Most teachers turn to Google Sheets and Google Docs because they’re quick and familiar. But building a lesson plan from scratch every time? That’s just busywork with a prettier font.
This post cuts through the noise. We’ve rounded up five Google Sheets lesson plan templates you can plug in and use today. Plus, check out templates designed to help you plan, organize, and teach without losing hours to formatting and rework.
👀 Did You Know? Lesson planning as we know it today was influenced by John Dewey, a groundbreaking American philosopher and educator. While Dewey didn’t invent lesson plans, he reshaped how they’re used by emphasizing experiential learning and making lessons relevant to students’ lives. His focus on hands-on, real-world experiences continues to guide modern educational practices.
Free Google Sheets Lesson Plan Template for Educators
5 Google Sheets Lesson Plan Templates
These five Google Sheets templates are built for quick wins. Whether you plan by the week, teach younger students, or work around a specific theme, each offers a practical layout that you can tweak without overthinking.
1. Google Sheets Lesson Plan Template by Template.Net
The Google Sheet Lesson Plan Template by Template.net gives you a complete view of your lesson—from objectives to assessments—all laid out in a simple, editable format. It’s free and includes dedicated sections for learning goals, required materials, teaching strategies, differentiation methods, and even post-lesson reflection.
The structure is designed for teachers who want clarity and consistency across lessons without the need to reformat every lesson.
In a real classroom setting, it helps you:
- Cover lesson title, grade, subject, duration, and teacher name
- Include clear sections for objectives, materials, and activities
- Provide built-in prompts for instructional strategies, differentiation, and assessments
- Streamline admin reviews or co-planning with other educators
- Support after-class reflection for continuous improvement
🖊️ Ideal for Upper elementary or middle school teachers who need a free full-scope template to plan, execute, and evaluate their lessons in one place.
2. Google Sheets Lesson Plan Template by GooDocs
The Google Sheets Lesson Plan Template by GooDocs is a bright, easy-to-follow weekly lesson planner, built for speed and simplicity. It gives educators a clear snapshot of their entire week, with labeled spaces for daily activities, objectives, and subject planning.
The layout is fully editable and stripped down to just the essentials—ideal for anyone who needs to map out lessons fast without getting bogged down in formatting.
Here’s what makes it worthwhile in a real classroom setting:
- Offer a weekday breakdown from Monday to Friday
- Include space for weekly objectives and activity notes
- Use a minimalist format for quick editing and reuse
- Stay on top of lesson flow with ease
- Add visual clarity with a color-coded layout
🖊️ Ideal for: Kindergarten or elementary teachers who want a quick glance at a weekly digital planner with a clean, colorful design.
🧠 Fun Fact: Prefer using AI to design your work? You’re in good company. 71% of teachers and 65% of students believe artificial intelligence tools are essential for success in both college and the workplace.
3. Google Sheets Dark Theme Lesson Plan Template by GooDocs
The Google Sheets Dark Theme Lesson Plan Template offers a clean, high-contrast layout with extra space for detailed notes and instructions. It’s designed for lessons that require more explanation, making it a good fit for subjects that involve step-by-step guidance or extended remarks.
With two sections for subject, topic, and teacher info, plus a large field for activities and observations, it helps keep all your content in one place. This prevents cramming everything into small boxes.
Here’s how it helps in a real classroom setting:
- Feature a bold, high-contrast design that’s easy on the eyes
- Offer generous space for writing detailed lesson notes and feedback
- Include clear fields for subject, topic, and teacher assignment
- Plan multi-phase lessons or guided discussions with ease
- Print or share digitally with minimal formatting tweaks
🖊️ Ideal for: High school or upper-grade educators who need extra space to break down complex topics and track lesson insights.
4. Google Sheets Study Plan Template by Google Sheets Templates
If you’re a student, a robust study plan can make or break your schedule. The Google Sheets Study Plan Template by Google Sheets Template is designed for students who need a simple, visual way to manage their weekly workload—especially when compared to traditional paper planners.
It breaks down tasks day by day—homework, quiz prep, readings—so nothing slips through the cracks.
The layout is clean, distraction-free, and easily adjusted as deadlines shift. Whether prepping for an exam or just trying to stay ahead of assignments, this template helps you build a routine that sticks.
This study planner, in a real academic setting, helps:
- Organize study tasks from Monday through Saturday
- Include editable blocks for homework, readings, and group sessions
- Track assignments and deadlines at a glance
- Print or use digitally as a daily reference
- Plan for midterms, finals, or weekly review schedules
🖊️ Ideal for: Educators supporting students with test prep routines or independent study plans, especially in high school or early college settings.
5. Google Sheets Kindergarten Lesson Plan Template by Google Sheets Template
Running a kindergarten isn’t child’s play (pun not intended!). The Google Sheets Kindergarten Lesson Plan Template is built for simplicity and focus—perfect for instructors who need structure and clarity in their lesson planning.
It offers clear blocks for daily lessons, activities, priorities, objectives, and schedules, helping teachers organize the day without overcomplicating the layout. There’s also room for notes and materials, making it easy to prep everything in advance and avoid last-minute scrambling.
Key features that support classroom success:
- Use a simple, visual layout broken into intuitive sections
- Include space for lessons, objectives, daily schedule, and student-facing priorities
- Map out classroom activities with flexibility
- Prep materials and communicate student needs with ease
- Keep your day organized without adding planning overhead
🖊️ Ideal for: Kindergarten teachers who need a clear, visual day plan that balances structure with flexibility for young learners.
Limitations of Using Google Sheets for Lesson Planning
For many educators, Google Sheets is the fastest way to organize a plan. It’s familiar, flexible, and free—and you can access it easily via Google Drive.
But once you move past simple scheduling or start managing more detailed instruction, its limits become clear—especially if you’re trying to collaborate, personalize learning, or track real progress.
Here’s where Google Sheets starts to fall short for lesson planning:
- Version control gets complicated fast: Whether co-planning with another teacher or sharing weekly plans with a department head, it’s easy to lose track of changes. Without built-in collaboration tools for students and teachers, edits happen in silos and alignment slips
- Lacks automation, integrations, or support for recurring tasks: Every task—from copying rows to updating lesson dates—must be done manually. Tools designed for education and training software can automate those repetitive actions, allowing you to spend more time teaching
- Doesn’t track lesson progress or outcomes: Sheets lets you write down what’s planned—but not what’s been taught, adjusted, or completed. There’s no built-in way to check off what’s done or reflect on how a class went
- Makes digital planning nearly impossible: Need to see how your week looks at a glance? Want to map out lesson pacing or standards coverage across the month? Without timeline views, calendars, or dependency tracking, Google Sheets can’t do what even the simplest Google Sheets alternatives offer out of the box
- Makes content feel disconnected and hard to structure: Drafting lesson objectives, writing activity instructions, or outlining assessments can feel clunky. Especially when compared to using AI writing tools that help structure your thoughts as you plan
Google Sheets is still a helpful tool—but if your planning process has outgrown the spreadsheet, there are better ways to build and manage your lessons.
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The Best Alternative to Google Sheets Lesson Plan Templates
If you’re ready to level up managing lessons, materials, student progress, and feedback in one place, —the everything app for work—is just for you. It combines project management, knowledge management, and chat—all powered by AI that helps you work faster and smarter.
templates are built for real classroom workflows, making them useful for both teachers and administrators. They’re not just editable files—they’re visual, dynamic, and collaborative systems that help you organize plans, track progress, manage schedules, and adapt in real time. Everything’s connected, and nothing slips through the cracks.
Here are some alternatives that work better:
1. College Lesson Plan Template
The College Lesson Plan Template gives professors a more innovative way to structure, track, and refine their course content. It’s built for long-term lesson planning—connecting learning objectives to real outcomes better while keeping materials, timelines, and feedback loops in one place.
Setting smart goals from the start ensures your course planning stays focused and measurable.
With this template, you can:
- Organize your workflow by ADDIE phases: Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, Evaluation
- Manage and centralize your lesson content across custom lesson plan views
- Track lesson progress through Custom Statuses
- Keep faculty and collaborators aligned with built-in updates and task visibility
- Monitor planning efficiency with time tracking and milestone markers
🖊️ Ideal for: College instructors building semester-long lesson plans who need structure, flexibility, and visibility across every planning phase.
2. Syllabus Planning Template
Move beyond static documents and download an actionable syllabus with the Syllabus Planning Template. This template combines structure with flexibility so you can plan topics, deadlines, and materials in one place—and then adapt as your course evolves.
It also complements broader university management software by giving you hands-on control over lesson details and daily progress tracking.
Use this template to:
- Create a visual roadmap of your course with Timeline View
- Track deadlines and deliverables through Calendar and Board views
- Organize lessons and assignments using Custom Statuses across stages
- Centralize resources, grading criteria, and topic schedules in one shareable workspace
- Stay informed with notifications, eliminating manual follow-ups
🖊️ Ideal for: Educators developing semester-long syllabi who want a system to structure, track, and adapt plans in real time, while making time sifting through endless updates and revisions a thing of the past.
💡 Pro Tip: Color-code different sections of your lesson plan for quick access. For instance, use one color for homework tasks, a different color for assessments, and a third for in-class activities. This makes it much easier to scroll and find specific tasks, saving you time when you search, review, or update your plan.
3. Class Planning Template
If your work is scattered across multiple platforms, you’re wasting so much time before and during class. The Class Planning Template enables educators to manage all aspects of class planning in one place, from lessons and assignments to daily tasks and class-wide goals.
Instead of juggling documents and timelines, you can map your schedule, store materials, and track everything without switching tabs. It also makes it easy to start planning from scratch—just open up Docs to outline your class goals and topics before building out the rest.
This template lets you:
- Stay focused on what’s due now with the This Week and Today views
- Organize class tasks by status: To Do, Pass, Fail, or Archived
- Store and manage class-specific details in one view with All Lists
- Reference helpful tips and resources through the built-in Guide View
- Monitor class planning efficiency with status updates and task tracking
- Collaborate with teaching assistants or co-educators in real time
🖊️ Ideal for: Instructors managing multiple classes who want to streamline lesson planning, deadlines, and daily classroom tasks in one system.
4. Classroom Management Plan Template
Want to look at all your classes at a glance? The Classroom Management Plan Template gives teachers the structure to manage behavior, expectations, and classroom routines in one place.
From tracking progress to streamlining parent communication, this template transforms reactive discipline into proactive planning. It allows you to focus on building a safe and supportive learning environment.
You can also add scheduling tools like Calendar, an AI-powered calendar that helps you manage your daily routines and timelines.
Watch this video to learn more about what Calendar can do for you.
Use this template to:
- Track student profiles and classroom dynamics with the Class List view
- Build a clear behavior plan using the Getting Started Guide
- Organize key dates, activities, and routines in the Class Calendar view
- Monitor task progress and rule enforcement with the Gantt chart
- Track actions across To Do, In Progress, and Complete statuses
- Keep your team aligned with real-time updates and communication tools
🖊️ Ideal for: K-12 educators who need a flexible yet structured way to manage classroom behavior, routines, and student accountability.
5. Teacher Action Plan Template
The Teacher Action Plan Template helps educators turn planning into progress.
Whether preparing lessons, setting academic goals, or tackling classroom challenges, this template provides a simple structure to track tasks, define expectations, and evaluate outcomes—without needing to switch between teaching tools or paperwork.
This template lets you:
- Set and track academic or behavioral goals using the Goals View
- Break down long-term plans with the Timeline View for clearer pacing
- Organize daily tasks by phase in the Action Steps View
- Get up and running fast with a built-in Getting Started Guide
- Move tasks through stages like To Do, In Progress, and Complete to stay accountable
- Analyze performance trends and adjust your action plan as needed
🖊️ Ideal for: Teachers who want a structured daily plan to align goals, stay consistent, and clearly manage classroom responsibilities.
6. Classroom Schedule Template
If you’re a teacher looking to organize, adapt, and manage your day clearly, the Classroom Schedule Template is the perfect place to begin. Whether balancing multiple subjects or working group activities, this template offers the structure you need—while giving you the flexibility to customize each schedule by student, topic, or period.
It can also complement other support tools, like AI tools for students, to keep learning outcomes aligned and timely.
With this template, you can:
- Plan and group subject-wise activities using 15 different views
- Track class attendance with statuses like Absent, Attended, Class Cancelled, and To Attend
- Assign tasks and timelines to specific students or class sections
- Monitor real-time progress using the Table view
- Set notifications and reminders for activity start and end times
- Hold collaborative reviews and update lesson statuses throughout the day
🖊️ Ideal for: Teachers managing subject-wise schedules or multi-classroom planning who need a clear structure with customizable views.
7. Class Schedule and Time Study Template
The Class Schedule and Time Study Template gives students and teachers the tools to structure their academic day with clarity.
From weekly classes and assignment deadlines to long-term study goals, this template helps you prioritize, schedule, and track everything in one centralized system. This ensures that nothing falls through the cracks, even during peak workload weeks.
This template lets you:
- Focus on what matters most each week with the Priorities View
- Track long-term goals through the YEAR View and monitor key milestones
- Visualize your day-to-day workload with the Timeline View
- Jumpstart planning with the Start Here View and organize your schedule quickly
- Map out classes, due dates, and study sessions using the Class Schedule View
- Move tasks through statuses like To Do, In Progress, and Complete as you go
🖊️ Ideal for: Students balancing classes, assignments, and study blocks—or teachers supporting students with structured academic planning tools.
8. Hourly Schedule Template
Can structuring your academic day be stress-free? With the Hourly Schedule Template, it can be!
This template is built for teachers, students, and professionals who need structure without stress. From planning classes and assignments to managing task payouts or priorities, this template brings everything into one organized system, so your hours are spent getting things done, not figuring out what to do next.
Use this template to:
- Map daily schedules hour-by-hour with the Weekly Calendar view
- Store and plan tasks with ease using the Getting Started Guide
- Move tasks through statuses like To Do, In Progress, Complete, and Cancelled
- Automate reminders to help stay on track without micromanaging your time
- Monitor progress through Dashboards and adjust your day as needed
🖊️ Ideal for: Teachers and homeschoolers managing lesson blocks and daily class schedules, hour by hour.
9. Special Education Classroom Schedule Template
The Special Education Classroom Schedule Template helps educators plan flexible, student-centered schedules tailored to individual learning needs. Whether you coordinate lesson times, provide staff support, or arrange student accommodations, this template gives you a clear and editable framework to manage everything in one place.
You can also pair it with KWL templates or similar learning aids to track progress and support IEP goals more effectively.
Let this template:
- Organize daily activities with the All Classes Activities view
- Track class-specific notes using the Special Education Class Notes view
- Build clear, editable schedules for each class in the Class Schedule view
- Get started quickly with a step-by-step setup guide
- Monitor tasks across Cancelled, Complete, and To Do statuses
- Assign responsibilities and adjust schedules with Automations as needed
🖊️ Ideal for: Teachers and special education coordinators planning student-specific schedules, learning support, and classroom routines.
💡 Pro Tip: Allow flexibility in your scheduling. Even if you have specific time blocks for each lesson or activity, life in the classroom can be unpredictable. Add buffer time for spontaneous discussions, student questions, or additional activities, so you’re not stuck rushing through the rest of the plan.
10. Class Notes Template
Juggling printouts and loose sheets making you scramble last minute? The Class Notes Template can help you organize your learning better.
It gives you a structured, easy-to-use system to track your notes, assignments, and class-specific insights—all in one place. Whether you’re sitting in a lecture or revisiting topics later, this Doc-based template keeps everything connected and searchable.
With this template, you can:
- Organize subject notes, assignments, and links inside a structured Doc
- Jump to specific sections with a pre-built, clickable table of contents
- Leave in-context comments on notes to follow up with teachers later
- Capture thoughts instantly using the pinned Notepad
- Duplicate and tailor note layouts for each project, topic, or semester
- Format notes with tables, headings, tasks, and embedded links
🖊️ Ideal for: Educators who want a clean, searchable note-taking tool system to stay organized and make study sessions more productive.
11. Class Assignment Template
The Class Assignment Template takes the stress out of managing student work. Teachers can organize tasks, set deadlines, and track grades in one place—without the hassle of spreadsheets.
For more complex assignments, you can also link resources or use training video software to visually guide students through instructions, saving time and reducing confusion.
Use this template to:
- Track every assignment using the List or Due Date view
- Assign tasks to students and monitor their real-time progress
- Use built-in rubrics to standardize grading and feedback
- Add notes, checklists, and links to support materials
- Categorize assignments by type (Exams, Papers, Group Work) for easy filtering
- Keep students in the loop with automated reminders and status updates
🖊️ Ideal for: Teachers managing multiple student assignments across classes and looking for a single source of truth to streamline instruction and grading.
12. Student Progress Template
If you’ve been relying on tracking your students’ academic journey on static Google Sheets, there’s a better way! The Student Progress Template combines performance tracking, behavioral insights, and action planning in one space—so you never miss a red flag or growth opportunity.
Whether managing individual progress reports or addressing class-wide trends, this template helps you identify patterns early and take action quickly.
Let this template:
- Track key milestones and tailor support for each student using the Guide View
- Monitor behavioral challenges and trends via the Behaviour Issues View
- Flag students who need extra support in the Needs Attention View
- View overall student performance at a glance in the List View
- Categorize progress using clear statuses like “Doing Well” or “Needs Confidence Built”
- Track key info like effort, behavior, parent contact, and more with Custom Fields
🖊️ Ideal for: Teachers and homeschoolers who need a centralized tool to track academic and behavioral performance across all students.
13. Student Education Template
Staying on top of assignments, coursework, and academic goals can be a challenge with scattered notes and multiple apps. With the Student Education Template, organize tasks, manage coursework, and track academic goals without scattered notes or multiple apps.
Whether you’re a student or an educator, you can keep everything in one file. For broader academic planning, Education also lets institutions simplify education management by centralizing academic and administrative resources in one spot.
With this template, you can:
- Organize course material and schedules using the Curriculum View
- Track course dependencies with the Prerequisites View
- Share tips and materials via the Getting Started Guide
- Visualize class progress with statuses like In Progress, To Take, and Complete
- Plan ahead using Milestones and the Gantt Chart
- Monitor and adjust tasks with real-time updates and recurring check-ins
🖊️ Ideal for: Teachers and homeschoolers managing course schedules, prerequisites, and student assignments in one organized system.
💡Use AI to draft lesson plans in minutes
Whether teaching math and science to fifth graders or managing reading time across multiple grade levels, Brain helps you skip the blank page. Just start your AI lesson planning by describing your learning goal, class context, and schedule. It builds a structured lesson with pacing, activities, and checkpoints.
Just a lesson plan generator that fits your teaching style and time block.
Here’s an example 👇


What Makes a Good Google Sheets Lesson Plan Template?
Not every Google Sheets template is created for secondary teachers’ planning needs. The best ones aren’t just editable; they’re built to match how educators think, teach, and adapt throughout the week.
Here’s what makes a Google Sheets lesson plan template worth using:
- A weekly or daily structure: Some lessons require a big-picture view, while others need a tight, day-by-day plan. Good templates give you both
- Clear space for goals and standards: Whether aligning with curriculum frameworks or creating your own, having objectives upfront keeps planning focused
- Editable sections for activities, materials, and timing: The ability to tweak lesson flow—without breaking the layout—is key, especially when your day shifts on the fly
- Easy collaboration and sharing: Templates should work for and with you, whether you’re co-teaching, planning across subjects, or sharing plans with admin
Templates that follow these basics give you the same planning flexibility as many daily planner apps, but without starting from a blank grid every time.
Map Out Lessons, Track Progress, and Stay Flexible with
Google Sheets might help you get started, but it wasn’t built for the realities of the classroom. templates go further; they’re built to help teachers make planning a more streamlined part of their day.
Every template is customizable, shareable, and free to use, from organizing class schedules to tracking student progress. You can spend less time piecing things together and more time focused on teaching.
Plus, with flexible views, automation, and tools like Brain, you’re not just staying organized; you’re teaching more effectively without adding extra hours to your day.
Sign up for to simplify planning and reclaim your prep time.


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