Idea — Speaking and writing are productive skills — learners generate language, not receive it. Both require simultaneous control of form, meaning, and discourse. Example — Answering a question aloud demands grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, and…
Idea — This month covered receptive skills: top-down and bottom-up processing, gist before detail, pre-task stages, reading sub-skills, and reading into speaking. Example — Schema theory · scanning · blocking vocabulary · jigsaw reading ·…
Idea — Text selection criteria: appropriate length and complexity for the level, genuine interest value, enough richness for a task. The best text sparks disagreement. Example — A text that makes learners want to argue…
Idea — Integrating reading with speaking gives readers a real purpose — they read to have something to say. It is the most natural reading follow-up. Example — ‘Read the article. Then tell your partner:…
Idea — In jigsaw reading, different groups read different texts, then regroup to share information. Nobody has the full picture until everyone contributes. Example — Three groups read three articles on the same topic, then…
Idea — Detailed reading tasks require learners to locate, understand, and often infer specific information. They follow gist — they never precede it. Example — ‘Find three reasons the author believes public transport is underfunded’…
Idea — Genre shapes reader expectations. Knowing a text is an editorial, a recipe, or a letter changes how readers process it from the first line. Example — ‘Dear Editor’ activates different expectations than ‘Method:…
Idea — Schema theory holds that understanding depends on prior knowledge structures. A reader with relevant schemata comprehends faster and more accurately. Example — A text about cricket is harder for a reader with no…
Idea — Extensive reading means reading large quantities at or below learner level, for pleasure and fluency — not for close language study. Example — A B1 learner reads a graded reader for the story,…
Idea — Intensive reading means reading closely for accurate understanding of meaning, language, and implication. It is slow, deliberate, and cognitively demanding. Example — Reading a contract clause or a grammar explanation — every word…