ELT365 · Day 165 — The lead-in: why context before text always matters
Idea — The lead-in gives learners a reason to engage with a text before they see it. It activates relevant vocabulary and schema, reducing the cognitive…
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ELT365 · Day 170 — Guessing vocabulary from context
Idea — Readers need not know every word. Surrounding clues — grammar, examples, contrast — often reveal enough meaning to keep going. Training this guess-and-go habit…
ReadELT365 · Day 164 — Intensive reading: close attention on short text
Idea — Intensive reading focuses on a short passage — one paragraph, one exchange — with close attention to language. It is the opposite of skimming:…
ReadELT365 · Day 161 — Why native speed confuses learners
Idea — Connected speech — assimilation, elision, linking, weak forms — makes native-speed English sound unlike the written form. Learners who know the words still cannot…
ReadELT365 · Day 165 — Listening problems: a checklist
Idea — Common listening difficulties cluster around speed, connected speech, unknown vocabulary, and unfamiliar topic. Diagnosing which one is biting lets you target help instead of…
ReadELT365 · Day 158 — Pre-teaching vocabulary: the decision rule
Idea — Pre-teach vocabulary only if it blocks meaning and cannot be inferred. Pre-teaching too much removes the challenge; too little leaves learners stranded mid-text. Example…
ReadELT365 · Day 157 — Blocking vocabulary: what stops comprehension
Idea — Blocking vocabulary is a word or phrase so unfamiliar it stops comprehension of the whole text — not just a nuance, but a key…
ReadELT365 · Day 162 — Weak forms and the schwa
Idea — Many grammar words (to, of, was, for, can) are unstressed and reduce to a schwa in connected speech. Hearing the weak form, not the…
ReadELT365 · Day 161 — Connected speech: why learners mishear
Idea — In natural speech, words link, blend and disappear. Learners who learned words in isolation struggle because the stream does not match the tidy forms…
ReadELT365 · Day 155 — The gist task: one question, whole text
Idea — A gist task gives learners one broad question before they read or listen. It sets a purpose, activates schema, and stops word-by-word panic. One…
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