Clear learning objectives are the foundation of any strong lesson plan. SMART Goals are intentionally "plan[ned] out achievable, realistic goals that will help you to overcome the struggle of getting to your goals."
💡 Tip: Start with your objectives, then use them to shape your plan's activities, assessments, and instructional strategies.
Bloom’s Taxonomy is a widely used framework that helps educators write meaningful, measurable objectives by breaking down the ways students engage with content, making it easier to plan instruction and assess learning.
Originally developed in 1956 by Benjamin Bloom and colleagues, the taxonomy outlined six levels of cognitive learning: Knowledge, Comprehension, Application, Analysis, Synthesis, and Evaluation ranging from basic recall to complex critical thinking. In 2001, the taxonomy was revised to better reflect how students actively engage with learning. The updated version uses action-oriented verbs to describe cognitive processes.
These categories represent a progression from lower-order to higher-order thinking and can guide you in writing objectives that align with your lesson goals. For example, instead of "Students will understand photosynthesis," a Bloom's-informed objective might be, "Students will explain the process of photosynthesis" or "Students will construct a diagram illustrating the steps."
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