S2E17 - Sources Say

Objective & content

The school is buzzing with rumours about a secret street artist, and each teller changes the story. Neil, Stella and Tiago compare what they have heard, Harper and her mother Bunny talk about the school paper, and at Café Marisol Stella tells Neil and Harper about a message from "Dana Kellerman" of a talent agency. The grammar focus is reported speech: statements with said and told, and questions with asked if or whether, with one tense back. Learners also meet news and rumour vocabulary (agency, talent, claim, apparently, booking). One line to notice: "A photo and a name on a screen isn't a person, Neil. It's a claim."

Pedagogical guide

The lesson lasts 50 minutes. Learners follow which rumours and claims are reported and by whom, then turn direct speech into reported speech, including the say and tell contrast and statement word order in reported questions. The last scene opens a short, calm discussion on why a name and a photo on a screen are a claim and not proof, and on one way to check a source. Keep it on the story: nobody in the episode confirms who "Dana" is.

Suggested procedure

1. (5 min) Board: "Somebody told me that..."; pairs share a rumour that changed as it was repeated.
2. (5 min) Preview six words: agency, talent, claim, apparently, collection, booking.
3. (5 min) First listen, without interruption: what is the main topic?
4. (10 min) Second listen with three pauses (after "I said no.", after Bunny talks about the club, after "It's a claim.") and a question at each.
5. (5 min) Comprehension check: five oral or written questions.
6. (5 min) Vocabulary practice: matching game, then a sentence with two of the words.
7. (8 min) Grammar focus: three script lines on the board, the rules for say, tell and ask if/whether, then a quick drill.
8. (7 min) Speaking: the rumour chain, where a message is whispered and reported from pair to pair.

Materials & prerequisites

• Episode audio or the Academy app, a speaker, and a whiteboard or projector.
• `student-sheet.pdf` and `teacher-sheet.pdf` from the episode's printables.
• The lesson plan (`teachers-resources/lesson-plan.md`).
• Six blank cards per pair for the speaking activity.
• Prerequisites: the simple past and past perfect, and direct speech.

Curriculum alignment

Cycle 4, class 3eme: axis "languages and communication" (c4-languages-and-communication). The episode is tagged B1-.