E8 G - Report what someone says

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E8 G - Report what someone says

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E8 G - Report what someone says

Mini-Beschreibung: Listen to or read a short dialogue. Pick the most important points. Then report what one person says with simple reporting structures.

Level: English as a first foreign language, Klasse 8, G-Niveau, Baden-Württemberg.

Think first: A person says something. Later, you tell another person about it. You do not need every word. You need the main message.

Your learning route

English first → context → try → ask → hint → German help if needed.

1. Context: Look at the situation first.
2. Try: Listen or read once and give it a try.
3. Ask: Ask a partner or your teacher.
4. Hint: Use the word box or sentence frame.
5. German help: Use short German help only if you still need it. Do not translate the whole text.

I can ...

1. I can listen to a short dialogue and find the main points.
2. I can read a short text and find who says what.
3. I can report two or three connected statements.
4. I can use simple structures such as She says that ... and He tells us that ....
5. I can give a short opinion and a reason.
6. I can check my own text for speaker, message and pronouns.

What you already know

You already know simple present and simple past forms, personal pronouns and common words for school, free time and plans.

Quick start:

Mia: I like the school garden.

Report it:

Mia says that she likes the school garden.

Notice: I changes to she. The main idea stays the same.

Media start: Listen before you read

Before listening: You will hear two people. Listen for only two things:

1. What does Frank suggest?
2. What does Alice plan to do?

First listen: no transcript.

Try: Complete these ideas.

Frank asks about a ______.

Alice says that she is going to watch a ______.

Hint: movie – documentary

Check: Frank suggests a movie. Alice says that she is going to watch a documentary.

Transcript – open only after your first listening try.

Frank: Hello, Alice! How are you?
Alice: Hello, Frank! I'm good, how are you doing?
Frank: I'm doing well, thanks. Would you like to go see a movie tonight?
Alice: No, thank you. I'm going to watch a documentary on TV tonight.
Frank: Oh, okay. Bye, Alice!
Alice: Later, Frank!

Report the key point: Alice says that she is going to watch a documentary.

Viewing: Spot the structure

Watch the first part and listen for said, told and that. You do not need every rule in the video.

Video laden

YouTube

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Fortfahren Ausblenden

G-level focus: Find the speaker and the message. In this course, you do not have to produce backshift.

Optional challenge: Watch the game show and collect two examples of reported speech. Ignore forms that are above G-level.

Video laden

YouTube

YouTube sammelt möglicherweise persönliche Daten. Datenschutzrichtlinie

Fortfahren Ausblenden

A simple context

All people below are fictional. There are no private social-media profiles.

Maya and Ben are talking after school.

Maya: I help in our school garden on Fridays. I like working outside. We need one more person.

Ben: The garden sounds good, but I have basketball practice on Fridays. I can help on Tuesday.

Your job: Tell Leo what Maya and Ben say.

Model: Maya says that she helps in the school garden on Fridays. She says that she likes working outside. She also says that the group needs one more person.

Now try Ben.

Hint 1: Ben says that ...

Hint 2: He also says that ...

German help if needed: Gib die wichtigsten Aussagen wieder. Übersetze nicht Wort für Wort.

Reading

Read this short message.

School project message

Nora: Our class is planning a clean-up day. I think the park needs help because there is a lot of litter. I can bring gloves. Sam can bring bags.

Task: Report Nora's message in three connected sentences.

Possible answer: Nora says that her class is planning a clean-up day. She thinks that the park needs help because there is a lot of litter. She says that she can bring gloves.

Feedback: Your answer can be different if the important information is correct.

Context vocabulary

English	Simple meaning	Example
to report	say again in your own words	Report Maya's message.
main point	most important idea	Find the main point.
speaker	person who speaks	Who is the speaker?
to suggest	give an idea	Frank suggests a movie.
to plan	decide what you want to do	Alice plans to watch TV.
reason	why something is true	Give one reason.
to agree	have the same opinion	I agree because ...

Pronunciation

Goal: be clear, not accent-free.

Listen to the word dialogue.

When you report a message, stress the important content words:

Maya SAYS that she LIKES the school GARDEN.

Say the sentence slowly once. Then say it again at a natural speed.

Partner check: Can your partner understand the speaker and the main message? That is more important than a perfect accent.

Functional grammar: simple reported speech

Use a simple frame:

Person + says that + message

Direct: I like the club.

Reported: Maya says that she likes the club.

Direct: We need more time.

Reported: They say that they need more time.

You often change the pronoun:

Direct	Reported
I	he / she
my	his / her
we	they
our	their

Say or tell?

say + that: Ben says that he is busy.

tell + person + that: Ben tells Maya that he is busy.

For this G-level course, keep the tense simple. Use structures such as says that and tells us that. You do not need to change the tense with backshift.

Receptive forms: understand, do not force

You may meet these forms in a text:

Passive: The poster was made by the eco club.

Past perfect: Maya had finished the poster before lunch.

At G-level, your job is to understand the meaning. You do not have to produce these forms in your report.

Listening strategy

1. First listen: Who is speaking? What is the topic?
2. Second listen: Write two or three key words.
3. Third listen if needed: Check one detail.
4. Then report: Use your own short sentences.

Do not try to write every word while listening.

Speaking

Work with a partner.

A says: I like our class project. I can help on Wednesday because I do not have training then.

B reports: A says that ...

Then change roles.

Add one reason: She likes the project because ...

Recording option: You may record your voice only if you want to. Keep the recording private. Do not upload it without clear permission.

Writing

Write a short report of 4–5 sentences.

Situation: A fictional student talks about a school club.

Use this small plan:

1. Name the person.
2. Give the main point.
3. Add one or two details.
4. Add a reason if there is one.
5. Check pronouns.

Useful frame:

Jamie says that ... Jamie also says that ... In Jamie's opinion, ... because ...

Try to write more independently. Use fewer sentence starters than in Klasse 7.

Mediation

Your German-speaking friend asks what Nora said about the clean-up day.

Give the two most important points in German. Do not translate every sentence.

Then switch back to English and report one point:

Nora says that ...

Help ladder

Step 1 – Try alone: Find the speaker and one key point.

Step 2 – Word help: Use the vocabulary table.

Step 3 – Structure help: Use X says that ...

Step 4 – Partner help: Compare your key words.

Step 5 – German help: Explain the main idea briefly in German, then return to English.

Direct feedback

Check your answer with four questions:

1. Speaker: Did I name the right person?
2. Message: Did I keep the important idea?
3. Structure: Did I use says that or tells ... that correctly?
4. Pronoun: Did I change I / my / we / our when needed?

If you have three or four yes answers, your report is clear.

Error analysis

Error 1: Maya says that I like the garden.

Better: Maya says that she likes the garden.

Why? The speaker changes, so the pronoun changes.

Error 2: Ben tells that he is busy.

Better: Ben says that he is busy. / Ben tells Maya that he is busy.

Why? tell normally needs a person.

Error 3: Maya says that she liked the club, although her message is about now.

Better for this course: Maya says that she likes the club.

Why? At G-level here, use reported speech without backshift.

Safe and smart use of media and AI

Use only fictional profiles in tasks. Do not share private social-media data.

If you make a recording, participation is voluntary. Keep it private unless everyone involved clearly agrees to share it.

Do not send class recordings or private texts to an external AI tool without permission.

If AI is used for learning, check the language level, facts and feedback. Your own thinking and writing come first. AI should not replace your own text.

Transfer

A classmate misses a meeting. You heard this:

Our group wants to make a poster. I can draw the pictures, but I need help with the text because I am not sure about some words.

Report the message in three connected sentences.

Then add your own opinion:

I think this plan is good / difficult because ...

Can-do check

I can ...	Yes	Almost	Not yet
find the main point in a short dialogue	□	□	□
report two connected statements	□	□	□
use says that	□	□	□
use tells someone that	□	□	□
change important pronouns	□	□	□
give an opinion with a reason	□	□	□

Next step: E8 M - Report what someone says can add more complex forms such as backshift, reported questions and commands. These are not required here.

Interaktive Aufgaben

Quiz: Teste Dein Wissen

Which sentence reports the message I like the club? (Mia says that she likes the club.) (!Mia says that I like the club.) (!Mia asks that she likes the club.) (!Mia tells that she likes the club.)

What should you find first in a short dialogue? (The speaker and the main idea) (!Every single word) (!All verb forms) (!A German translation)

Which structure is correct? (Ben says that he is busy.) (!Ben tells that he is busy.) (!Ben says he that is busy.) (!Ben that says he is busy.)

Which sentence uses tell correctly? (Ben tells Maya that he is busy.) (!Ben tells that he is busy.) (!Ben tells busy that Maya.) (!Ben tells he is Maya busy.)

Maya says I need help. Which pronoun is usually needed in the report? (she) (!I) (!you) (!we)

What is the G-level focus in this course? (Report the main message without backshift) (!Use past perfect progressive) (!Report complex commands) (!Change every verb into the past)

What is a good listening strategy? (Listen for key words and the main point) (!Write every word immediately) (!Translate every sentence first) (!Stop after one unknown word)

Which answer gives an opinion with a reason? (I like the plan because it is simple.) (!I like the plan.) (!The plan is there.) (!Because the plan.)

What should you do with a private class recording? (Keep it private unless sharing is clearly agreed) (!Upload it automatically) (!Post it on a public profile) (!Send it to any external service)

What is most important for pronunciation here? (Being understandable) (!Sounding exactly like one accent) (!Speaking as fast as possible) (!Never pausing)

Memory

speaker	person who speaks
main point	most important idea
says that	simple reporting structure
tells someone	reporting with a person
reason	explains why
pronoun	word such as he or she

Drag and Drop

Ordne die richtigen Begriffe zu.	Thema
speaker	person who gives the message
listener	person who hears the message
main point	most important information
reason	explains why
pronoun	may change when you report

Kreuzworträtsel

speaker	Who gives the original message?
message	What do you report in your own words?
listener	Who hears a spoken message?
pronoun	What word can change from I to she?
context	What helps you understand the situation?
reason	What explains why someone thinks something?

Lückentext

Vervollständige den Text.

First, find the and the main idea. A simple reporting frame is She that .... When the original speaker says I, the pronoun may change to . With tell, you normally add a . At G-level, you do not have to use . During listening, write only important . A clear report keeps the main . For a short opinion, add a .

Offene Aufgaben

Leicht

1. Key words: Höre den kurzen Frank-Alice-Dialog zweimal und notiere nur vier wichtige englische Wörter.
2. Reporting sentence: Schreibe zwei Sätze über Alice mit Alice says that ....
3. Pronouns: Erstelle vier eigene Mini-Beispiele, in denen I beim Berichten zu he oder she wird.
4. Speaking practice: Sage einem Partner zwei Sätze über einen fiktiven Schulclub. Dein Partner berichtet sie anschließend.

Standard

1. Short report: Schreibe einen Bericht mit fünf Sätzen zu einem fiktiven Dialog zwischen zwei Jugendlichen.
2. Opinion with reason: Ergänze deinen Bericht um eine eigene Meinung mit because.
3. Listening strategy: Probiere beim Audio die Drei-Schritt-Strategie aus und notiere, welcher Schritt dir am meisten hilft.
4. Mediation: Fasse eine kurze englische Aussage für eine deutschsprachige Person in zwei deutschen Kernaussagen zusammen und berichte anschließend einen Punkt wieder auf Englisch.

Schwer

1. Interview project: Erfinde ein kurzes Interview mit einer fiktiven Person über ein Schulprojekt und schreibe danach einen Bericht in 6–7 Sätzen.
2. Error detective: Schreibe drei typische Fehler beim reported speech und verbessere sie mit einer kurzen Begründung.
3. Media report: Sieh einen kurzen Abschnitt eines Lernvideos und notiere zwei Beispiele für reporting structures. Nutze nur Formen, die du verstehst.
4. Transfer task: Verfasse eine kurze E-Mail an einen fiktiven Mitschüler und berichte darin die wichtigsten Aussagen aus einer Gruppenbesprechung.

Lernkontrolle

1. Choose the main point: Du erhältst einen kurzen Dialog mit vier Informationen. Entscheide, welche zwei Informationen für eine abwesende Person am wichtigsten sind, und begründe deine Auswahl.
2. Change the perspective: Formuliere drei direkte Aussagen einer fiktiven Person als zusammenhängenden Bericht. Achte darauf, welche Pronomen sich ändern.
3. Compare two reports: Vergleiche zwei kurze Berichte desselben Dialogs. Erkläre, welcher Bericht die wichtigen Informationen klarer wiedergibt und warum.
4. Repair a message: Verbessere einen Bericht mit falschem Sprecher, falschem Pronomen und einer unnötigen Information. Erkläre jede Änderung.
5. Transfer to a new context: Berichte die Kernaussagen aus einer kurzen fiktiven Schulclub-Nachricht und ergänze eine eigene Meinung mit Begründung.
6. Listening to reporting: Höre einen kurzen Dialog zweimal. Notiere zunächst Schlüsselwörter und schreibe danach drei verbundene reporting sentences.

Lernnachweis

Für einen Lernnachweis zu diesem Thema ist wichtig:

1. Du findest in einem kurzen Hör- oder Lesetext die wichtigsten Aussagen einer Person.
2. Du kannst zwei bis vier Aussagen sinnvoll auswählen und verbunden wiedergeben.
3. Du nutzt einfache reporting structures wie says that und tells someone that.
4. Du passt wichtige Pronomen an.
5. Du gibst mindestens einmal eine Meinung mit einem verständlichen Grund.
6. Du kannst einen eigenen Fehler erkennen und verbessern.
7. Du musst keine Backshift-Regeln, reported questions oder commands produktiv beherrschen.
8. Passive Formen und past perfect dürfen rezeptiv vorkommen, müssen aber nicht von dir gebildet werden.

Verknüpfte Lernbereiche

E8 G - Report what someone says Listening comprehension Reading comprehension Reported speech Pronouns Speaking Writing Mediation Englisch Klasse 8