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Lesson 3 of 4
  • Year 4

The problem with fake news

I can describe what fake news is and why it exists.

Lesson 3 of 4
New
New
  • Year 4

The problem with fake news

I can describe what fake news is and why it exists.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Fake news can look true.
  2. People make fake news for a number of reasons.
  3. Websites and apps make more money if more people visit their site.
  4. Fake news has certain features.

Keywords

  • Fake news - information that is not true but looks real

  • Clickbait - an image or video created to tempt you to click on it

  • Motivation - the reason why someone does something

  • Persuade - to change someone's mind

  • Manipulation - influencing someone’s emotions, to make them do something

Common misconception

Everything that we read is true.

Online content can be created by anyone and there is no consequence for lying in the online space. We must check if things are true or not by cross-referencing.


To help you plan your year 4 RSHE (PSHE) lesson on: The problem with fake news, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Demonstrate features of online advertising by navigating to a news website and describing the elements. However, always check the site and subsequent links before showing it to the students, as some articles, images and videos may be inappropriate.
Teacher tip

Equipment

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Prior knowledge starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
What is a link?

a picture found online
some writing on a website
Correct answer: a word or picture that takes you to a new place if you click it

Q2.
Match the words and their meaning.

Correct Answer:bias,a feeling that influences how you respond to a situation or person

a feeling that influences how you respond to a situation or person

Correct Answer:website,an online place

an online place

Correct Answer:advert,something designed to sell something to you

something designed to sell something to you

Q3.
Adverts always tell the truth.

Correct Answer: don't, do not

Q4.
Why do many websites have adverts?

Correct answer: to make money
to help you learn
because people like adverts

Q5.
Match the animal to an assumption.

Correct Answer:pig,dirty

dirty

Correct Answer:dog,friendly

friendly

Correct Answer:cheetah,fast

fast

Correct Answer:cat,hates water

hates water

Q6.
What are the consequences of bias?

It makes people happy.
Correct answer: It influences how we react to people.
Correct answer: It causes people to make assumptions.
Correct answer: It limits what we imagine we can achieve.

Assessment exit quiz

Download quiz pdf

4 Questions

Q1.
What are the purposes of clickbait?

Correct answer: to tempt you to tap on a link
to teach you something interesting
to make money from advertising

Q2.
Which of these is a tactic for clickbait creators?

tell the truth
use a simple image
Correct answer: use interesting headlines

Q3.
Match the words to the correct meaning.

Correct Answer:fake news,information that is not true but looks real

information that is not true but looks real

Correct Answer:motivation,the reason why someone does something

the reason why someone does something

Correct Answer:manipulation,influencing someone’s emotions, to make them do something

influencing someone’s emotions, to make them do something

Correct Answer:persuade,to change someone's mind

to change someone's mind

Q4.
How can we tell if something is real or fake?

if there is a picture this means it must be real
Correct answer: we can check it using other trusted websites
Correct answer: we can ask a trusted adult for help
videos can't be faked, so if we see a video we know it's true