Resource Round-up: Easy English Times
“Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost.”
-Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), American statesman and 3rd President of the United States
Are you seeking an informative, practical resource to help improve your beginner/intermediate ESL students’ reading comprehension skills? If so, we highly recommend Easy English Times. Edited by Lorraine Ruston and published by Betty Malmgren, this savvy newspaper works wonderfully as a supplementary classroom resource.
What’s in each issue?
Brief, unbiased summaries on current events are straightforward and fact-driven, with highlighted vocabulary words and follow-up activities that test student understanding and observational skills. With additional movie reviews, citizenship information, and reader-submitted success stories, the Easy English Times remains a fun and enlightening educational resource for English language learners.
Makes learning English “A Breeze”
We at Chimayo Press are not only long-time fans, but also contributors. Each new issue highlights a passage from It’s A Breeze, our collection of lively lessons on American idioms. Students are provided with clear definitions, sample sentences and a short reading on one of the book’s 42 featured idioms to improve their understanding of common conversational English. With additional features that test speaking skills and reading comprehension, Easy English Times helps make American news and other media – especially sports –more accessible while encouraging students to become more autotelic.
More advanced students may begin reading papers like the New York Times, but for the beginning and intermediate learners, the Easy English Times is a great starting place.
Where do I sign up?
If you haven’t already, do yourself a favor and visit the homepage for a free sample issue. If you find that your students enjoy the mix of current events, reader submissions and classroom activities, then we hope you’ll consider ordering for the year.
While you’re there, be sure to check out the Compelling Conversations side page. For more content from It’s A Breeze, check out our Teachers Pay Teachers store! All 7 units are now available for individual purchase; click here for more details.
Do you use newspapers as supplementary tools in your English classroom? What print media have your students found most engaging? Feel free to share with us!
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Create Compelling Conversations.
Visit www.CompellingConversations.com
About the Author
Eric H. Roth teaches international graduate students the pleasures and perils of academic writing and public speaking in English at the University of Southern California (USC). He also consults English language schools on communicative methods to effectively teach English.Roth co-authored Compelling Conversations: Questions and Quotations on Timeless Topics in 2006 to help English language learners increase their English fluency. Recommended by English Teaching Professional magazine, the advanced ESL textbook has been used in over 50 countries in English classrooms and conversation clubs. Easy English Times, an adult literacy newspaper, has published a monthly column, “Instant Conversation Activities,” based on the book since 2008. The first specific version for a particular country, Vietnam, was published in 2011. Compelling American Conversations came out in 2012, and Compelling Conversations – Japan arrived in 2015. Eric enjoys sharing reflections, resources, and teaching tips on this #ESL #EFL #ELT blog.
