Program Background • I use extensive reading as a supplement to college English Conversation courses. • Goals: 1) plentiful input for overall language development (e.g., building a fuller sense of meaning and usage of vocabulary/grammar/phrases in various contexts) and 2) providing grist for in-class communication/discussion. • Students don't read in class, but use outside reading as a resource for communication in the classroom. • The examples presented here should be usable in any context, whether in conversation, reading, or general skills courses. Sparking Interest • Not many of my students are voracious readers, even in their L1. Explaining the benefits of extensive reading for reading skills and overall language learning (citing research if appropriate) helps establish the face validity of the program. Otherwise, "Why do something I've never learned to enjoy, that doesn't seem like studying, with no clear reason to do it?" See the Annotated Bibliography on the Extensive Reading Web Site for useful references. • Reading and You - Students complete a questionnaire for homework and use it to support in-class discussion on general reading habits and attitudes, as well as feelings and opinions about reading in English. • Genre Activity - The activity alerts learners to the different genres available, gets books in their hands, and helps in spotting interesting titles. • Blurb & Title Match - Pairs complete an info gap activity by connecting book titles and blurbs. Students also have the chance to note interesting books and gauge appropriate reading levels. • Placement Tests - Use the Edinburgh Project on Extensive Reading (EPER) Placement Tests or hand out a sheet with the first page from books at each different level. Students quickly read these to determine their initial reading levels. Placement tests may be useful for research and giving students a measure of their progress (if post-tests are done), but this can be time consuming. The latter method may be more entertaining and provides a look at several interesting titles. Maintaining Interest: Teacher-Led Activities • Teacher Reports - a quick report/review at the beginning or end of class. This is especially good if the featured book relates to the topic being covered in class at the time. It's also a good model for students to eventually give their own reports. • Cliffhangers - The teacher tells a story up to a crucial turning point. Leave it there to stimulate interest, or ask students or groups to come up with an ending or next step. Which does the class think most probable? • Oral Tests & Books - Students tell the instructor about books they've read as part of an oral test. This affirms the importance of the reading program and gives the instructor opportunity to discuss with students their thoughts and opinions regarding their reading. Listening Activities • Literature Cloze - Hand out a cloze gapped passage from a book and play the accompanying tape or read it aloud. Students listen and fill in. • What Do They Say? - Explain the background behind a passage and play the tape. Stop several times and have student pairs guess what will be said or done next; then continue with the tape. At last, stop and ask what comes next, but don't give the answer: "You'll have to find out for yourselves!" Pair & Group Communication Activities • In-class activities based on homework can be risky business. But here, since students read many books and keep their Instant Book Reports with them, they can participate, even if they completely forgot about the assignment. • Book Reports - in groups or before the whole class, students give short speeches introducing the plot and offering their personal responses to the book. Other students ask questions. • Favorite Book Round Robin - Q & A about the best books we've read. Students use their Instant Book Reports for support with their first partner, then repeat the process two more times (without written support) with other partners. Many find they can actually do better when focusing on interaction with a partner rather than repeatedly referring to a set text. • Book Reviews - similar to above, but in book review format. • "Bringing those books back to the classroom" (Helgesen, 1997) • Draw a Picture - Students draw scenes from books they've read and explain to their groups what has happened, what will happen next, etc. • How Many Questions - Each students chooses one or more illustrations from a book s/he has read and explains them to her/his group. Group members ask as many questions as possible--receiving points for each question. • Story Telling Sticks - Students use sticks (e.g., toothpicks) to tell the story . With attention focused on the sticks rather than the speaker, story tellers are often more relaxed and fluent. • "Telling the truth about extensive reading" (Dubravcic, 1996) - Groups learn as much about a book as possible from one member. Another group then grills them, trying to find out who actually read the book. References Dubravcic, J. (1996). Telling the truth about extensive reading. The Language Teacher, 20(12), 52. Helgesen, M. (1997). Bringing those books back to the classroom: Tasks for extensive reading. The Language Teacher, 21(5), 53-54.

Ken Schmidt - Tohoku Bunka Gakuen University