ABSTRACT
One of the essentials of good teaching is planning. The planning, though, needs to inform and support the teaching rather than becoming an end in itself. For so many teachers planning is an activity that demands time, effort and paper but remains a clerical exercise to keep other people content as opposed to an activity that forms the foundation for effective teaching. The challenge for the English coordinator is to set up effective planning systems that are economic with time, help teachers to teach well, and ensure the best possible learning chances for children. It is often argued that the process of producing a planning framework is as important as the product. The process is important but most would agree that when it is sorted out it is a weight off the mind. Better to have it done and systems in operation with routine review than constantly working towards something that will be finished one day.
