Streaming Wars: The New Age of Entertainment (Upper-Intermediate)

ESL/EFL Level: Upper-Intermediate (B2/C1)
Lesson Topics: streaming services (e.g. Netflix), TikTok, attention spans
Skill Focus: Speaking, Reading, Vocabulary
Approximate Class Time: 2 hours
Lesson Plan Download: streaming-wars-upper-intermediate-lesson-102023.docx
Lesson Overview:

  • After warm-up questions, students read a 324-word passage entitled "Streaming Wars: The New Age of Television and Entertainment". The passage describes the shift from traditional TV to online streaming platforms (e.g. Netflix, Disney+) and the challenges facing these platforms. One challenge is the rise of TikTok, which may be turning off viewers from long-form content.
  • After a read-and-recall activity, students answer comprehension questions, do a vocabulary-matching activity, and then create questions using the new vocabulary.
  • For speaking activities, students first debate one of two topics: content censorship or the ethics of password sharing.
  • The lesson has two roleplays. The first involves a parent who is worried that her child has 'TikTok' brain. The second involves a partner who wants to do more than watch Netflix every evening.
  • Next is an activity called "The Pilot" which has students create a basic plot for a TV series and then pitch it to a Netflix executive.
  • This is followed by some famous quotations related to TV and streaming, a final vocabulary review, final discussion questions, and a review of collocations.

A man streaming content on his TV.

UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2/C1) Lesson Plan on Streaming & Entertainment

Warm-up Questions

  1. On rainy days, how do you entertain yourself?
  2. What streaming services (e.g. Netflix) do you subscribe to? Which is the best?
  3. What was the last show or movie you watched on a streaming service? Would you recommend it?

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-- Lesson plan on Streaming & Entertainment written by Matthew Barton of EnglishCurrent.com (copyright). ChatGPT was used to check for errors, suggest revisions, and generate answer keys. Site members may photocopy and edit the file for their classes. Permission is not given to rebrand the lesson, redistribute it on another platform, or sell it as part of commercial course curriculum. For questions, contact the author.

Possible answers to follow-up questions:

  1. "This " refers to the significant growth of streaming platforms and their popularity over traditional cinemas and cable TV.
  2. First, producing original content attracts more viewers with exclusive shows and movies. Second, it eliminates the need to buy expensive licenses for content owned by other companies.
  3. It has caused companies to crack down on password sharing (to increase revenue) and to add ad-supported plans (probably to enable them to raise prices for the regular service).
  4. Netflix's stance is that they will not censor the voices of creators. They support creative freedom even if some content might be perceived as offensive.
  5. Some children are no longer able to focus on long-form content like movies. This suggests that children’s attention spans have been shortened or that their tastes have just changed due to platforms like TikTok that offer short-form videos.
  6. …

Vocabulary Answers: 1-d, 2-k, 3-e, 4-a, 4-I, 5-I, 6-c, 7-j, 8-f, 9-g, 10-b, 11-h

Vocabulary Review Answers: See original passage

Collocation Answers: 1-d, 2-a, 3-b, 4-f, 5-g, 6-e, 7-c

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