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English lesson plan · 8th grade (Year 9 in England) · 30 minutes

Checking claims online: lateral reading and tracing sources

Reading Comprehension

CCSS RI.8.7CCSS W.8.8England: KS3 English (research and evaluating sources)England: GCSE English Language Paper 2

Objective and success criteria

Students will: Checking claims online: lateral reading and tracing sources.

  • 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: Does the headline match the story?; News, opinion, advert or satire?

Leads to: Spotting misleading statistics and graphs; Evaluating research sources: primary vs secondary, authority, purpose; Evaluating AI-generated and edited media

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 (Does the headline match the story?; News, opinion, advert or satire?). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
  • Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
  1. What kind of text is this? Scientists Confirm Mondays Are 37% Longer Than Other Days, Ask Public To Stay Calm (news report / opinion piece / advertisement / satire) → satirePrompt: Is it reporting facts, giving a view, selling something, or exaggerating to make fun of something?
  2. 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? (Libraries axe weekends / Town's libraries to close / End of reading in our town / Two libraries to shorten Saturday hours) → Two libraries to shorten Saturday hoursPrompt: List the key facts: who, what, how many, how much.
  3. Why is this headline likely to be clickbait? Doctors HATE this one simple trick (it is written by doctors / it gives exact figures / it explains a medical study / it uses mystery and emotion instead of information) → it uses mystery and emotion instead of informationPrompt: Does the headline tell you the facts, or tease you?

Hook · 3 min

  • Read the first lines of a short text aloud and ask what students predict will happen and why.
  • Share the objective: Checking claims online: lateral reading and tracing sources. 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: Read the question and choose. A website's address looks almost like a famous newspaper's, but with one letter different. What should you suspect?
  • Step 1: Lateral reading means checking a source by seeing what other trustworthy sources say about it, and tracing claims to their origin.
  • Step 2: Lookalike addresses are a common trick of fake sites.
  • Step 3: So the answer is: it may be an imitation site pretending to be the real one
  • Answer: it may be an imitation site pretending to be the real one
  • 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.
  1. Is the proposed answer correct? You strongly agree with a post and want to share it immediately. What's the wisest move? → share it quickly before it disappears (yes, it is correct / no, it is not correct) → no, it is not correctPrompt: Good checkers leave the page and see what other reliable sources say.
  2. Read the question and choose. A post says "A study proves X" but gives no link. What is the best next step? (search for the original study and see what it actually found / share it so experts can check / assume it is true because it mentions a study / ignore all studies) → search for the original study and see what it actually foundPrompt: Good checkers leave the page and see what other reliable sources say.

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.
  1. Is the proposed answer correct? A news story is shared today, but the article is dated four years ago. Why does this matter? → it doesn't matter at all (yes, it is correct / no, it is not correct) → no, it is not correctPrompt: Good checkers leave the page and see what other reliable sources say.
  2. Read the question and choose. A quote is shared with a famous scientist's photo, but you can't find it in any of her speeches or writings. What should you conclude? (it may be made up or wrongly attributed, so don't share it / she must have said it privately / quotes are always accurate online / it must be real because her photo is there) → it may be made up or wrongly attributed, so don't share itPrompt: Good checkers leave the page and see what other reliable sources say.

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: Does the headline match the story?.
  • 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: Spotting misleading statistics and graphs; Evaluating research sources: primary vs secondary, authority, purpose; Evaluating AI-generated and edited media.
  • 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-8.

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

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Checking claims online: lateral reading and tracing sources

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  1. Question 1

    Read the question and choose. A quote is shared with a famous scientist's photo, but you can't find it in any of her speeches or writings. What should you conclude?

    • A. quotes are always accurate online
    • B. it must be real because her photo is there
    • C. it may be made up or wrongly attributed, so don't share it
    • D. she must have said it privately

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 2

    Read "The Shark on the Motorway". What was the first step Amira took to check the photo?

    • A. calling her uncle
    • B. visiting the motorway
    • C. a reverse image search
    • D. asking a teacher

  1. Question 3

    Is the proposed answer correct? A dramatic photo is going viral with the caption "Flooding in our city today". How can you check it? → zoom in to see if it looks wet

    • A. yes, it is correct
    • B. no, it is not correct

  2. Question 4

    Read the question and choose. You strongly agree with a post and want to share it immediately. What's the wisest move?

    • A. pause and check it, because we are less careful with claims we already agree with
    • B. change the wording first
    • C. share it only with friends
    • D. share it quickly before it disappears

  3. Question 5

    Is the proposed answer correct? You find a website about a health claim. You've never heard of the organisation behind it. What should you do first? → open a new tab and search for what reliable sources say about that organisation

    • A. yes, it is correct
    • B. no, it is not correct

  4. Question 6

    Read the question and choose. A website's address looks almost like a famous newspaper's, but with one letter different. What should you suspect?

    • A. nothing; addresses don't matter
    • B. it is safer than the real site
    • C. it may be an imitation site pretending to be the real one
    • D. it is the newspaper's official backup site

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Answer key: Checking claims online: lateral reading and tracing sources

  1. 1. C. it may be made up or wrongly attributed, so don't share it

  2. 2. C. a reverse image search

  3. 3. B. no, it is not correct

  4. 4. A. pause and check it, because we are less careful with claims we already agree with

  5. 5. A. yes, it is correct

  6. 6. C. it may be an imitation site pretending to be the real one