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8. Learning Activity Design

How to use this activity

This activity supports practical application of the concepts in your lesson.

  1. Download this activity as a docx file
  2. Work through the activity step by step. Keep your answers concise and focused
  3. Return to your lesson when you are done.

What to do: Design or refine one activity with clear structure (objective, instructions, materials, time, output, feedback)

Expected output: A well-structured activity aligned with your learning outcomes

Approximate time: 20–30 minutes

Used in

Before you start

You will typically need:

  • Outputs from earlier activities (if applicable)
  • Notes from your current lesson
⬇ Download as .docx

Instructions

Design or improve one key activity from your training. A well-structured activity has a clear objective, concrete instructions, and a way to check whether learning happened. You will refine this activity further after defining feedback and assessment.

You will use

Select one activity

  • Which activity are you redesigning? Choose one that matters — ideally one where you suspect something is not working well.

Diagnose

  • What works well about this activity?
  • What does not work? Where do learners struggle or disengage?
  • Pick one learner constraint from Activity 3: Learner Reality Mapping — how does that constraint affect this activity?

Redesign

  • Objective (use one outcome from Activity 5: Learning Outcomes):
  • Activity steps — what do learners actually do, in order?
  • Materials needed:
  • Time required:
  • How learners participate — individual, pairs, small groups? How do you ensure everyone contributes?
  • How learning is checked — what will you observe or collect that shows whether the objective was met?

Learning design choices

  • How does this activity manage cognitive load? (Think about what you covered in Lesson 4.)
  • Where is retrieval or active practice built in?
  • How is participation ensured — not just allowed, but structured so it happens?
  • Where do learners contribute their own knowledge, experience, or context? If they don't, consider how you could build that in.
  • Where might learners get stuck? What support will you provide at that point (a worked example, a checklist, a guided first step)?

If you are creating a new training

Design one core activity using one outcome from Activity 5: Learning Outcomes.

  • Outcome this activity addresses:
  • What learners will do — describe the task in concrete terms. What are the steps?
  • What learners will produce — every activity should generate something visible (a list, a diagram, a plan, a decision).
  • How long it will take:
  • What materials or resources are needed:
  • How you will know it worked — what evidence of learning will this activity generate?
  • How participation is structured — how will you ensure all learners are actively involved, not just those who volunteer?
  • Where learners contribute their own knowledge — where in this activity do learners draw on their own experience or context?
  • Where learners might get stuck — what support will you provide at that point (a worked example, a checklist, a guided first step)?

Translation to your learners

  • Will this activity work in your learners' context? Consider language, digital access, group size, physical space, and cultural norms around participation.
  • What needs to change to make it realistic?

Context check

  • Is this activity feasible given your actual constraints — time, infrastructure, materials, group size?
  • What could go wrong during delivery, and how would you adapt?

Reflection

  • Look at the activity you designed: does it genuinely require learners to think, practise, or produce something — or could they get through it passively? If you are not sure, that is worth redesigning.

Reuse in later sections

Iteration

Return to this activity after completing Activity 9: Practice & Feedback Plan. Revise how feedback and iteration are built into the activity based on what you design there.