- MP1
Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them
- MP2
Reason abstractly and quantitatively
- MP3
Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others
- MP4
Model with mathematics
- MP5
Use appropriate tools strategically
- MP6
Attend to precision
- MP7
Look for and make use of structure
- MP8
Look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning
In ELA, the equivalent is the anchor standards: broad college and career readiness standards that each grade's standard is numbered to match. RL.5.2, for example, builds toward reading anchor standard 2.
A filled-in Common Core lesson plan example
Here is the template filled in for one 4th grade math lesson on 4.NF.A.1.
Standards and goals
- Standard
CCSS.Math.Content.4.NF.A.1: explain why a/b equals (n × a)/(n × b) using visual fraction models, and use it to generate equivalent fractions
- Practice
MP3: construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others
- Objective
Students will use fraction models to show why two fractions are equivalent.
- Success criteria
I can show that 2/3 = 4/6 with a model and explain why.
Lesson sequence
- 0 to 8 min
Warm-up: two pizzas, one cut in 3 and one in 6. Who ate more, 2/3 or 4/6?
- 8 to 20 min
Model splitting each third into 2 equal parts: twice the parts, each half the size.
- 20 to 35 min
Pairs use area models to find two equivalent fractions for 1/2, 3/4 and 2/5, then justify one to another pair.
- 35 to 45 min
On their own: a page of model, write and explain problems.
- 45 to 50 min
Exit ticket: is 3/5 equal to 6/10? Draw a model and explain.
Common Core lesson planners
If you would rather plan online, these are the main options, from a free planbook to tools that make the lesson for you.
Planners
ChalkieOurs5 resources a week · From $8.99/mo · Aligned slides and worksheets
Common PlannerFree, with AI · From $5.59/mo · Week-by-week planbook
Planbook90-day trial · $20/yr · Cheap online planbook
Eduaide.aiLimited free plan · $49.99/yr · Plans in named frameworks
- Share My Lesson
Everything · Always free · Free lessons to adapt
Common Planner was called Common Curriculum until November 2025. It is not connected to the Common Core.
Make Common Core lessons in Chalkie
Chalkie aligns lessons and worksheets to the Common Core, or to your state's own standards, on Pro. Pick the grade and standard, and it builds a slide deck with images, checks for understanding and a matching worksheet. Teaching in Texas? Use our TEKS lesson plan template instead.
A 4th grade fractions lesson aligned to 4.NF, made in Chalkie.
Frequently asked questions
How do you write a Common Core lesson plan?
Start from one standard and copy its code and full text. Write an objective and success criteria from it, decide how students will show it, then plan the sequence. Add a mathematical practice or anchor standard.
How do you read a Common Core code?
In CCSS.Math.Content.4.NF.A.1, 4 is the grade, NF the domain, A the cluster and 1 the standard. In CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.2, RL is the strand, 5 the grade and 2 the standard.
Which states use the Common Core?
46 states adopted the Common Core at first. Alaska, Nebraska, Texas and Virginia never did, and many states have since revised or renamed their standards, so check your state's current version.
Is Common Planner the same as Common Core?
No. Common Planner, formerly Common Curriculum, is a lesson planning app. It renamed in November 2025 partly because people confused it with the Common Core.
What are the Common Core anchor standards?
Broad college and career readiness standards for ELA that each grade-level standard builds toward. Reading has ten, grouped into key ideas and details, craft and structure, integration of knowledge and ideas, and range of reading.