English Book Review part 1

Oxford Read and Discover Series

I am often asked for book recommendations. Sometimes from other English teachers who want new resources. Sometimes from parents who want to buy English books for their children. Sometimes from Adults who want to self study. I am going to do a series of articles on what ESL books I recommend for students who want to practice their reading.

The first series I recommend is Oxford Read and Discover. This is a non-fiction graded reader series aimed at upper elementary school students to middle school. I use it for high school and adults as well. They cover a range of topics in three categories; science and technology; arts and society; and Nature. The series is split into 6 levels. Level 1 is in the A1 band which means it is for beginners. Each book includes a picture dictionary of words used in the book and worksheets to check your understanding of each chapter.

I recommend this series because the books are easy to understand. The sentences are adjusted for the level the book belongs too. Although, Level one is for A1 but there is still a gap for a beginner. Readers do need to be familiar with basic sentence structures and have a basic vocabulary. The topics are often about things the students know a little bit about but add new information that they have not learnt before. Many reader series are story based which can be challenging for students to follow. Non-fiction is easier for students to understand because they can link it to what they know. Most importantly, the books are well designed. The pictures suit the text.

In class I have been giving my students one of these books to read a week starting from level 1. As they read through the books they go up a level. The reason I do this is because it is good reading practice and I know the book series is not too challenging for the students to read.

I order this series through my local book store. Ask the owner how to order. They will request the publisher and the ISBN.