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Is your password really safe? Had better and ought to for advice and warnings

This B1 ESL lesson plan teaches had better and ought to for advice and warnings, with the online habits of Cybersecurity Awareness Month.

Grammar
Ought to and ought not to (= should) for advice (You ought to update your apps.) and had better / 'd better not for strong advice with a warning (You'd better change it, or someone will guess it.).
Topic
Cybersecurity Awareness Month and its four habits: strong passwords, multifactor authentication, spotting phishing and updates, with words such as passphrase, scam and attachment.
Activities
A library's post to read, a cybersecurity class and a listener's question to hear, four self-checking drills, a guide-building chat and a wheel of advice.

What's inside

  1. Chapter 1Password, please!

    • PictureUnlock
    • Open a box and answerOpen the boxUnlock
    • Study the words: staying safe onlineVocabularyTry it
    • Look at the pictures and chooseChoose by pictureUnlock

  2. Chapter 2Let's read: four easy habits

    • Look at the photo: a class at the libraryPictureUnlock
    • Read the library's postArticleUnlock
    • Read and mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock
    • Read again and choose the correct answerQuizUnlock

  3. Chapter 3Let's listen: Footnote123?!

    • Listen to Darius and AutumnListeningTry it
    • Transcript, for the teacherUnlock
    • Listen and choose the correct answerQuizUnlock
    • Listen to the Listener's TakeListeningUnlock
    • Transcript, for the teacherUnlock
    • Listen and mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock

  4. Chapter 4Grammar: You'd better change it!

    • Study the scheme: ought to and had betterGrammar schemeTry it
    • Choose the correct optionChoose the optionUnlock
    • Fill in the gaps: ought to or had betterFill in the gapsTry it
    • Fill in the table: ought to and had better notFill in the tableUnlock
    • Choose the correct answerQuizUnlock

  5. Chapter 5Let's talk: what would you tell a friend?

    • Choose the right replies: a guide for Sydney's grandmaChatTry it
    • Sort the tips into the correct columnsSort into columnsUnlock
    • Drag the words into the gaps: my safety guideDrag and dropUnlock
    • Spin the wheel and give advice: You ought to… You'd better…Spin the wheelUnlock

  6. Chapter 6Homework

    • Match the words and the meaningsMatchUnlock
    • Unscramble the wordsAnagramUnlock
    • Fill in the gaps with the lesson's wordsFill in the gapsUnlock
    • Find the matching pairs: words and factsMemory gameUnlock
    • Choose the correct optionChoose the optionUnlock
    • Fill in the gaps: make sentences with ought to and had betterFill in the gapsUnlock
    • Put the words in the correct order: the guide for GrandmaUnjumbleUnlock
    • Choose the correct answer: give adviceQuizUnlock
    • Choose the correct option: Riley's post for SydneyChoose the optionUnlock
    • Drag the words into the gaps: the hosts' group chatDrag and dropUnlock

33 exercises in 6 chapters. Start a 7-day free trial to open all of them, copy any part into your own lessons, and teach the lesson live.

Vocabulary

12 words and phrases from the lesson, each with a picture and audio in edio.

+9 more with pictures and audio in the lessonMore words

  • passphrase
  • multifactor authentication
  • phishing
  • scam
  • attachment
  • fingerprint
  • settings
  • warning sign
  • trap

Grammar: ought to and had better for advice and warnings

Ought to means the same as should: calm, sensible advice. Had better is stronger: it warns that something bad can happen if you don't act, now or soon. With a password named after a cat, learners tell calm advice from a warning, use the base form after both forms and read 'd as had.

You ought to… You'd better…

ought to = should: good advice. had better = strong advice with a warning: do it, or something bad can happen.

Every person: ought to and 'd better

Neither form changes with the person: He ought to ask Autumn, not oughts to; She'd better delete that text. The negatives are ought not to and had better not: They ought not to write passwords down. We'd better not be late.

Whoought toought not tohad better ('d better)had better not ('d better not)
II ought to update my apps.I ought not to reuse passwords.I'd better change my password today.I'd better not forget my passphrase.
youYou ought to use a passphrase.You ought not to share your password.You'd better hurry.You'd better not click that link.
heHe ought to ask Autumn.He ought not to use a pet's name.He'd better change his password.He'd better not say his password on the show.
sheShe ought to call Sydney.She ought not to reply.She'd better delete that text.She'd better not click the link.
it (the app)It ought to ask for a second step.It ought not to ask for money.It'd better work tonight!It'd better not crash again!
weWe ought to check every link.We ought not to open strange attachments.We'd better go now.We'd better not be late.
theyThey ought to install updates.They ought not to write passwords down.They'd better read the guide.They'd better not reply to that email.

Ought to or had better?

Ought to gives good advice: You ought to use a password manager. Had better adds a warning, often with or and the result: You'd better change it, or someone will guess it. We'd better go now, or we'll miss the class.

ought to = should: calm advice

  • You ought to use a password manager.
  • Every account ought to have its own password.
  • You ought not to reuse old passwords.

had better = strong advice + a warning

  • You'd better change it, or someone will guess it.
  • You'd better not click that link!
  • We'd better go now, or we'll miss the class.

Had better: had, not would

The 'd in You'd better go is had, so You would better go is wrong. Even with had, the meaning is now or the future: You'd better leave now. The base form follows, with no to, and not comes after better.

had better: three small facts

1. 'd = had, not would: You'd better go = You had better go. (Not: You would better.) 2. It's about now or the future, not the past: You'd better leave now. 3. After it, use the base form, with no to: You'd better change it. The negative is had better not: You'd better not click it.

Ought to: always with to

Ought never drops its to: You ought to update your apps, not You ought update. The negative is ought not to: You ought not to reply. In questions, Americans usually switch to should: Should I change my password?

ought to: always with to

ought to = should: You ought to update your apps = You should update your apps. It's the same for every person (He ought to… not: He oughts to…). The negative is ought not to: You ought not to reply. In questions, Americans use should: Should I change my password?

Four common slips

Watch for You'd better to change it and You had better changed it: the right verb is the plain base form, change. You'd not better click it puts not in the wrong place, and You ought update is missing to.

  • You'd better to change it.

    You'd better change it.

    had better + base form, no to

  • You had better changed it.

    You had better change it.

    the base form, not the past

  • You'd not better click it.

    You'd better not click it.

    not comes after better

  • You ought update your apps.

    You ought to update your apps.

    ought always has to

At the library class

  • You'd better change it today, or someone will guess it.
  • You ought to have a different password for every account.
  • You ought to use a password manager.
  • You'd better not write it down.
  • You'd better not click anything in it.
  • Footnote had better stay off your keyboard!

More lessons on this grammar: Modal verbs lessons and exercises

Try the had better and ought to exercises

Try them yourself: these are the same exercises your students do in edio.

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What's in the lesson

  • 19 auto-checked exercises
  • 5 games
  • 1 article
  • 1 grammar scheme
  • 1 set of word cards
  • 2 audio clips
  • 2 pictures
  • 2 transcripts

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

  • give calm advice with ought to and ought not to: You ought to use a password manager. You ought not to reuse old passwords.
  • give strong advice with a warning: You'd better change it today, or someone will guess it. You'd better not click that link!
  • use the base form after both, with to only after ought: You'd better change it, not You'd better to change it
  • read 'd better as had better, never would better, and put not after better: You'd better not click it.
  • build a five-tip online safety guide for someone they know: She ought to turn on multifactor authentication.

Lesson 15 is the third lesson of Life online, unit 4 of English B1.1 · Stories That Travel. It builds on the should and shouldn't of A2.1 lesson 26 and on lesson 14's be supposed to, and adds two new ways to give advice. Lesson 16 closes the unit with let, make and allow. Online safety needs both kinds of advice: calm tips for good habits and real warnings about links and weak passwords.

Students open boxes of questions about passwords and strange messages, then learn twelve words, from update and click to passphrase and multifactor authentication, with pictures and audio. A library's post on Cybersecurity Awareness Month comes with true-or-false statements and a quiz. Darius joins Autumn's class at the library because his password is Footnote123, and Sydney, 18, asks for a safety guide for her grandma; both listenings are AI-voiced. Four self-checking drills follow the scheme, among them a table of calm advice and warnings for every person. In the speaking chapter, the student builds the guide with Darius in a chat, sorts tips, fills in a guide template and spins a wheel to give advice.

All ten homework tasks check themselves: a word match, an anagram, a word gap-fill and a memory game of words and facts, then a choice of forms, gaps with ought to and had better, the grandma guide's tips in order, an advice quiz, Riley's post for Sydney and the hosts' group chat.

Grammar:
ought to · ought not to · had better · had better not
Topic:
Cybersecurity Awareness Month · passwords · online safety · phishing · libraries · Stories That Travel

Teaching tips

  • Put a weak password on the board, such as a pet's name and 123, and ask the class for advice. Sort their answers into calm tips (You ought to…) and warnings (You'd better…, or…).
  • Ask how long a strong password is before the library's post. Students guess a number of characters, then read to check: the post says at least 16.
  • Stop the class dialogue at Darius's prize text and ask what Autumn will tell him. Students predict with He'd better not…, then listen for her answer.
  • Make a class version of Sydney's guide after the chat: groups write five tips for someone they know, with at least two ought to and two 'd better not sentences.

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The whole course: English B1.1 · Stories That Travel

32 lessons for adults at B1 in American English, each built around a true story. Riley, Jade and Darius make a podcast in Kansas City about true American stories, and each lesson tells one, from a seaplane airport in Alaska to the Marfa Lights of West Texas. Learners compare the present perfect with the past simple, use future forms, modals and quantifiers, and give their own opinions. The practice exercises check themselves.See the course

  1. Unit 1 Travel smart

    the present perfect vs the past simple, for and since, indirect questions, be used to and get used to

    1. Lesson 1Would you visit an airport just for fun?Present perfect vs past simple
    2. Lesson 2Would you sleep in a 300-year-old inn?For and since with the present perfect
    3. Lesson 3My suitcase has gone to Honolulu!Indirect questions for polite requests
    4. Lesson 4Can you practice a flight?Be used to and get used to

  2. Unit 2 Dream jobs, new jobs

    will have to and won't be allowed to, the present perfect continuous, simple vs continuous, would vs used to

    1. Lesson 5Would you jump off a moving boat for a job?Will have to, will be able to and will be allowed to
    2. Lesson 6Working from anywherePresent perfect continuous
    3. Lesson 7Could you be a camp counselor?Present perfect simple vs continuous
    4. Lesson 8Would you live in a lighthouse?Would vs used to for the past

  3. Unit 3 Space and discovery

    it's + adjective + to, What's it like to…?, future forms compared, future time clauses, too and enough + to

    1. Lesson 9What's it like to work in space?It's + adjective + to and What's it like to…?
    2. Lesson 10Who will walk on the Moon next?Future forms compared by meaning
    3. Lesson 11A message for the starsFuture time clauses
    4. Lesson 12A helicopter on Mars?Too and enough + to-infinitive

  4. Unit 4 Life online

    the more…, the more…, be supposed to, ought to and had better, let, make and allow

    1. Lesson 13The internet's first word was “LO”Comparative and comparative; the more…, the more…
    2. Lesson 14Who sent the first spam?Be supposed to for rules, expectations and plans
    3. Lesson 15 · you're hereIs your password really safe?Ought to and had better for advice and warnings
    4. Lesson 16Who writes Wikipedia?Let, make and allow + someone

  5. Unit 5 Screen and page

    -ed and -ing adjectives, gradable and extreme adjectives, present tenses for a plot, articles for things in general

    1. Lesson 17Why do readers still love Nancy Drew?-ed and -ing adjectives for feelings
    2. Lesson 18Movie night in your carGradable and extreme adjectives
    3. Lesson 19Would you review a book on TV?Present tenses to tell a plot
    4. Lesson 20Where are the books about girls like me?Articles for things in general and specific things

  6. Unit 6 Green living

    few and a few, little and a little, all, most, some and none, each and every, fewer and less

    1. Lesson 21A year's trash in one jar?Few, a few, little and a little
    2. Lesson 22No food in the trash!All, most, some and none (of)
    3. Lesson 23A farm in the middle of DetroitEach and every
    4. Lesson 24A trash collector with googly eyesFewer and less

  7. Unit 7 Sporting moments

    could, was able to and managed to, for, during and while, present tenses for live commentary, question tags

    1. Lesson 25From a leg brace to three goldsCould, was able to and managed to
    2. Lesson 26A doctor and an Olympic champion?For, during and while
    3. Lesson 27Who's that runner coming from behind?Present simple and continuous for live commentary
    4. Lesson 28Why do high jumpers go backward?Question tags

  8. Unit 8 Mysteries and lost worlds

    both… and, either… or and neither… nor, uncountable nouns, how sure we are about the future, unless, as long as and in case

    1. Lesson 29A calendar made of posts?Both… and, either… or, neither… nor
    2. Lesson 30What was the Great House for?Uncountable abstract nouns
    3. Lesson 31What does Newspaper Rock say?Certainty about the future
    4. Lesson 32What are the Marfa Lights?Unless, as long as and in case

Questions about this lesson

What does had better mean?
Had better gives strong advice with a warning about the result: do it, or something bad can happen. You'd better change your password today, or someone will guess it. It's about now or the future, even though it contains had. The negative is had better not: You'd better not click that link. The B1 lesson Is your password really safe? on edio.ai teaches it with online safety tips.
What does ought to mean?
Ought to means the same as should: it gives advice or says what's right. You ought to use a different password for every account. Every account ought to have its own password. It stays the same for every person (she ought to, never she oughts to), and its negative is ought not to. In questions, Americans usually use should instead: Should I update my apps?
What's the difference between had better and ought to?
Ought to is calm advice; had better is stronger and more urgent, with a bad result in mind. You ought to use a password manager is a good idea. You'd better change it, or someone will guess it is a warning, and the result often follows or. The negatives work the same way: You ought not to reply. You'd better not reply. The scheme in Is your password really safe? on edio.ai compares the two.
Is it "had better" or "would better"?
It's had better: the 'd stands for had, so You'd better go means You had better go, and You would better go is wrong. The verb after it is the base form, with no to: You'd better change it, not to change or changed. For the negative, not follows better: You'd better not click it, not You'd not better.
What are some examples of had better and ought to?
These come from Is your password really safe?, a B1 lesson on edio.ai: You'd better not write your master password down. Footnote had better stay off your keyboard! We ought to install updates as soon as we can. She ought to turn on multifactor authentication. The warning often comes after or: He'd better leave now, or he'll miss the bus.
What makes a password safe?
Cybersecurity Awareness Month advises a long password of at least 16 characters: a random mix of letters, numbers and symbols, different for every account. A passphrase of five to seven unrelated words is easier to remember and still strong. A password manager can make and store the passwords, so you remember only one master password, and you never write that one down. Multifactor authentication adds a second step, such as a code or a fingerprint.
What is Cybersecurity Awareness Month?
It's a campaign held every October to help people stay safe online. The National Cybersecurity Alliance started it in October 2004 with the US Department of Homeland Security; today the Alliance and CISA, a US government agency, lead it together, and people join in all over the world. It teaches four habits: strong passwords, multifactor authentication, spotting and reporting phishing, and software updates.
How do I teach had better and ought to to B1 students?
Start from problems students recognize, like a weak password or a strange text, and ask for advice. Calm answers become ought to; urgent ones become had better with an or warning. Keep should as the bridge, since ought to means the same. Is your password really safe? on edio.ai moves from a library class to the scheme, four drills and a five-tip guide.
What's a good game for practicing had better and ought to?
A wheel of everyday problems works well: each slice holds a situation, such as Your friend uses the same password for every account, and the student who spins gives two pieces of advice, one with ought to and one with 'd better. Is your password really safe? on edio.ai ends its speaking chapter with a wheel like this, after the chat and the guide.
What's good homework for had better and ought to?
Good homework pairs short drills with real advice texts: gaps such as It's raining, so ___ (we / had better / take) an umbrella, a quiz with a problem and three replies, and a post with a five-tip guide. All ten homework tasks in Is your password really safe? on edio.ai check themselves, from a memory game to the hosts' group chat.
How do you practice had better and ought to one-to-one?
Swap small real problems: the student describes one, such as a slow phone or a forgotten password, the teacher answers with ought to and 'd better, and then they switch roles. The chat in Is your password really safe?, a B1 lesson on edio.ai, works without a partner: Darius builds a guide for Sydney's grandma from the student's advice.
Are there interactive exercises for had better and ought to?
Yes. Without an account, this page plays three parts of Is your password really safe?, a B1 lesson on edio.ai: Darius's class with the librarian Autumn, a gap-fill that builds ought to and had better sentences from prompts, and the chat where Darius and the student write a safety guide. The page checks each answer instantly. An account opens the rest.
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