Giáo án Looking back

Ss recall the idea of reporting speech and the topic of environmental protection to prepare for the lesson.

T reads five short direct sentences aloud, such as 'I am worried about the river.', 'We will plant trees next week.', 'Where do the birds nest?', 'Is the gate open?', 'I can help.' Ss work in pairs and report each sentence to their partner using 'said' or 'asked'.

Ss produce reported forms such as: 'She said she was worried about the river.' / 'They said they would plant trees next week.' / 'She asked where the birds nested.' / 'He asked whether the gate was open.' / 'She said she could help.'

Ss systematise the grammar rules of reported statements and reported questions in Unit 9.

Ss work in groups of four to complete Worksheet 1. The worksheet asks Ss to: (1) state the backshift rule with examples; (2) identify which pronouns and time references change; (3) explain how reported questions are formed, with statement word order and no do/does/did; (4) explain when to use if or whether; (5) say when a still-true fact may keep its tense.

Ss produce a group summary poster of the rules, for example:

• Backshift: am/is → was, are → were, will → would, can → could, have finished → had finished (after a past reporting verb).
• Pronouns and time references change when the reporting situation changes (I → she, tomorrow → the following day).
• Reported questions: subject before verb, no inversion, no do/does/did, e.g., 'Where do they live?' → 'He asked where they lived.'
• Yes/no questions: use if or whether, e.g., 'Is the gate open?' → 'She asked whether the gate was open.'
• Still-true facts may keep the present tense, e.g., 'She said the river is polluted.' when the pollution still exists.

Ss recall the six topic words of the unit and understand that English rhythm is built on content words, with function words fitting between them.

Ss complete Worksheet 2 by matching six topic words with their meanings: biodiversity, habitat, endangered, conservation, pollution, restore. Then T shows the sentence 'We can protect the forest if we work together.' and asks Ss to mark content words (strong beats) and function words (weak, short).

Matching key:

• biodiversity – đa dạng sinh học
• habitat – môi trường sống
• endangered – có nguy cơ tuyệt chủng
• conservation – bảo tồn
• pollution – ô nhiễm
• restore – phục hồi

Rhythm analysis: strong beats on 'protect', 'forest', 'work', 'together'; weak, short words such as 'we', 'can', 'the', 'if' are linked and reduced between the beats. Key idea: 'PROTECT the FOREST' – content words form the main beats; do not delete meaningful syllables to force equal timing.

Ss apply the backshift rules and the rules for reported questions to choose or produce the correct reported form.

Ss complete items 1 to 8 of the practice exercises (listed in Worksheet 1). Ss choose the correct answer and explain the grammar reason briefly. Items cover backshift of am, will, can and present perfect, reported questions with whether, word order, and time reference changes.

Answer key:

1. C – 'Mai said she was tired.' (am → was; I → she)
2. B – 'They said they would plant trees.' (will → would)
3. A – 'He asked where the birds nested.' (statement order; backshift)
4. D – 'She asked whether the gate was open.' (yes/no question uses whether)
5. C – 'Nam said he had finished.' (present perfect → past perfect)
6. B – 'She asked why we were late.' (no inversion in reported questions)
7. A – 'He said he could help.' (can → could)
8. D – 'She said she would return the following day.' (time reference changes)

Ss read a short passage aloud with clear rhythm, stressing content words and keeping the meaning intelligible.

Ss read the following aloud twice: first slowly, then at a natural pace: 'PROTECT the FOREST; KEEP the RIVER CLEAN. Content words form the main beats; short function words fit between them. We can protect the forest if we work together. Do not delete meaningful syllables to force equal timing. A clear, intelligible rhythm matters more than mimicking one accent.' Partners give feedback using the rubric: rhythm (4), clear pronunciation (3), natural intonation (2), self-correction after the first reading (1).

Ss produce a clear reading with stress on content words, for example 'We can PROTECT the FOREST if we WORK toGETHer.' Peer feedback sheet shows scores out of 10 with one specific improvement point for each partner.

Ss use reported speech and conditional-style expressions with would to propose and report actions for protecting a wetland in their community.

In groups, Ss write a short paragraph of four to five sentences proposing how to protect a local wetland. Each group must include: (1) at least one sentence that uses 'would' to express a proposal, e.g., 'To protect the wetland, I would combine habitat restoration, less unnecessary lighting and better waste collection.'; (2) one sentence reporting what an expert said, e.g., 'The expert said that local people should replant native reeds.'; (3) one vocabulary item from the unit (biodiversity, habitat, endangered, conservation, pollution, restore). Groups read their paragraphs aloud to the class.

Each group writes a paragraph on A4 paper. Example:
'To protect the wetland, we would restore the habitat and reduce pollution. A clean-up alone cannot replace lost reeds, so an expert should advise which native plants are suitable. Our teacher asked whether the local people would join the project, and they said they could help with waste collection. Monthly observations from the same public path could show trends, although they would not prove a single cause.'