Unit planner

Give Heapso the topic, the number of weeks and lessons per week, and get a unit with a clear progression and every lesson outlined.

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What it does

A unit plan has a big idea, an overview, learning intentions, success criteria, key competencies, cross-curricular links and resources. Assessment points are placed in the weeks where they belong, marked as diagnostic, formative or summative.

Each lesson in the outline has a week, a title, a focus, learning intentions and activities. Choose Expand into full lesson on any of them and Heapso writes the full lesson plan, using the unit and the lessons either side so the sequence holds together.

Who it's for

Classroom teachers planning a term topic, syndicate and department leaders setting a shared unit, and NCEA teachers building up to an internal assessment.

Example

Our changing coastline

Year 7 Social Sciences, 4 weeks, 3 lessons a week

Big idea

People and natural forces both shape the places we live, and communities make choices about how to respond.

Assessment

Week 1: diagnostic quiz on landforms
Week 3: formative peer review of a cause-and-effect map
Week 4: summative presentation

Week 1 lessons

What is a coastline made of?
Erosion and deposition in action
Mapping our nearest coast

A shortened example. Real units list every lesson with its focus and activities.

Why teachers use it

A real progressionLessons build week by week, with assessment where it makes sense rather than bolted on at the end.
Any length1 to 12 weeks, 1 to 7 lessons a week, and the lesson length you teach.
Lessons on demandExpand one lesson at a time when you need it, linked back into the unit.
Built for internalsLink an NCEA standard and the unit teaches the skills first, with checkpoints before the assessment task.

How it works

Set the shapeTopic, year level, learning area, weeks and lessons per week.
Read the outlineBig idea, intentions, assessment points and every lesson in order.
Expand and resourceWrite any lesson in full, then make slides, worksheets or a quiz for it.

Questions teachers ask

How long can a unit be?

From 1 to 12 weeks, with 1 to 7 lessons a week. For a whole term of units, use the term planner.

Does it write every lesson in full?

The unit outlines every lesson. Expand any of them into a full lesson plan when you need it, so you only make what you'll teach.

Can I plan a unit for an NCEA standard?

Yes. Pick the standard from the NCEA suggestions or the /ncea pages and Heapso plans the teaching that leads up to it. The assessment itself follows your school's policy and NZQA's conditions.

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