We all know that reading regularly in English is one of the best ways to get our students to improve their level in English (it broadens their vocabulary, it reinforces their knowledge of grammatical structures etc...). The problem is getting our students to actually do it.
In every class I've taught, I've always stressed the importance to them to read as much as possible outside of class in English. Unfortunately, apart from the most dedicated, few seldom do.
If you are an English learner, click here to learn about the student version of this eBook.
Why they don't
It can be easy to put the blame on our students for not doing this. And it is true that many of them (like all of us) can be either too lazy or are just too busy to get around to reading things in English outside the class.
But finding things to read is actually quite difficult and time-consuming. Although they do now have unlimited access to literally billions of articles in English which they can read for free on the web, it is extremely difficult for learners to find articles themselves which are both appropriate for their level and interesting to read. Even for students with an advanced or a CAE level of English, the vast majority of pieces of writings which they'll find on the web will be too difficult, confusing or boring for them. So, it's unsurprising the majority of them don't do it. What would you do if you were in their position? Would you continue doing something if you found it confusing and frustrating to do?
It makes our lives more difficult
Although it may not seem like it is our problem as teachers whether our students regularly read in English outside of class, it is. The practice which our students do in English outside of class is as important as what they do with us in class for determining how quickly they progress. The less they practise their English, the slower they progress.
To overcome the reasons why the majority of my own students weren't reading in English outside of class, I decided to create my own material for them to read regularly and a method that ensured that they actually read it. Material which was not only right for their level, but also interesting for them to read. It's taken me about 2 years to create all of this and to get it just right. And the result of all this hard work, is this eBook.
What's in the eBook
To start with, this edition of the PDF eBook has been specifically designed to be used by teachers with their students. There are 60 printable reading exercises and each exercise includes:
- A long text (approximately 1000 words)
- A vocabulary exercise
- A sheet for students to create sentences with the vocabulary
- 5 questions for you to ask your students about the topic they've read
Click here to see an example of one of the texts from the eBook
Click here to see a list of the titles of the text of the 60 reading exercises
The 60 texts in the eBook
- Why do Americans have less days of holiday than everybody else?
- Is it ethical for football players to earn more than doctors?
- Why South Africa has an obsession with guns
- Will robots make many of us unemployed soon?
- Why does India perform so badly at the Olympics?
- The decline of America's Motor City, Detroit
- Why we see so many products in Bond films
- Why the Chinese are learning western manners
- Is Artificial Intelligence really a threat to us all?
- Is seawater a solution to falling supplies of drinking water?
- The meat that is killing people in Tonga
- The history of Christmas traditions
- Is it good to give gifts at Christmas?
- Should countries open their borders to everybody?
- Are there downsides to being beautiful?
- Air pollution is becoming one of the world's biggest killers
- Women live longer than men, but why?
- The consequences today of the Chernobyl disaster
- What are the reasons why the British say 'sorry' so much?
- Your French wine probably comes from Spain
- Is nationalism a bad thing?
- Five things you can try to sleep better at night
- Is climate change going to affect what we eat?
- 7 ways casinos keep people gambling
- Why putting so many people in prison in America hasn't worked
- Nine things to make better and happier relationships
- How bribery and corruption damage business
- Thatcher is to blame for poor white kids failing part 1
- Thatcher is to blame for poor white kids failing part 2
- Stopping yellow fever in Angola
- Can you become an Olympian if you practise enough?
- Destroying everything you own for art
- We might be able to eradicate mosquitoes soon, but should we do it?
- Are selfies making us better or worse people?
- Are genetically modified crops good or bad?
- Why many of us no longer believe what experts say
- What actually caused the dinosaurs to become extinct?
- Is BASE jumping from tall buildings stupid or not?
- Stopping climate change. Who should pay?
- Are there too many university graduates in Britain?
- Bridge of Spies film review
- Four things that men can do to be a feminist at work
- What to do if a global disaster happens
- Is failure fundamental for being creative?
- A tale of a mother's loss and guilt
- The problems about YouTube replacing children's TV
- What to do in Madrid in 48 hours
- Is this the end of food?
- What makes a happier workforce
- Are vertical cities going to save us?
- The life of a dancer
- Would it be a good thing if everyone went vegan?
- Changing your career and life
- Walking the Camino Inglés
- Why are stories so alike?
- How wolves saved the Yellowstone park’s ecosystem
- The discovery that rewrote history
- Why you should love art
- Shooting an elephant part 1
- Shooting an elephant part 2
Close the exercise list
In addition to this, you'll also find in the eBook a tried and tested method for using these reading exercises with your students.
How the eBook will help you and your students
The material in this eBook will improve your students' English in a number of different areas:
Improve their reading
Each reading exercise has a text that been specifically written and adapted (so they are still challenging, but not difficult for them to read and understand) for teachers to use with students whose level of English is advanced (or high upper-intermediate) or are studying for the Cambridge CAE exam. The texts cover a wide range of different topics (from science to art and everything in between) and this will broaden your students' knowledge of English vocabulary.
Improve their vocabulary
In addition to the text, each reading exercise contains a vocabulary exercise. In this, your students will learn the meaning of 7 carefully selected phrases and words from the text. These are words and phrases which I have noticed over the 10 years that I have been teaching English that students at this level commonly don't know, don't use or use incorrectly.
Make them remember the vocabulary
It would be pointless for your students to learn the meaning of these words and phrases and then forget what they mean. To ensure that they do remember them, each reading exercise comes with a sheet for your students to write a sentence in their own words for each of the 7 words and phrases they learnt in the vocabulary exercise.
It'll help their speaking as well
These reading exercises have also been designed to improve your students' ability and confidence in speaking in English as well. The topic of each reading exercise has been selected to make students interested in what they are reading about. Included in the eBook is a tried and tested method for using the reading exercises for getting your students to talk together in class, not just about the text, but about the topic in general. To help you do this, you'll find each reading exercise has a list of at least 5 questions which you can ask them after they have done it.
You'll be surprised how much your students' speaking in English will improve after doing these reading exercises for just a few months.
Make your life easier
The more your students read and speak in English, the quicker they improve. This makes happier students, happier classes and higher grades. All of which makes your life as teacher a lot easier.
Get your copy now
The cost for all of this material is €17 (around $20). When you take into consideration that the material is designed to be used for a full academic year and how much it will help both you and your students, it is cheap for the price.
I have been using this material and method with my own students for over three years now and I'm very happy with the results I've seen. Not only with seeing how it has improved their level of English, but seeing how they enjoy speaking together and expressing their opinions about the topics of the reading exercises that they have done.
Click the button below to buy your copy.