Teacher/Bells Ferry Elementary School/Marietta, GA

The Tool That Changed My Sunday Lesson Planning Forever

How one teacher’s planning time went from 4 hours to 30 minutes with Common Planner.

Name
Dana Stassen - Bells Ferry Elementary School
Role
Teacher (5th Grade)
School
Bells Ferry Elementary School
Location
Marietta, GA

Problem

Sunday planning was long, scattered, and stressful.

  • Sunday planning took hours: Weekly planning regularly ate up 3–4 hours, and the weekend disappeared fast.
  • Everything lived in different places: Standards, resources, pacing, and materials were scattered across tabs, docs, and links.
  • Hard to feel confident: Pulling it together across subjects made alignment feel uncertain—and added mental load.

Solution

A single system that made planning faster—and easier to share.

  • One place for curriculum + lessons: Everything lives in a single view, so planning starts with clarity instead of searching.
  • Faster weekly planning: What used to take 3–4 hours on Sunday now takes about 30 minutes.
  • Collaboration when needed: Co-planning and sharing updates are easier because the plan lives in one place.

Lesson Planning Before Common Planner

Before Common Planner, lesson planning was chaos.

“I used to spend hours every Sunday copy/pasting plans for colleagues and sorting through emails. Everything lived in a different place—documents here, links there, standards somewhere else. I’d finally get done and think, ‘Well, there goes my weekend.’”

She laughs now when she talks about it, but it wasn’t funny then.

“It wasn’t just time—it was mental space. I was constantly trying to make sure I didn’t forget something or lose a file. It felt like I was always behind before the week even started.”

“What used to take me three or four hours every Sunday now takes me thirty minutes at the most.”

Lesson Planning with Common Planner

“Common Planner is a total game changer. It just blows everything else out of the way.”

When Dana talks about how her Sundays have changed, there’s a mix of relief and gratitude in her voice.

“What used to take me three or four hours every Sunday now takes me thirty minutes at the most. I open my planner, see everything laid out, make a few tweaks, and I’m done.”

She especially loves how easy it is to work with her team.

“It saves me literal hours and lets me collaborate with colleagues in ways that were impossible before.”

“We’re finally planning together in real time instead of sending a hundred messages back and forth. And it’s all in one place. That’s the magic.”

Why I Love Common Planner

“I love Common Planner because it actually feels like it was made by teachers. It’s not trying to be fancy or complicated—it just works. I can see everything I need, stay organized, and feel ready for the week without all the stress.”

She pauses for a second and smiles.

“I don’t dread Sundays anymore. I get my time back. I can actually breathe. There’s nothing like it.”

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