B2 COURSE

Unit 18 - How to practise your Reading skills

18.1. - How to practise your Reading skills

Reading is one of the best ways to practise and improve your English. When your reading skills
improve, your listening,speaking and writing skills improve too. Here are some of the specific reasons
why English learners are encouraged to read in English:

The constant repetition of words and patterns in reading helps you learn and remember vocabulary
and grammar structures.
Reading helps you become familiar with the rhythm of English. Over time it will start to feel natural
and you will notice when a sentence or phrase doesn’t seem right.
Unlike conversation, reading is something you can do on your own.
Reading is not expensive, often free.
Good reading skills can improve your other language skills. You need to learn to read before you can
write.
Reading is the best way to learn and remember the proper spelling of words.
Listening as you read aloud can help you improve your pronunciation skills.

News articles:

BBC NEWS Football Green issues

The Guardian Film news Britsh news

America British Council Music blogs

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Unit 18 - How to practise your Reading skills

Stories:
20 famous short stories

Post secrets

Below is a list of free novels in the public domain including classics such as ´Pride and Prejudice´, ´The
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn´, ´Frankenstein´, ´Moby Dick´ and ´Les Miserables´.

Be careful though! The older the book, the more difficult it is!

Audio books:
Audio books can be used to:

Introduce students to books above their reading level

Model good interpretive reading
Teach critical listening
Highlight the humor in books
Introduce new genres that students might not otherwise consider
Introduce new vocabulary or difficult proper names or locales
Sidestep unfamiliar dialects or accents, Old English, and old-fashioned literary styles
Provide a read-aloud model
Provide a bridge to important topics of discussion for parents and children who can listen together
while commuting to sporting events, music lessons, or on vacations
Recapture “the essence and the delights of hearing stories beautifully told by extraordinarily
talented storytellers” (Baskin & Harris, 1995, p. 376)

Here is a link to a collection of free audiobooks, the text is also available so

feel free to follow the text while you listen!

18.2. - Comprehension practice

Comprehension practice 1
Comprehension practice 2

On these two sites you´ll find many different titles. Click on the title of the story and it will take you to
the text which also have comprehension quizzes to make sure you´ve understood what you´ve been
reading.

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Unit 18 - How to practise your Reading skills

18.3. - Vocabulary practice

Do you want to read about a specific subject? Select your topic and you will find a text with lots of
information about the relevant vocabulary.
E.g.,holidays and festivals

18.4. - FCE Reading exam practice

This site gives you lots of exam practice, and is one of the best I´ve found to specifically help prepare
students for the First Certificate. (Please note that the exam format has changed since this website
was created, but the content is still relevant!)