(This posting includes a handout LINK AT THE END OF THIS POST which you are welcome to use with your students.) *

What matters more when choosing a reading passage for ESL students: the vocabulary level, or how much they actually care about the topic?

The science is in, and the answer might surprise you. A group of researchers investigated what helps students remember what they read. They discovered that how interested a student is in a topic is 30 times more important than the “readability” level of the passage.

When we capture their interest, we unlock their learning.

That is the driving force behind this series of Short, High-Interest Articles for Extensive Reading. My goal is simple: to motivate students to want to read by focusing on captivating, real-world topics. Because interest trumps difficulty, these articles have been used successfully with students across many different reading-skill levels.

Where to Find Them

This post includes the first article. As of 5/25/2016, I have posted 17 articles and have a lineup of over 20 more that I’ll be sharing regularly. You can always access the growing collection in the right-hand column under:

👉 ESL Reading > Short, High-Interest Articles for Extensive Readings

Four Ways to Use These Materials

Every teacher’s classroom is different, so these articles are designed to be flexible. Here are a few ways you can integrate them:

• Pure Extensive Reading: Make them available for students who simply want to read more for pleasure.
• Quick Comprehension Check: Assign the brief True/False questions included at the end of each article.
• Skill Building: Have students complete the short Paraphrasing Exercise.
• Critical Thinking: Prompt deeper reflection with the brief Reflection Exercise at the close of the piece.

Start Reading Today!

Below is the very first article in the series. You can also download a clean, ready-to-print PDF handout for your students using the link at the bottom of this post.

For More Happiness Keep Your Good News Secret for a While

¹ You just received a letter in the mail from a college that has been your first choice to attend.  The letter will inform you whether or not you have been accepted. Nervously, you open the envelop. The letter begins, “It is our pleasure to inform you that you have been accepted to our college.” You smile hugely with overwhelming happiness. Immediately, you want to share this great news with your family and best friends. But wait. To really experience this feeling of joy, according to research, you should keep this news to yourself for several minutes.

² In a series of experiments, participants were given happy news. For example, participants in two-person teams competed in a pretend math competition. At the end of the competition, researchers contacted one of the teammates to tell him/her that thei team had won. Some of the subjects were told that they could tell their teammate immediately, and others were told to wait about 30 minutes before sharing the good news. Several times during the next week, researchers contacted the subjects to measure how happy they were. They found that the subject who delayed sharing the news reported much higher levels of happiness during the week than those who shared it immediately.

³ This and similar experiments show a simple strategy we can use to increase our happiness. This does not mean that we should not share our happy news with other people. It means that it could be a good idea to take a moment or two to enjoy the good news before sharing it.

Here is the link to the article and exercises that you can use with your students: Why we should wait to tell good news High Interest Article

David Kehe
Faculty Emeritus

*About the free-download materials. During my 40 years of teaching ESL, I have had many colleagues who were very generous with their time, advice and materials. These downloads are my way of paying it forward.