Review: The Lost Lab

Objective & content

This writing sheet teaches pupils to write a review of a place (Last Saturday, I tried... for the first time; It's a place that...; It costs £20, which is...; The best thing was...; While we were...; The only problem was...; It might...; If you like..., you'll love it). Pupils read Kofi's review, take its phrases and write their own review. By the end, they can write a review of 120 to 150 words with good points, bad points and a recommendation.

Pedagogical guide

Page 1 has Kofi's review of The Lost Lab, an escape room, on a teen website, with a photo of clues on a wall. Kofi, fourteen, gives it four stars: the room looks like a scientist's laboratory, the players have sixty minutes to escape, the puzzles are clever, and a hidden door opened while they were looking for a key. The only problem is the price, £20 each, and the room might feel crowded for six players. He recommends it to people who like puzzles. Pupils answer six questions with three options each, then read the useful phrases, set out in the order of a review. Page 2 starts with four lines of a café review to complete with words from a box. Then pupils review a place they know, or one from a card (a water park, a burger restaurant, a science museum, a laser tag arena, each with a price, good and bad points and stars), and tick the checklist. The places are made up. The answer key gives a model review.

Suggested procedure

1. (5 min) Ask "Do you read reviews before you go somewhere? What do they tell you?"
2. (10 min) Read Kofi's review aloud; pupils answer the questions.
3. (5 min) Read the useful phrases with the class.
4. (5 min) Page 2: pupils complete the café review.
5. (20 min) Pupils choose a place, write their review and tick the checklist.
6. (5 min) Pupils read a partner's review and say if they would go.

Adaptations

[S] Pupils use a card and write one paragraph for each part of the phrases box.

[A] Pupils compare two places in their review.

Materials & prerequisites

One copy of pages 1 and 2 per pupil. Page 3 is the answer key, the model review and the teacher notes: keep it. Pupils need relative clauses with that and which, the past continuous with while, might and the first conditional. To take it further, the class makes a "Teen Reviews" page of places in its own town.