Like what you see? Generate your own in under 5 minutes.
Start 14-day free trial →Sample lesson plan
Commerce · Year 9 · Stage 5 · Term 2, Week 3
60 minutes
COM5-2, COM5-5
3 students
1.5, 3.1, 5.1
Learning intentions: Students will understand their rights and responsibilities as consumers under Australian Consumer Law, and be able to identify appropriate actions when those rights are breached.
Success criteria: I can identify a consumer right, explain when it applies, and recommend an appropriate remedy using correct legal terminology.
What to say to students
Questions to ask with expected responses
Q: What is a contract? | Expected: An agreement between two or more parties that creates legal obligations. Q: Name one element of a legally binding contract. | Expected: Offer, acceptance, consideration, intention to create legal relations, or capacity. Q: Define the word 'consumer'. | Expected: A person who buys goods or services for personal use (not for resale). Q: Difference between a right and a responsibility? | Expected: A right is something you're entitled to; a responsibility is something you must do. Q: Name one Australian consumer protection law. | Expected: Australian Consumer Law (ACL) — some may also name Fair Trading legislation.
Quick-fire retrieval of prior-lesson concepts. All students answer on whiteboards. Teacher scans for any student who hasn't reached mastery on a foundational concept before moving on. No discovery prompts — every question has a known correct answer.
Step-by-step tasks for students
1. Take out your whiteboard and marker (15 seconds). 2. Listen to each question (max 5 seconds per question). 3. Write your answer — you have 20 seconds. 4. Hold your whiteboard up when you hear 'boards up'. 5. Make corrections in your workbook as the teacher confirms each answer.
Most students will recall the basic terms (contract, consumer). Some may confuse 'rights' and 'responsibilities' — flag for re-teach. Some may not name the ACL — that's fine, today's lesson introduces it.
Learner Adjustments
Whiteboard responses across all 5 questions. Teacher notes which questions had widespread errors and decides whether to re-teach or proceed.
What to say to students
Questions to ask with expected responses
Q: What does ACL stand for? | Expected: Australian Consumer Law. Q: What is a consumer guarantee? | Expected: An automatic right when you buy goods or services — applies even if the shop doesn't mention it. Q: Define a major fault in your own words. | Expected: A fault so serious the product can't be used safely or no one would have bought it knowing about the fault. Q: Define a minor fault. | Expected: A fault that can be repaired in a reasonable time.
State today's three learning intentions clearly. Pre-teach the four key terms students need to access the explicit teaching phase. Each term gets its student-friendly definition read aloud by the teacher and copied into student notes. Choral repeat at the end to lock in vocabulary.
Step-by-step tasks for students
1. Copy today's three learning intentions into your workbook (under the date). 2. As the teacher reads each key term, write the term + the definition word-for-word. 3. Repeat the four terms aloud with the class on count of three. 4. Underline any word in the definitions you don't understand — you'll get a chance to ask in the next phase.
Most students will copy correctly. Some will mishear 'consumer guarantee' as 'consumer warranty' (different things) — clarify if you hear it. Some may ask about online purchases or second-hand goods — defer to the explicit teaching phase.
Learner Adjustments
Workbook entries show all three learning intentions and four key term definitions copied accurately. Choral repeat indicates whole-class engagement.
What to say to students
Questions to ask with expected responses
Q: Name the three consumer guarantees under the ACL. | Expected: Acceptable quality, fit for purpose, matches description. Q: In the fridge case, was the fault major or minor? Why? | Expected: Major — the fridge couldn't do its primary job (cool food); a reasonable person wouldn't have bought it knowing this. Q: For a minor fault, who chooses the remedy? | Expected: The shop. (Usually repair.) Q: For a major fault, who chooses the remedy? | Expected: The customer. Q: If your phone screen cracks after one day of normal use, is that a major fault? | Expected: Yes — a phone with a cracked screen on day one isn't of acceptable quality.
Teacher directly delivers the three consumer guarantees and three remedies under the ACL, with the major/minor fault rule. One worked example is delivered aloud — the Parramatta fridge case — walking through the rule step by step so students see how the framework is applied. No discovery — content delivered first, application happens in the next phase.
Step-by-step tasks for students
1. Write 'Three Consumer Guarantees' as a heading in your workbook. 2. Number 1 to 3 and copy each guarantee + its one-line definition as the teacher says it. 3. Below that, write 'Three Remedies: Repair, Replace, Refund'. 4. Write the major/minor rule: 'Minor → shop chooses. Major → customer chooses.' 5. Watch the worked example on the screen. As the teacher walks through it, annotate your notes with what makes the fridge case 'major'.
Most students will track. Some will ask 'what counts as a reasonable time?' — flag that this is decided case-by-case but a fridge with a $2,000 price tag working for three weeks is clearly not reasonable. Some may bring up online purchases — confirm the ACL covers online purchases from Australian sellers.
Learner Adjustments
Workbook entries show all three guarantees, three remedies, the major/minor rule, and annotated notes on the fridge worked example. Choral and individual answers to the CFU questions show whole-class grasp of the rule before moving to guided practice.
What to say to students
Questions to ask with expected responses
Q: In Sara's scenario, which consumer guarantee was breached? | Expected: Acceptable quality. Q: Why is the glue offer not necessarily sufficient? | Expected: Because the fault may be major, in which case the customer — not the shop — chooses the remedy. Q: In your pair-work scenario, what makes the fault major or minor? | Expected: Students cite the definitions (can it be safely used? was it fit for purpose? would a reasonable buyer have purchased it knowing the fault?). Q: What evidence would Sara need if Fair Trading got involved? | Expected: Receipt with date, photos of the broken sole, record of the shop's response.
Teacher works one full scenario aloud, applying the three-question framework (which guarantee? major or minor? who chooses?). Then students work in pairs on two more scenarios while the teacher circulates with feedback. This is structured practice — students are not discovering the rule, they're applying the rule the teacher just taught.
Step-by-step tasks for students
1. Follow along as the teacher works through Scenario 1 on the board (3 minutes). 2. With your partner, read Scenario 2 on your worksheet (30 seconds). 3. Apply the three-question framework — write your answers in the boxes provided (3 minutes). 4. Repeat for Scenario 3 (3 minutes). 5. When the teacher comes to your pair, be ready to justify your answer using ACL terminology.
Pairs may default to 'the customer should get a refund' for every scenario — gently push them back to the rule (is it major or minor first?). Some will struggle with 'fit for purpose' vs 'acceptable quality' when both could apply — that's fine, either correct answer is acceptable with justification.
Learner Adjustments
Worksheet answers for Scenarios 2 and 3 show students naming the correct guarantee, classifying major/minor with justification, and identifying who chooses the remedy. Teacher circulation feedback confirms or corrects in real time.
What to say to students
Questions to ask with expected responses
Q: Which consumer guarantee applies to this scenario? | Expected: Students name the specific guarantee with reasoning. Q: Major or minor — and how do you justify it? | Expected: Students cite the definition (safety, fit for purpose, what a reasonable person would have bought). Q: What remedy did you ask for, and why is that one available to you? | Expected: Students link the remedy choice to whether the fault is major (customer chooses) or minor (shop usually offers repair). Q: What evidence would you attach to your complaint? | Expected: Receipt, photos, date stamps, written record of the shop's initial response.
Students independently analyse a new consumer scenario and draft a complaint letter using the Fair Trading template — applying the three-question framework and ACL terminology from the explicit teaching and guided practice phases. Teacher circulates for clarification (not re-teaching). This is the assessment moment: each student demonstrates mastery on their own.
Step-by-step tasks for students
1. Read the scenario on your worksheet (2 minutes). 2. Answer the three framework questions in the boxes provided (4 minutes). 3. Draft a 100–120 word complaint letter using the Fair Trading template (8 minutes). Required terminology: ACL, consumer guarantee, major/minor fault, remedy. 4. Proofread — circle every ACL term you used (1 minute). 5. Hand in or be ready to submit at the end of the next phase.
Most students will produce a complete letter. Some will under-use ACL terminology and revert to everyday language — they'll need feedback in the closure phase. A few may struggle with the major/minor classification — that's the most common point of stuck.
Learner Adjustments
Completed worksheet (three framework answers) and complaint letter (100–120 words minimum, with required ACL terminology). This is the lesson's primary assessment artefact.
What to say to students
Questions to ask with expected responses
Q: Name the three consumer guarantees under the ACL. | Expected: Acceptable quality, fit for purpose, matches description. Q: For a major fault, who chooses the remedy? | Expected: The customer. Q: Define a minor fault in your own words. | Expected: A fault that can be fixed in a reasonable time.
Three mastery questions covering the core content of the lesson. Every student answers (whiteboards or signal). Teacher identifies any student who has not reached mastery and notes recovery action for next lesson. Exit ticket captures one metacognitive statement per student.
Step-by-step tasks for students
1. Take out your whiteboard or get ready to signal answers (10 seconds). 2. Answer each of the three mastery questions when the teacher asks (40 seconds total). 3. On the back of your worksheet, write one sentence: 'The most important thing I learned today is ___.' 4. Write your name at the top of the worksheet. 5. Drop it in the tray on your way out.
All students should be able to name at least two of the three guarantees. Any student who can't is flagged for re-teach. The 'customer chooses for major' rule is the most likely point of confusion — re-read aloud if more than 3 students miss it.
Learner Adjustments
Mastery question responses (whole-class snapshot of whether each student can recall the three guarantees, the major/minor remedy rule, and the minor fault definition). Exit tickets give a metacognitive read per student. Any student missing mastery is named in teacher notes for recovery action next lesson.
This is what every lesson plan looks like — NESA-aligned, differentiated, ready to teach.