Theme: developing reading skills in ELT

     Sustained silent reading is a teaching activity where learners have a period of uninterrupted silent reading. According to Andersen sustained silent reading is a period of uninterrupted silent reading. Independent reading time is not only enjoyable, but it also helps learners increase reading skills , and provides quiet reading work that a class can do while the teacher gives individual help. Here are some guidelines to follow when you use sustained silent reading: choose reading material that is enjoyable, and not too difficult; set aside about 15-30 minutes for reading during class; have everyone read silently; reinforce what is being read by discussing the material together, or having readers keep a journal.

     Tape assisted reading is an individual or group reading activity where a learner reads along with a passage which has been recorded on audio or video tape. Robson, DeVergilio, and DeButts suggested that tape assisted reading can be used as an individual or group reading activity: fluency proper phrasing and expression, and recognition of sight words. Follow these steps to use tape assisted reading: listen to the tape while following along on the paper copy of the passage.Then read along with the tape.  Listen to the tape and read along with it, reading just a little slower so that you are "echoing" the taped reading.Try to stay one or two syllables ahead so that the tape is an "echo". Read the passage without the tape.Repeat Steps 2 through 4 as needed. [8] 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Chater 2. Reading in practice

2.1. Beginner level

Life is a rainbow

      We do not live in a black and white world. We live in a rainbow world. Colors are everywhere. Colors are beautiful. A toilet bowl is white. A panda is white and black. A crow is black. The sky and the ocean are blue. An apple is red or green. An orange is always orange, but the sun is sometimes orange. A stop light is red, yellow, and green. A lemon is yellow. People are white, brown, or black. Fishes and birds are many different colors. Hair is white, gray, brown, black, or red. A golf ball and a baseball are white. A basketball is orange. A tennis ball is green. A fire engine is red. A police car is black and white. The moon and the stars are white. Grass is green, but dirt is brown. A fried egg is yellow and white. Your blood is red. Your teeth are white. A stop sign is red and white. You cannot talk about colors to blind people. They have never seen colors. That is sad.                Exercise 1. “Сolours of the sun

.

 

Task: In the picture we can see a sun with rays (we explain the meaning of the unknown word ‘rays’ showing picture, or drawing on a blackboard a new sun) of different colours. Look at the picture and try to write down the names of colours, all the names are from the text. So if you read one more time you will definently fill in (we explain the meaning of ‘fill in’ giving synonyms) the right colour. (If anyway it is too difficult for them to fill in all the colours, because of the unknown vocabulary, we’ll give them the same text but the names of colours will be printed in the colour, which they are respectively).

     Exercise 2 “new vocabulary in use” (requires logical thinking)

1. What is your favourite colour and can you explain us why?

(learner tells his favorite colour or even two or three, and it is enough to tell a few sentences or even words why is it so);

2. Can you tell us more examples of things or animals which have the

colours from the text?

3. What colours associations you have with a word ‘sad’?
4. What colour you can`t see on a clean sheet of paper? And where else

we can`t see it? (white colour)

5. Could you describe your neighbour only using names of colours, after

that explain us why you chose this or that colour.

6. For each season of the year choose one colour and try to explain your

choice.   

Exercise 3 “Multiple choice questions” (to understand a content of a text)

1. In what kind of world we live?

1. in a white and black one;
2. in a sad one;
3. it has as many colours as a rainbow.

 
 

2. The moon and the stars are of the same colour as:

1. sky and ocean;
2. tennis ball, grass;
3. crow and teeth.

3. What colours are fishes and birds?

1. green, yellow, white, blue, orange;
2. black, grey, green, red, brown;
3. many different colours.

4. Why is it sad that you cannot talk about colours to the blind people?

1. because they can`t hear you;
2. because they can`t see the colours, onlw the black one;
3. because they can`t speak.

5. What is the main thought in the text?

1. life is so colourful, we must enjoy it, and be happy;
2. life is black and white, but sometimes we can see other colours;
3. the main colours in English.

Exercise 4 Maze 

      

     Here in this maze students have to find some of the colours they read about. And one more colour additional, which is new for them ‘pink’.

     2.2. Intermediate level

     Dear editors

     Dear Editors,

     Your readers may be interested in the flloeing account of the behavior modification of a small girl. Kathy started at my nursery school at the age of two years nine months. She was small for her age but confident, competent and determined. She settled into the group easily, wiould be first on the slide and highest up the climbinf fame. She could put on her coat without hep and not only fasten her own buttons but facten other children`s too.

     She was a lovely child but unfortunately a scratcher. If anyone upset her or stood in her way her right hand would flash out faster tham Mohammed Ali`s and score down the face of her playmates from forehead to chean. Children twice twice her age would fly in terror from her and cover screaming in corners.

     This must have been very rewaring for Kathy but obviously it had to be stopped – and stopped quickly. All the usual ways failed and then remembered an account by G.C.E. Atkinson of Highfield School, Halewen, Liverpool of how bullying in the playground had been stopped. No punishment had been given, but the bullies had been ignored and the victims rewarded. So I decided that in the future Kathy would be ignored and her victim given a sweet.

     With a pocketful of Smarties I followed Kathy around. She was so quick that it was impossible to prevent her scratching but I was determined to stay within arms length all afternoon. All was peacefull but then I saw Kathy`s hand descend and heard the scream. Quickly and gently I gathered up the little hrt one and cradling her in my arms said ‘Nice, nice sweetie` and I popped it into her mouth. Kathy opened her mouth expectantly and then when she got nothing lopked puzzled.             Minutes later another scream, this time from John and while cudding hin I said `Look Kathy, a nice Smartie for John` and put the sweet into John`s open mouth. A smile of understanding flashed across Kathy s face and holding a finger tenderly ame to me and wailed ‘Hurt my finger’. ‘Never mind’ said I coldly ‘It wil soon be better’. She stumped her small foot and shouted ‘Give me a Smartie, I have hurt my finger!’ ‘No’ I repied , ‘You’ll get a sweet if omeone hurts you’.

     Deliberately she turned and scratched a child, waited quietly while I mothered amd rewarded him, then walked away. She has never scratched a child since. Parents whi find older children bullying younger brothers and sisters might do well to replace shouting and punishment by rewarding and giving more attention to the injured one. It`s certainly less exhausting.

     Margaret  Seekree

     Summary skills 1

     Summarize the letter in one sentence

     Summary skills 2

     This exercise is based on the memory of a learner. Write the numbers 1 to 13 down the side of a piece of paper. Then writhe the letter of each event in the story, in order it happened.

1. Kathy scratched a child.
2. Kathy opened her mouth for a sweet;
3. Kathy told the teacher her finger was hurt;
4. Kathy demand a sweet;
5. Kathy stopped cratching;
6. The teacger ignored Kathy and gave the other child a sweet;
7. The teacher gave the other child a sweet and made sure Kathy noticed;
8. The teacger ignred Kathy;
9. The teacher answered Kathy without sympathy.

Guessing unknown words 1

1. Kathy was a scracher. So in the phrase ‘score doen the face of her playmates,’ score probably means……………………………

2. Kathy was expecting a swet and did not get one. A person puzzled is probably a person who does not………………………………..

3. Kathy was pretending her finger was hurt. So wailed probably means said in a ………………….way’

     Guessing unknown words 2

This is like the previous task, but here is much more diifficuly to guess the maning of the word.

1 forehead: The forehead is at the………………………..of the face.

2. rewarding: Seeing the results of the scratching gave Kathy…………………….

3. Smarties: This is a kind of……………………………………………….

4. Cuddling: You cuddle someone with tour…………………………. Some of the people you might cuddle are……………………….and………………………..

5. Exhausting: Is it pleasant for something to be exhausting?................................... You cannot guess exactly from the text, but exhausting might mean………...…….. 

     Accurate comprehension

     For each sentence, write T if it is true according to the text, F if it is false according to the text, and DS if the text doen`t say.

     Kathy was a difficult child in many ways.

     Kathy helped other childrens.

     Other children did not fight back when Kathy scratched them.

     Kathy was a confident, component, determined child.

     Teacher method with Smarties was a right one.

     Parents should replace punishment for rewarding ingured kids.

     2.3 Proficiency level

Loneliness

  All around us are the grids of communication – mobile phones, e-mail and Internet. And all around us are the merry images of belonging: all those TV soaps based on communities of work orneighbourhoods – the street where you live, the group of friends you’ve known for most of your life. These programmes all emphasize the group culture, as if it is only in a group that we can find our identity. Who do meet at the gym? Who do you go home to, and plan with and cook with and quarrel with? Who will you open your presents with next Christmas? Who will you hope and dream with?

  We don`t talk about loneliness. It seems to have become the last taboo: the thing we fear, the failure we can`t own up to. There is no good vocabulary for solitude in a society of compulsive relating, and people who are or want to be alone are pathologised.

  There are degrees of loneliness. For many of us the extreme loneliness of some people unimaginable. We all need to learn how to be alone – to withdraw from the crowd, to be at peace with the self – but this kind of loneliness has nothing to do with the solitary anguish that is fate of so many. It is like talking about the virtues of eating a little bit less when people are starving.     
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Conclusion 

      Developing reading skills in ELT is a complicated process, which requires not only the very knowledge of vocabulary or theoretical notions, but a lot of others important steps to follow. I tried to show how it can be possible to improve one`s reading skills with a help of certain, specially prepared exercises. Reading is not just only for learning unknown words or practicing the right pronunciation. A great role in reading has its content. If it is topical, interesting and convey some unknown and useful information for the reader it will have much more effect on the learner than a boring one. Especially when it concerns beginner level or even intermediate for a teacher it is a must to give such kind of text descrived above. The purpose of reading to interest learners, to encourage them in their further and deeper studuying English.  But for the advanced and profficiency levels text must be choosed with useful and sophisticated vocabulary rather than containing amusing content. Because learners having these higher levels are already interested in learning English and they just need to improve their skills. The teacher must also use as many different exercises for the text as he knows. He should update his knowledge about new methods and strategies in developing reading skill. Of course, it is suggestable to read texts in different styles. This will help to make lessons more unusual, fresh and worth to attend. The possible way of solving a problem of choosing a type or slyle of a text is to give a chance for the very students to decide. They could read whatever book they find interesting as for an extensive reading. It is better to collaborate with students and ask them what kind of activities they want to do or whether the topic of reading text suits them.    
 
 

References 

1. Calman M. Short Cuts// Using Texts to Explore English/ M. Calman, B. Duncan. – London: Penguin group, 1995. – 208 p.
2. Head K. Readings in Teacher Development/ K. Head, Taylor P. – Oxford: Heinemann, 1997. – 200 p.
3. Nutall.C. Teaching Reading Skills in a Foreign Language/ C.Nutall. – Oxford: Heinemann, 1982. – 235 p.
4. Wallace C. Reading/ C. Wallace. – Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992. – 250 p.
5. Wallace M.J. Study Skills in English/ M.J. Wallace. – Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1980. – 218 p.
6. Walter C. Authentic Reading/C.Walter. – Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1982. – 94 p.
7. Williams M. A Course in Language Teaching//Practice and theory/M.Williams, T. Wright. – Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. – 200p.
8. http://www.nclrc.org/essentials/reading/stratread.htm
9. http://www.sil.org/lingualinks/literacy/implementaliteracyprogram/DevelopingReadingSkills.htm
10. http://www.meddybemps.com/7.24.html
11. http://www.tc.edu/rwp/articles/Reading%20Development%20-%20General/RRQ-Reading%20Skills%20Development-Paris.pdf