Reading & Listening strategies

• Engels
• MBO
• Studiejaar 1-4

Today

Together: Reading and Listening strategies 

On your own : Mock exam 

What do you do when you encounter (tegenkomen) an English text outside class?

What do you do when you have to complete a reading/listening task during class?

Why reading strategies?

Reading strategies can help you to:

-Improve your reading comprehension skill (beter understanding of the text);

-Increase your motivation when reading (if you know what you read, it could be fun);

-Remember the content of a text and recall the information you need.

Some important reading strategies

1. Predictive reading / Predicting content 
2. Skimming / Listening for gist
3. Scanning / Detecting signposts
4. Reading in-depth / Listening for details
5. Inferring (making an educated guess)
   

Predictive reading?

Look at these images and the text.

Predict what this
text is about?

Skimming?
Listening for gist

Skimming practice

Here’s something to think about the next time you go shopping. Have you ever noticed

how many trolleys are available when you go to the supermarket? In my experience,

it seems like hundreds! But how about the number of hand baskets? 

Istruggle to find even one, especially when I only need a few items. Why might this be

the case? Well it seems to be a tactic used to encourage us to buy more. If you are

walking around with an empty trolley, you are more tempted to fill it, so if you a planning

on only doing a quick shop, always try to find a basket. It will be lighter, easier to use

and is sure to save you money! 

What was the text about?

Scanning?
Detecting signposts

Scan for the word 'exceptions'. 

Every time you're online, you are bombarded by pictures, articles, links and videos trying to tell their story. Unfortunately, not all of these stories are true. Sometimes they want you to click on another story or advertisement at their own site, other times they want to upset people for political reasons. These days it's so easy to share information. These stories circulate quickly, and the result is … fake news. There is a range of fake news: from crazy stories which people easily recognise to more subtle types of misinformation. Experts in media studies and online psychology have been examining the fake news phenomenon. Read these tips, and don't get fooled! 1. Check the source Look at the website where the story comes from. Does it look real? Is the text well written? Are there a variety of other stories or is it just one story? Fake news websites often use addresses that sound like real newspapers, but don't have many real stories about other topics. If you aren't sure, click on the 'About' page and look for a clear description of the organisation. 2. Watch out for fake photos Many fake news stories use images that are Photoshopped or taken from an unrelated site. Sometimes, if you just look closely at an image, you can see if it has been changed. Or use a tool like Google Reverse Image search. It will show you if the same image has been used in other contexts.

3. Check the story is in other places Look to see if the story you are reading is on other news sites that you know and trust. If you do find it on many other sites, then it probably isn't fake (although there are some exceptions), as many big news organisations try to check their sources before they publish a story.

If you know these things about online news, and can apply them in your everyday life, then you have the control over what to read, what to believe and most importantly what to share. If you find a news story that you know is fake, the most important advice is: don't share it!

Scan for the word 'sure'

It is estimated that about 40 per cent of the world’s population use social media, and many of these billions of social media users look up to influencers to help them decide what to buy and what trends to follow.

So what is an influencer and how do we become one? An influencer is a person who can influence the decisions of their followers because of their relationship with their audience and their knowledge and expertise in a particular area, e.g. fashion, travel or technology. Influencers often have a large following of people who pay close attention to their views. They have the power to persuade people to buy things, and influencers are now seen by many companies as a direct way to customers’ hearts. Brands are now asking powerful influencers to market their products. With some influencers charging up to $25,000 for one social media post, it is no surprise that more and more people are keen to become influencers too. If you are one of them, then here are five tips on how to do it. 1. Choose your niche What is the area that you know most about? What do you feel most excited talking about? Find the specific area that you’re most interested in and develop it. 2. Choose your medium and write an interesting bio Most influencers these days are bloggers and micro-bloggers. Decide which medium – such as your own online blog, Instagram or Snapchat – is the best way to connect with your followers and chat about your niche area. When you have done that, write an attention-grabbing bio that describes you and your speciality area in an interesting and unique way. Make sure that people who read your bio will want to follow you. 3. Post regularly and consistently

Many influencers post daily on their social media accounts. The more you post, the more likely people will follow you. 

Detecting signposts

I am going to mention three factors affecting global warming...

Signposts could be; 

First of all, Secondly, Lastly. 

When do you need to read in-depth?
Listen for details.

Inferring (making an educated guess)?

An example; 

A: Tom, did you do your homework?

B: I did, sir, but the dog ate it.

A: That's a terrible excuse. You'll never pass your exams if you don't work harder.

Read the text; 

 As I walked in the door, I was amazed at the beautiful colors and smells. I knew it would be hard to decidewhat I would buy with my $3. The chocolate truffles looked delicious, but they were expensive. The jelly beans were not only cheaper, but so colorful! With so much to choose from, I knew I would be here a long time.

Write where you think the passage is happening and explain your answer

Read the text; 

 The water felt so good on such a hot day. I heard the other children laughing and yelling across the way.The concrete was wet from a group of teenagers splashing each other in the corner. The lifeguard watched closely to keep children from running. 

Write where you think the passage is happening and explain your answer

Read the text; 

 As we entered, a large blast of water hit the windshield. Huge flopping sponges began to slap at the hood aswe slowly moved forward. Soon, there were suds spilling over the sides. I was glad the windows were rolled up!

Write where you think the passage is happening and explain your answer

This week's work.