Bill Ayers talks a lot about this idea of building bridges in order to achieve greatness in the classroom.  Although these bridges seem to have a positive affect on the classroom, some of those bridges may or may not take place in the classroom itself.  Sure it is safe to say that an educator must form a relationship with his or her students in order to be able to connect with them and know what their strengths and weaknesses are, but there are many other dynamics at hand in order to achieve that success.  A teacher must also build a bridge with those connected to the student when they are not in a classroom environment.  It is essential to maintain a steady relationship with the parents or guardians of students in order to reaffirm the notion that everyone in the students' learning process is on the same page.  Above all else both teachers and students should be looking out for the best interests of a students.  This "bridge" is that link between parents wanting to see their children succeed, and teachers allowing said student to perform in the classroom using the tools and skills they have attained through prior experiences.
One pattern that often sticks out when it comes to the evolution of a child's learning ability is their growth in communication.  Being able to find one's voice is an enormous aspect to finding ones identity both as an individual, as well as a student.  Whether it is asking questions or giving informative answers when it comes to class discussions, a student should be able to become more and more engaged the higher into their education that they get.  Another pattern that can be argued for is the link from grade to grade.  In order for students to obtain knowledge and not simply regurgitate information, they must build off of what they had already previously learned.  This happens from grade to grade regardless of the subject.  For example, statistics builds off of algebra the same way US History ties into the American Revolution.  Each grade is a building block taking a student higher and higher.
In making a lesson plan for a high school history classroom, my topic would be the Battle at Lexington and Concord during the Revolutionary War.  There are a few key points that I would need to make sure that I cover in order to be sure that the students had fully grasped what this particular battle, one of many, was all about.  I would definitely need to cover who it was fighting in this battle, both sides as well as the views in which these two parties were fighting for.  I would also need to touch on the fundamental strategies in which the battle was fought (who was stationed where/tactical successes or errors made by military leaders).  And of course the outcome of the battle and what this meant for the rest of the War.  Of course the Battle of Lexington and Concord was really the first skirmish between the British and the Colonists.