21 Chump Street Podcast & Video Lesson Compare/Contrast PDF & Google Drive CCSS

Behold the cautionary tale of Justin Laboy, an 18-year-old high school senior who agreed to sell a baggie of marijuana in a foolish attempt to impress the new hottie at school – a girl who turned out to be a 25-year-old undercover police officer. Yes, it’s a real-life version of a 21 Jump Street episode that concludes with a broken heart and a felony conviction.

Justin Laboy’s case was featured on This American Life’s NPR podcast. In this lesson, students will listen to the 13-minute podcast episode and answer a set of questions. Then, they’ll compare the podcast episode to a 16-minute musical version created by Broadway superstar Lin-Manuel Miranda.

This download includes:

• Suggested lesson procedure with links to online "21 Chump Street" podcast and video content (also included below on this product description page)

• Handout with ten short-answer questions to guide analysis of the podcast (answer key included)

• Handout with seven short-answer questions (group activity or solo work) to help students compare the musical version with the original NPR broadcast (answer key included)

Student handouts are included as both printable PDF and Google Drive versions.

Note: I marked this lesson for grades 11 and 12 because the story focuses on drugs being sold at school; the lesson, however, would also work with 8th, 9th, and 10th grades since there aren’t any swear words or otherwise objectionable content. If you’re uncertain about the appropriateness of the content, please preview the media before purchasing these lesson materials. The podcast can be accessed here:

https://www.thisamericanlife.org/457/what-i-did-for-love/act-two

The musical can be accessed here (play from 21:33 timestamp to 38:00):

https://youtu.be/AagGcXs3_IQ?t=1293

Interested in more podcast-based lesson materials? Click here to view my collection of high-interest Listen & Learn activities:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Laura-Randazzo/Category/Listen-Learn-Podcasts-291031

Want more video-based lessons? Click here to scroll through my entire collection:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Laura-Randazzo/Category/Video-Based-Lessons-496064

Want this item plus a whole lot more? Check out my Short Story Unit for Older Teens, a collection of stories and lesson materials designed specifically for high school juniors and seniors. You'll save more than 30% off the cost of those individual items, including the item featured on this page, if you purchase the bundle available here:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Short-Story-Unit-Eng-1112-Short-Stories-Multimedia-PDF-Google-Drive-CCSS-9330437

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Cover image credit: Pixabay, Public domain