There are four basic skills to improve if you’d like to speak English fluently and confidently, but I don’t recommend trying to focus on all of them at once.
This is the first of four articles in which I’ll discuss each of the four skills separately. Today I’ll focus on reading, but before I do, let me make a general statement to introduce all four.
Passive vs. Active Language Skills
It is helpful to think about the four skills in terms of whether they are
(a) written English or spoken English
(b) a passive skill or an active skill
Here you can see the groupings
We’ll begin with what is, in some ways, the easiest of the four — reading, and in successive posts, work our way to what is perhaps the most challenging… speaking.
Reading… Passive Pleasure!
One of the reasons that reading in your target language is pleasurable, is that there isn’t always the pressure of immediacy. In other words…
… you can take your time!
If you don’t consider yourself extremely fluent, you can read slowly. No one will know and, more importantly, there is no fear of criticism.
- You can read an article one or two paragraphs at a time.
- A book? You can read one or two pages at a time.
- The more that you ENJOY the reading experience, the more your brain will motivate you to continue… The brain LOVES pleasure! 😍
Work your way slowly and comfortably through whatever text you’re reading. If you put pressure on yourself… reading stops being pleasurable!
Reading… Passive PAIN!
If you’re not careful, reading in your target language can quickly become unpleasant. It becomes a chore… something that you don’t enjoy.
Pressure can come in many forms:
- Trying to read too much & setting unrealistic goals for yourself. (eg. a B1-level learner trying to read Harry Potter or a The Lord of the Rings book in 2 weeks)
- Trying to read too quickly! (this is the “in 2 weeks” just above). The moment there is pressure on the brain to do something new and unfamiliar, in too short a time… the brain begins to panic and learning either slows down or stops altogether.
- Trying to understand every word you read. I experienced this when I was learning French. Stopping to look up every unfamiliar word in the dictionary, or every new verb conjugation, quickly takes the pleasure out of reading. It feels too much like WORK! 🥴
General Reading Tips
To get the most out of your time… here are some tips that can help you make reading a valuable exercise in your language learning journey:
- Don’t feel like all your reading has to be focused on English grammar.
- Look for articles on topics that INTEREST you.
(eg. Travel, cooking, horses, high performance cars, sports, business, etc.)
When your brain is interested in the subject matter, it’s easier to keep reading when you get frustrated with “the language” (unfamiliar words, etc). - Reading on topics that interest you also mean that you will probably already be familiar with some vocabulary, so you understand more of the article.
- The more the brain understands, the more it says… Keep going!
- During each reading session, look for new vocabulary… but don’t make it too difficult. Limit yourself to 5 (maximum 10) new words at a time — where you look the word up and maybe record it in a notebook or a flashcard app.
- Read REGULARLY … make it a habit!
Articles
- Go slowly. If it feels like too much, read a couple paragraphs at a time.
- Read it once through and focus only on identifying certain verb forms (eg. present simple, past simple).
- Read it again and focus only on highlighting familiar prepositions.
- Read it again and focus only on underlining questions.
(to help you understand how to form questions yourself) - Every time you re-read it, you will understand a little more than the previous time and you get the sense of satisfaction that your brain craves to keep you motivated to continue.
Books
- Choose wisely: Look for books that are at or slightly beyond your current comfort-level. If the level is too easy, you won’t learn much. If it’s too difficult, you’ll get discouraged and stop.
- Choose a book that you have time to read. Your ability to finish the book is important. If you start, but don’t finish, there will be a sense of frustration and defeat which undermines learning.
- Again, it doesn’t have to be a “How to learn English” book. Pick something on a topic that interests you. There will be extra motivation to continue.
- If your level of English is more basic, look for books with shorter chapters. Every time you FINISH a chapter, your brain does a little happy-dance for having completed something in English.
In Conclusion
Reading has the potential to really help you advance your English learning, but the key is to do it in a balanced manner.
- Too much pressure will make you frustrated and will discouraging you from continuing.
- Reading regularly increases your ability, like regularly working any muscle increases its capacity.
If you want to increase your reading comprehension…. there’s only one way: read, Read, READ!
Final Question:
What’s something you read that really helped you improve your English? Let me know in the comments below.
