Need a reading for your ESL class right now?
These are just six out of 52!
My name is Jane Wangersky, and I’ve been teaching English as a Second Language near Vancouver, Canada, since 1998. Of course, I’ve also been learning while I was teaching, and a couple of things really stand out in my mind:
You need a good reading for every class.
After a few years’ teaching, you typically feel ready for anything. You’ve learned plenty of low-prep, no-prep, and spontaneous activities. You could probably walk in with no lesson plan or notes and still teach a productive class – if you had something for the students to read.
With a good reading at the heart of your class, ideas and activities flow naturally. Without one, everything is much harder than it needs to be.
What makes a reading “good” for an adult ESL class? Obviously, it needs to be written close to the students’ level of proficiency. Otherwise, their frustration will interfere with their learning. Just as important, the reading needs to be on a topic of interest.
What are adult ESL learners interested in? That’s another thing I saw over and over again:
Students need basic information about life in North America.
You’re not just their teacher, you’re a contact with the host culture – maybe their main contact. Students will ask you questions they’d hesitate to ask anyone else. They need to find out things that are common knowledge to those of us who grew up here.
Think of some of the non-language questions your students ask you. Mine have asked me where to buy medicine for their children, why we dye eggs at Easter and not at Christmas, what public school hours are, and what happens if you answer one of those ads on stuffing envelopes. These are just the questions I can remember off the top of my head. You’ve probably heard these plus many more.
So why not address some of these questions at the same time as teaching and reinforcing students’ English skills?
Well . . .
Readings like this can be hard to find.
Yes, there’s a world of reading materials out there, in print and on the Internet, a lot of it free for the taking. A lot of it is wonderful. A lot would be great – for some other class, but not for yours. Maybe it assumes background knowledge your students don’t have about North American life. Maybe it’s too British, or even too American (if you’re in Canada). Maybe it’s a personal story, when you wanted more facts. Maybe it’s at the right level of difficulty, but written for children rather than adults.
Of course, no one book or resource will fit every class all the time, but .
I've written an e-book that gives you a simple, informative reading for each week of the year.
That’s what it’s called: Each Week for a Year.
It’s grouped in three parts:
- · Holidays – with an individual reading on each major North American holiday, Christian, Jewish, and secular
- · Stories – two original short stories plus three readings on urban myths
- · Good to Know – twenty-six readings on common knowledge subjects your students need to know about.
Each reading is illustrated with professionally produced drawings.
You know how important pictures are to language learners – they convey information so quickly, they really are worth a thousand words each.
The book is fully reproducible.
Make as many copies as you need, without worrying about copyright, for about half the price of a hard copy reproducible workbook.
Choose from Canadian or U.S. editions.
I grew up in the States and now live and teach in Canada. No one knows better than me that the two countries may share a language and be the best of friends, but that doesn’t make them interchangeable.
Canadian teachers can get especially frustrated looking for ESL resources that deal with everyday life in their country.
So I’ve written two editions, one for the U.S. (yes, I still remember all about the Fourth of July, the Pledge of Allegiance, and George Washington’s cherry tree), and one for Canada (with the May Long Weekend, Parliament, and paper-and-pencil voting). The Canadian edition uses British spelling.
Base hundreds of activities on these readings.
Use them to teach vocabulary, check reading comprehension, start a class discussion, or inspire students to do their own writing.
You can get them right now.
Maybe the best part -- you could be printing what you need today, from your own printer, in just a few minutes.
Only $US25 -- less than half the price of a hard copy reproducible book!
It took me about 30 hours to write this book. You'd probably spend a similar amount of time over the course of a year if you set out to write your own reading for every class. How much are these hours of your life worth to you?
If you’re ready to order, or just want to learn more, click here.
You’ll find my store at Lulu.com, the publishers. Look at a preview of the book, order your own copy (paying with a credit card or Paypal), and start printing.
GUARANTEED!
If you’re not happy with your book for any reason, let me know – e-mail jane at manna dot bc dot ca. Although Lulu.com doesn’t give refunds, I will, within 30 days of purchase. Just let me know when you placed your order and I’ll send your money back in whatever form you prefer.
(You could also let me know how to make the book better.)
Ready to download your copy and start making your job a lot easier?
P.S. Books can change our lives. This one will change yours.
