Does the headline match the story?

Reading Comprehension

CCSS RI.7.2CCSS RI.7.7England: KS3 Reading (media)England: GCSE English Language Paper 2 Q2

Objective and success criteria

Students will: Does the headline match the story?.

I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
I can explain each step and say why it works.
I can check my answer and spot a mistake.

Before and after

Needs first: News, opinion, advert or satire?; Summarising

Leads to: Checking claims online: lateral reading and tracing sources

Materials: A short text or extract (one copy each), Highlighters, Question cards, Mini whiteboards, A short model text on the board, Printed student sheet (below).

Warm-up · 4 min

Quick retrieval from earlier learning (News, opinion, advert or satire?; Summarising). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.

What kind of text is this? Closing Mill Road on Sundays is the best decision our council has made in years, and it's time other streets followed. (news report / opinion piece / advertisement / satire) → opinion piecePrompt: Is it reporting facts, giving a view, selling something, or exaggerating to make fun of something?
Read the question and choose. A post looks like a news article but is labelled 'Sponsored' at the top. What does that mean? (it has been checked by fact-checkers / it was written by a journalist with no connection to anyone / a company paid for it, so it is a form of advertising / it is the most popular story) → a company paid for it, so it is a form of advertisingPrompt: Ask who made the text and what they want you to do or think.
What kind of text is this? The council voted 7–2 on Tuesday to close Mill Road to cars on Sundays from June. The change will be reviewed after six months. (news report / opinion piece / advertisement / satire) → news reportPrompt: Is it reporting facts, giving a view, selling something, or exaggerating to make fun of something?

Hook · 3 min

Read the first lines of a short text aloud and ask what students predict will happen and why.
Share the objective: Does the headline match the story?. Read the success criteria together.

I do: model it · 7 min

Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
Example: Two of the town's five libraries will cut their Saturday opening hours from eight to four from next month. All five libraries will stay open. Which headline reports the story most accurately?
Step 1: An accurate headline matches the size and certainty of the facts in the story; clickbait exaggerates.
Step 2: Only two libraries change, and only on Saturdays; none close.
Step 3: So the answer is: Two libraries to shorten Saturday hours
Answer: Two libraries to shorten Saturday hours
Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

We do: guided practice · 6 min

Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.

Heavy rain delayed the start of the cup final by 45 minutes. The match was then played in full, ending 2–1. Which headline reports the story most accurately? (Final abandoned after downpour / Cup final washed out / Rain delays cup final, which ends 2–1 / Storm cancels final) → Rain delays cup final, which ends 2–1Prompt: List the key facts: who, what, how many, how much.
Why is this headline likely to be clickbait? This Is The End Of Football As We Know It (it quotes a named source / it reports a score accurately / it uses dramatic exaggeration with no facts / it is a cautious summary) → it uses dramatic exaggeration with no factsPrompt: Does the headline tell you the facts, or tease you?

You do: independent practice · 7 min

Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.

The 6 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

Exit ticket · 3 min

Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.

Why is this headline likely to be clickbait? Number 7 On This List Will SHOCK You (it shows where the list comes from / it promises a shock to keep you clicking / it is a neutral label / it summarises the main fact) → it promises a shock to keep you clickingPrompt: Does the headline tell you the facts, or tease you?
A teenager's science-fair project tested three ways to keep bread fresh. Bread stored in a cloth bag lasted one day longer than bread in a plastic bag. Which headline is MISLEADING? (Teen tests ways to keep bread fresh / Science-fair project compares bread storage / Teen discovers secret that makes bread last forever / Cloth bag kept bread fresh a day longer, project finds) → Teen discovers secret that makes bread last foreverPrompt: List the key facts: who, what, how many, how much.

Watch out for

Answering from memory or opinion instead of evidence in the text.
Copying a long quote without explaining what it shows.

Support and stretch

Support

Review first: News, opinion, advert or satire?.
Use concrete materials: a short text or extract (one copy each).
Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.

Stretch

Move on to: Checking claims online: lateral reading and tracing sources.
Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.

Homework and more practice

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/english/grade-7.

Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder

eurekami

Does the headline match the story?

Name

Date

Score/ 6

The Shark on the Motorway

During a storm last spring, a photo exploded across social media. It showed a large shark swimming beside cars on a flooded motorway. Within hours it had been shared more than 80,000 times, often with captions such as "Stay indoors — sharks in the streets!" Fourteen-year-old Amira Haddad saw the photo in her family group chat. Something felt wrong. "The shark looked too sharp compared with the blurry water," she said. "So I decided to check." First, Amira ran a reverse image search. She found the same shark in a wildlife photo published years earlier, on a website about ocean animals. Next, she checked two local news sites. Neither mentioned sharks; both reported flooding and road closures. Finally, she found an article from a fact-checking organisation explaining that the image had been edited and had appeared during several different storms in different countries. Amira posted the fact-check in the group chat. "My uncle had already shared the photo," she laughed. "He was embarrassed, but he thanked me." Fact-checkers say edited images spread fastest when they are shocking and arrive during real emergencies, when people are anxious and want to warn others. Their advice is simple: pause before you share, look for the original source, and check whether reliable outlets are reporting the same thing.

1
Question 1
Read "The Shark on the Motorway". Which headline best fits this article?
- A. Sharks invade city during storm
- B. Uncle bans phones in family chat
- C. Social media to close after storm
- D. Teen uses simple checks to expose viral storm photo

2
Question 2
A local café's new oat-milk latte sold out on its first morning. The owner said they had underestimated demand and would order more milk. Which headline reports the story most accurately?
- A. Town gripped by oat-milk shortage
- B. Dairy farmers in crisis
- C. Café's new latte sells out on first day
- D. Café owner admits huge mistake
3
Question 3
Why is this headline likely to be clickbait? EVERY Phone Will Stop Working Next Week
- A. it quotes an expert
- B. it makes a huge claim designed to frighten
- C. it asks a neutral question
- D. it is cautious and precise
4
Question 4
A teenager's science-fair project tested three ways to keep bread fresh. Bread stored in a cloth bag lasted one day longer than bread in a plastic bag. Which headline is MISLEADING?
- A. Science-fair project compares bread storage
- B. Cloth bag kept bread fresh a day longer, project finds
- C. Teen discovers secret that makes bread last forever
- D. Teen tests ways to keep bread fresh
5
Question 5
Why is this headline likely to be clickbait? Doctors HATE this one simple trick
- A. it gives exact figures
- B. it is written by doctors
- C. it uses mystery and emotion instead of information
- D. it explains a medical study
6
Question 6
A study of 300 students found that those who ate breakfast scored slightly higher on morning memory tests. The researchers said more studies were needed before drawing firm conclusions. Which headline reports the study most accurately?
- A. Small study links breakfast to slightly better morning memory
- B. Skipping breakfast ruins your grades
- C. Breakfast makes you a genius, scientists prove
- D. Scientists say breakfast is pointless

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Answer key: Does the headline match the story?

1. D. Teen uses simple checks to expose viral storm photo
2. C. Café's new latte sells out on first day
3. B. it makes a huge claim designed to frighten
4. C. Teen discovers secret that makes bread last forever
5. C. it uses mystery and emotion instead of information
6. A. Small study links breakfast to slightly better morning memory