For learners of English, the thought of reading an entire novel written in English can be quite nerve-wracking.The book may seem very long, and the prospect of spending hours trying to read and understand the story can seem very offputting. However, there are strategies which you can develop to help make the process of reading both simpler and more enjoyable.
In this extract from The Reading Group, Gillian gives some advice to novice readers.
Before you read How long does it take you to read a story or novel in your own language? Think about something you read recently. Did you find it easy or difficult to read? How often did you stop to think about the words which the writer used to describe the characters and events?
There are some simple guidelines for learners when they first approach reading stories and novels in English. First of all, choose a book which is relatively easy to understand. Pleasure in understanding helps confidence, along with the way we find ourselves acquiring new words. But you must remember that you need to make some decisions about these new words.Which words are really important for understanding the book? Which can we safely ignore? Good readers in both a first and second language don’t bother to find out the meaning of every single word.They are selective, focusing on words which seem important for understanding the gist or key ideas in a story or novel. And when good readers decide they DO need to understand a word, they use a number of helpful strategies.They may use the context to find the meaning of a word. For example, ‘The sky was azure and the sun shone brightly’. If I don’t know that ‘azure’ is a shade of blue, the rest of the description would help me work it out. Good readers also use the structure of a word to help them guess the meaning. For example, a word may have a prefix like ‘un’, as in ‘uncomfortable’ or a suffix like ‘ful’ as in ‘helpful’. Being able to break words down like this can help the reader guess the meaning without having to stop reading to consult their dictionary.
In this extract from The Reading Group, Gillian gives some advice to novice readers.
Before you read How long does it take you to read a story or novel in your own language? Think about something you read recently. Did you find it easy or difficult to read? How often did you stop to think about the words which the writer used to describe the characters and events?
There are some simple guidelines for learners when they first approach reading stories and novels in English. First of all, choose a book which is relatively easy to understand. Pleasure in understanding helps confidence, along with the way we find ourselves acquiring new words. But you must remember that you need to make some decisions about these new words.Which words are really important for understanding the book? Which can we safely ignore? Good readers in both a first and second language don’t bother to find out the meaning of every single word.They are selective, focusing on words which seem important for understanding the gist or key ideas in a story or novel. And when good readers decide they DO need to understand a word, they use a number of helpful strategies.They may use the context to find the meaning of a word. For example, ‘The sky was azure and the sun shone brightly’. If I don’t know that ‘azure’ is a shade of blue, the rest of the description would help me work it out. Good readers also use the structure of a word to help them guess the meaning. For example, a word may have a prefix like ‘un’, as in ‘uncomfortable’ or a suffix like ‘ful’ as in ‘helpful’. Being able to break words down like this can help the reader guess the meaning without having to stop reading to consult their dictionary.
- Why is it important for new readers to choose a book which is relatively easy to understand?
- What 3 strategies does Gillian suggest for dealing with unfamiliar words?
Answer
- Reading something that is easy to understand can make the reading process more enjoyable and build your confidence.
- Decide if the word is important to your overall understanding of the story. If it isn’t ignore it.
Try to guess the meaning of the word from the context of the sentence.
Try to break down the word by looking for prefixes and suffixes which can help you guess the meaning.
So how can you begin to become an efficient reader and to enjoy literature written in English? Here are some tips to help you.
Choose something which is easy to read If you are just beginning to read novels or stories in English, try to choose stories which you are already familiar with. For example, you may have read the book in your own language, or seen a film of the story.Also, avoid novels which are very long. Being able to finish the novel is one way to build confidence. Look for abridged English novels in your local library or bookshop.
Don’t focus on every word Try to relax as you read, and understand the main ideas. Don’t worry about minor details.
Guess the meaning of unfamiliar words If a word or sentence seems important, re-read it and actively try to guess the meaning, using the methods Gillian describes.
Make a note of important words If an unfamiliar word appears more than once, it is probably important or useful. If you need to look it up in your dictionary, remember to make a note of the meaning – otherwise you will forget it and have to look it up again next time!
TASK
The Essay, on the next page, is one of those stories.Written by Deepti Nalavade from India, it was highly commended in the Commonwealth Short Story Competition, run by the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association.You can hear it broadcast on the BBC World Service programme, Fishing For Jasmine.
Choose something which is easy to read If you are just beginning to read novels or stories in English, try to choose stories which you are already familiar with. For example, you may have read the book in your own language, or seen a film of the story.Also, avoid novels which are very long. Being able to finish the novel is one way to build confidence. Look for abridged English novels in your local library or bookshop.
Don’t focus on every word Try to relax as you read, and understand the main ideas. Don’t worry about minor details.
Guess the meaning of unfamiliar words If a word or sentence seems important, re-read it and actively try to guess the meaning, using the methods Gillian describes.
Make a note of important words If an unfamiliar word appears more than once, it is probably important or useful. If you need to look it up in your dictionary, remember to make a note of the meaning – otherwise you will forget it and have to look it up again next time!
TASK
The Essay, on the next page, is one of those stories.Written by Deepti Nalavade from India, it was highly commended in the Commonwealth Short Story Competition, run by the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association.You can hear it broadcast on the BBC World Service programme, Fishing For Jasmine.
- Read the first paragraph. Before you continue, try to predict what will happen next.
- As you read the rest of the story, try to follow Gillian’s advice on dealing with unfamiliar words.
- When you have finished reading, try to summarise the story in your own words in no more than 4 sentences.
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