Rent or Own? How Subscriptions Are Draining Your Wallet – ESL Lesson Plan

Do your students pay for Netflix, Spotify, and five other streaming services they barely use? Are they renting software they once bought outright? This thought-provoking lesson explores the hidden costs of the subscription economy and challenges students to rethink their spending habits.

Inspired by the popular YouTube video “Why Subscription Services Are Making A Fool Out of Us” by Neu, this 90-minute upper-intermediate (B2) lesson engages students with real-world content, authentic language, and meaningful discussion.

Students will:

• Develop listening comprehension by engaging with authentic, fast-paced spoken English on a familiar and relevant topic. Two sets of comprehension questions guide students through the video in stages, helping them extract specific information, understand main ideas, and interpret the speaker’s tone and arguments.
• Expand their vocabulary by learning and actively using 8 key terms related to money, business, and consumer behavior (drain, fee, customized, morph into, revenue, sneaky, lure in, binge watch)
• Strengthen their grammar through a focused presentation and practice of “used to” and “would,” with clear explanations, gap-fill exercises, and production tasks that help them distinguish between past habits and past states
• Enhance their speaking and critical thinking by expressing opinions, debating consumer issues, and reflecting on personal spending habits in pair and group discussions
• Improve collaboration skills by working effectively with partners and small groups to share ideas, compare answers, and reach conclusions

Turn your students into critical thinkers and savvy consumers. Get your students talking, listening, and reflecting – all while mastering “used to” and “would” in a meaningful context.