Reading Ideas

Wordles
Use wordles (www.wordle.net) to present brand new written text to students. Use word clouds to explain or gather opinions about the key subject of a new text. Make activity ideas from the wordles.







The link for this wordle text: http://www.stormfax.com/1dickens.htm
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Text Strips Project
This works very specifically with literary pieces in the different languages. Find a text or texts that focus on a specific topic. For example food images or colour images that symbolize emotions. You can use even more complex texts. Cut strips of text and place them in an envelope. Place enough strips that students can all ready their own. Then invite students to work in group and make a text form based on the recurring theme (for example food) in the strips. For food they could make a menu with the key dishes mentioned in the text, or a recipe if ingredients are made. Ask students to share their group work together.
This also works with timelines and more complex content in any given language.
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Three truths and three lies
Do this the first time about yourself. Make a list of six or seven statements about you: 3 true and 3 not true. Then ask students to guess which are which. Ask students to explain. Then reveal the truths and the lies. This activity tells a lot about the students not only about what they think of you. Then invite students to do the same, in turns, for new classes.
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Map reading in texts
Select random pieces of text and give them randomly to students. Invite students to rewrite new messages using the words in the text. The only rule: the words must be highlighted in the order of the text. Follow along the bolded words on this page to see what this activity can do.
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Selective/expressing reading
Use key and important texts in your language that you want your students to experience as a group reading. Instead of asking students all to read the same amount of text, assign specific portions to each student and give time to rehearse. Ask students to prepare the reading of that portion of text in the best possible way they can. Then read together as a class, each student reading and interpreting their piece.
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