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While conditionals are very straightforward, reported speech is very much not! On that front, this unit covers much more complex grammar than previous units.
One example from the text, in particular, really got me thinking:
"I love you," she said. --> She said (that) she loved me.
Naturally, I would actually say, "She said that she loves me," because that love (as far as we know) continues into the present moment. "She said she loved me" makes it sound like she loved me in the past, but potentially she doesn't now. ("She said she loved me, and yet she broke my heart...") At least in verbal speech, I think the rules of reported speech are necessarily more flexible than the text suggests. (If "correct" grammar interferes with understanding intention, then those rules ought to change.)
My other question is about "If I was..." vs. "If I were..." The text states, "The latter is more formal." However, that leaves out all mention of the subjunctive mood. As far as I'm aware, "If I was" is never correct. (Though again, it is used enough in verbal speech that it's becoming at least somewhat accepted...Is that what the text means?)
I really liked some of the activity suggestions from the unit--the one where students have to match an occurence with its consequence, and the one where students "complete the conditional." In the "complete the conditional" activity, there's some great potential for having interesting philosophical/ethical/psychological conversations. I think some of my advanced students would really enjoy being able to have practical, meaningful conversations during an English class. I'd like to try that activity in the future!
