• Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Fact and opinion). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
• Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.

1. A: Water freezes at 0 °C. B: Winter is the worst season. Which sentence is an opinion? (A / B) → BPrompt: What is the writer's main claim?
2. A: Chocolate ice cream is the best flavour. B: Ice cream is made with milk or cream. Which sentence is a fact? (A / B) → BPrompt: What is the writer's main claim?
3. A: Spiders have eight legs. B: Spiders are the creepiest animals. Which sentence is a fact? (A / B) → APrompt: What is the writer's main claim?

• Read the first lines of a short text aloud and ask what students predict will happen and why.
• Share the objective: Which source is most reliable?. Read the success criteria together.

• Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
• Example: You find two articles about a new skate park. One was published yesterday; the other is from four years ago. Which should you trust for the park's current rules?
• Step 1: Reliable sources are expert, up to date, based on evidence and not just trying to sell or entertain.
• Step 2: For things that change, the most recent reliable source is best.
• Step 3: So the answer is: the one published yesterday
• Answer: the one published yesterday
• Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

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

1. You are checking how tall Mount Everest is. Which source is most reliable? (a respected atlas or geography organisation / a meme with a mountain picture / a guess from a classmate / an anonymous comment) → a respected atlas or geography organisationPrompt: Ask: Who made this? Do they know the topic? Is it up to date?
2. Read the question and choose. Why does the date of a source matter? (information can change, so old facts may be out of date / it doesn't matter / newer sources are always longer / old sources are always wrong) → information can change, so old facts may be out of datePrompt: Think about expertise, evidence, purpose and date.

• 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 8 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

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

1. Read the question and choose. A photo shared online shows a shark swimming down a flooded motorway. What is the smartest first step? (trust it because it looks real / search for the image to see where it first appeared / count the comments / share it so others can check it) → search for the image to see where it first appearedPrompt: Think about expertise, evidence, purpose and date.
2. A website about a medicine is run by the company that sells it. What should a careful reader think? (it must be the most accurate source / it may be biased, so compare it with independent sources / it is useless and completely false / it is fine because it looks professional) → it may be biased, so compare it with independent sourcesPrompt: Ask: Who made this? Do they know the topic? Is it up to date?

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/english/grade-6.