What to do

1. Students work in small groups and draw up a list of where they think the world's best beaches are. Get them to compare their lists in the open class. Have students been to the beaches, or are they basing their choices on the beach's reputation?

2. Hand out the worksheet. Get students to look at the photo and tell you where they think it was taken. They will see that it's from the official website of Porthemmet - "The best beach in Cornwall". Do they know where Cornwall is? If not, get them to read enough of the feature to find out that it's in the south-west of England. Are they surprised by the answer?

3. Ask students to read the first main paragraph of the feature in more detail. Do they think they would like to visit Porthemmet? Would they prefer the activities on offer at the northern or the southern end of the beach?

4. Now get them to look at the photo again in more detail. Is there anything strange about it? Point out that with today's technology, it's easy to manipulate digital photos. Do they think the beach is really in England? Can they see anything in the photo that could tell them why it might not be in England? Students should now read the second and third paragraphs of the feature. As they do this, write the following words and phrases on the board - palm trees, hoax, controversial, tourism, emmet. When they finish, get them to tell you the significance of these words in the feature. Finally, ask if they think the website is just for fun, or whether they think it insults tourists. Did they find the hoax funny?

5. Get students to work in small groups and plan a hoax website for an invented tourist destination where they live. They should think of a name, its exact location, and what the destination has to offer visitors. You could get them to make a poster for the destination, and some groups might like to create a real website.