Common Planner

Overview

Common Planner is a web-based lesson-planning workspace for educators and school teams. Its strongest case is connecting teachers’ shared planning with leaders’ view of standards coverage and pacing. The trade-off is that several capabilities individual teachers may expect, including unit planning and automatic standards tracking, require Pro.

Key features

Teachers can create lesson and unit plans, organize classes, and reuse lessons and planbooks across school years. Reusing plans can cut repeat setup for recurring courses, but unit planning is a Pro feature. Teachers can search for standards, attach them to units, and track standards they have taught; automatic standards tracking is also reserved for Pro.

Shared planbooks support co-planning, sharing plans with administrators, and borrowing other teachers’ plans. Pro allows up to five collaborators, while the Schools plan supports collaboration with anyone in the school. For leadership, Common Planner provides planning-status, standards-coverage, and pacing views, as well as comments directly on lesson plans. The school product’s AI-assisted insights aim to identify missing standards, pacing issues, and instructional gaps.

Basic includes an AI-powered lesson assistant and file uploads from a computer, Google Drive, Dropbox, or Office 365. Google Classroom posting is capped at 50 lessons on Basic and unlimited on Pro. That makes Basic a workable starting point for teachers with modest posting needs, but a poor fit for those who post frequently.

Pricing

Basic is the sensible choice for an individual teacher who can work within the posting cap and does not need Pro’s unit-planning or automatic-tracking tools. Pro is aimed at individual teachers who need those features or more AI usage and collaboration; its stated monthly billing is paired with a one-payment total of $71.88. Schools should consider the custom-priced plan when shared rollout, management, training, and ongoing support matter. A 30-day trial is available.

Platforms

Common Planner runs on the web. There is no dedicated app, but the service works in a browser on tablets and smartphones. Sensitive information is transmitted using industry-standard encryption, and data is regularly backed up. The maker says its Student Data Privacy Notice addresses COPPA, FERPA, and state student privacy law compliance for schools and districts.

Who it's for

Common Planner suits individual teachers who want to organize and reuse lessons, and school or district teams that need shared plans and instructional oversight. It is less compelling for a solo teacher who needs unit planning or automatic standards tracking without paying for Pro, or for anyone who requires a dedicated mobile app.

Pros and cons

• Pro: Teachers and leaders can work from shared plans, with leaders able to review standards coverage and pacing and comment on lessons.
• Pro: Basic includes file uploads from four sources and up to 50 Google Classroom posts at no charge.
• Pro: Schools get templates, membership management, staff training, and ongoing support under the Schools plan.
• Con: Basic omits unit planning and automatic standards tracking, while Google Classroom posts are limited to 50.
• Con: Mobile use is browser-based rather than through a dedicated app.
• Con: Pro’s price description combines monthly billing with a single $71.88 payment, and it requires a credit card.

Alternatives

For other options, browse Lesson Planning Software or AI Lesson Plan Generators.

• LessonApp is worth considering if you want a free plan with 50+ teaching methods, up to 10 draft lessons, printable plans, and the ability to browse and apply other users’ plans.
• Planboard is a free digital lesson-planning option for teachers.
• PlanbookEdu is a free option for unlimited weekly plans, rotating schedules, and planning on iPad or phone.
• SchEDU may suit teachers looking for full-term auto-planning, though its free plan is capped at two lifetime lesson plans and two subjects.
• Lesson Maker Pro is an alternative for teachers who want generated lessons, unit plans, standalone materials, and Teaching Assistant messages under monthly quotas on its free plan.
• Lessonly is another free web-based option.
• TeacherHero is another freemium web-based option with a free trial.
• Ignite is another free web-based option.

Verdict

Choose Common Planner if you want planning and collaboration tied to standards coverage and school oversight, especially when a school needs training and continued support. Its main limitation for individual teachers is that unit planning and automatic standards tracking sit behind Pro, while mobile access remains browser-only.