TOPIC 2. Reading and Writing Processes for Second Language Learners.

The reading process involves two separate but highly interrelated areas word identification and comprehension. It has been established that difficulties in automatic word recognition significantly affects a reader's ability to effectively comprehend what they are reading (Lyon, 1995; Torgeson, Rashotte, and Alexander, 2001).
2.1 The Purpose of reading. Whenever we read we read for a purpose. We often read novels and magazines to entertain ourselves. We may read the side of a cereal box to learn about the nutritional value of the product. Or, we might read the directions for the VCR so that we can figure out how to set the timer. Consider how differently we read in each of these three situations, given the purpose for reading. When we read a novel for pleasure, we usually begin by reading the first word, and continue in a linear fashion until we are finished with the book. (However, if the author starts going into great detail about how the countryside looks, or what a character is wearing, we may skip over that if we're not interested.) When we read the side of the cereal box to learn about how much of a certain vitamin or mineral is in the cereal, we don't read every word on the side of the box, but instead we scan the side of the box until we find the information we want. Likewise, when we read the VCR manual to figure out how to set the timer, we don't read the entire manual start to finish. The point is, we read texts differently for different purposes. And skipping over the details about the countryside, scanning the cereal box to find the information we need, and going directly to the section on "Setting the Timer" does not mean we didn't read well. On the contrary, not reading all of the words when our purpose for reading does not require us to do so is strategic reading.

2.2 Use of Graphemes in Reading A grapheme (from the Greek, grph, "write") is a fundamental unit in a written language. Examples of graphemes include alphabetic letters, Chinese characters, numerical digits, punctuation marks, and the individual symbols of any of the world's writing systems. Graphemes are commonly defined as the written representation of phonemes (phoneme is the smallest segmental unit of sound employed to form meaningful contrasts between utterances). An example of a phoneme is the /k/ sound in the words kit and skill. The words tip and dip illustrate that in English [t] and [d] are separate phonemes For example, the word 'BREAD' is composed of the four phonemes /b/, /r/, /e/ and /d/, and consequently, of the four graphemes 'B', 'R', 'EA', and 'D'. Graphemes can thus be considered the minimal 'functional bridges' in the mapping between orthography (generally refers to spelling; the art of writing words with the proper letters according to standard usage or the representation of the sounds of a language by written or printed symbols that is, the relationship between phonemes and graphemes in a language) and phonology ( broadly speaking is concerned with the sounds of language. That is, it is the systematic use of sound to encode meaning in any spoken human language).

Summary of Graphemes. Graphemes are the smallest units in a writing system capable of causing a contrast in meaning. In the English alphabet, the switch from cat to bat introduces a meaning change; therefore, c and b represent different graphemes. It is usual to transcribe graphemes within angle brackets, to 2

show their special status: <c>, <b>. The main graphemes of English are the twenty-six units that make up the alphabet. Other graphemes include the various marks of punctuation: <.>, <;>, etc., and such special symbols as <@>, <&>, and (). . . . 2.3 Use of efficient silent reading techniques. Speed Reading is a collection of skills that help people to read faster with increased comprehension and retention. Simply put, Speed Readers are Efficient Readers. There is no absolute defined speed at which someone can officially call themselves a speed reader or efficient reader, but fair to say that some people can read faster than others. It is also fair to assume that people who read faster may utilize methods and techniques that help them achieve the ability to read at higher rates of speed while maintaining or increasing their comprehension and retention. Efficient reading skills:1) Minimized Subvocalization Subvocalization is the act of pronouncing words in your mind as you read. Subvocalization puts a limit on your reading speed. 2) Minimized Regression Regression is re-reading. Your eyes wander back to re-read text that youve already read. It is often a side-effect of slow reading 3) Minimized Eye Fixation Time and Increase Eye Re-Fixation Speed Efficient readers dont spend a lot of time with their eyes fixated at any one spot in the text. They keep their eyes moving in a fluent motion. 4) Expanded Eye Fixation Zone Efficient readers learn to use their peripheral vision to see more than one word at a time.

Figure 1: Relationships Among Phonemic Awareness, Phonics, and Sight Word Recognition Skills. Figure 1 illustrates the relationships among the processes involved in word identification. The bottom of the figure depicts a strong base in phonemic awareness upon which word identification skills are built. There is, however, a reciprocal relationship between the development of phonemic awareness and the development of phonic word attack strategies. As the child becomes more familiar with letters, phonemic awareness also improves. Ultimately, strong underlying orthographic patterns begin to emerge

Not only do good readers read fluently with adequate speed, but when they read aloud, they also use appropriate phrasing, intonation, and their oral reading mirrors their spoken language.

Short reading exercise.

A short three-word sentence with each of the three different words underlined for stress (e.g. He is sick. He is sick. He is sick. Model the three sentences while discussing the possible meaning for each variation. The students practice reading them with different stress until they are fluent. These simple three-word sentences can be modified and expanded to include various verbs, pronouns, and tenses. (e.g. You are sick. I am sick. They are sick.)

Before You Read. (i) Get familiar with the story below. Getting familiar with the story you are going to read is crucial to reading aloud well. When you are not prepared, you will stumble over words and phrases and the experience will not be as pleasant.
( ii) Be expressive. No one likes to listen to someone read in a monotone and expressionless voice; it does not hold their attention. Use expression in your voice to show what the characters in the story are feeling and doing. It often helps to use different voices to distinguish between characters also.

Jeremy and the Red Locket

This is a scary story speaking of a boy whose life turns to loneliness once he finds a red locket near a graveyard. In spite of throwing it away it returns back to him that scares him to death.

Once upon a time there was a boy named Jeremy who lived a happy life with his family and friends. He was fifteen years old and lived in a city in England. They lived in a small house near the central museum. On day while Jay was heading back home after school, he found a black puppy on the road. He watched the puppy running towards the graveyard. He followed the puppy into the graveyard. It was then that Jeremy put himself into trouble of facing as he would have to face loneliness and fear. As Jeremy entered the graveyard, he stopped near a stone that was near-by, a bright object attracted him. It was a chain to which a circular red coloured locket was attached. He leaned close to see the object and suddenly a man came screaming behind him "What are you looking for?" Jay was shocked and turned back to answer the man "I was just looking for a puppy." The man said "There is no puppy here, go back to your home boy." and walked away. Jay picked up the locket and went back home. Jay called and talked about the red locket to his friends and they asked him to bring it to school the following morning. Jay was about to surf the Internet but his mother forced him to complete his homework first. At the end of the day, Jay had dinner and went to bed. The next morning Jay woke up to find no one at home. He searched for his parents but they were not at home. He went to his neighbour 'Frank' to ask if his parents left him any messages. But Jay was shocked, as 'Frank' was also not at home. Jay then went back home and used the telephone to dial his father's number but the line was dead. Jay tried to call his neighbour, his friend, his dad's friends but all the lines were dead. Jay then decided to call the police but that too ended in vain. Jay decided to go to the streets to ask people if they had any idea about what was going on. He walked for hours near the museum, in different areas but surprisingly he found no one. Jay was shocked to find that there was no one in the city. He was all alone. Jay was excited as he went to the supermarket and found no one. He ate whatever he wished to eat and in large quantities. He thought that he was in a dream but gradually he realized that it was not a dream. He was happy because there was no more supervision from parents, no more homework, only eating and playing. But as the day ended and Jay headed back home he started to feel lonely. He switched on the television but all the channels had a blank, red screen. He tried to surf the Internet, but all the websites had red screens too. This scared him terribly and he went to his bedroom. He was puzzled at what was happening. As soon he went to his bedroom, he remembered the locket that he found on the last day near the graveyard. He checked the drawer for the locket. He picked it up and put it into his pocket, when suddenly he heard the clock rchiming. It was twelve midnight "Tonggg...Tonggg... Tonggg." After a while he heard the strange voice of a lady "Help me, help me". Jay got so scared and he couldn't move from his place. The sound was just outside his bedroom. Without any a second thoughts, Jay ran to the door and locked it. Then he hurried to his drawer picked up a knife, sat on the bed and waited. After a while the voice was heard again "Help me Jeremy... Jermiii... Open the door.. Jermiii." Jay could not control himself any longer and he screamed "Don't come in, I have a knife..." After a while, the voice was not heard again but Jay decided to stay in bed. Jay tried to convince himself that it was a bad dream and finally he fell asleep. The next morning Jay woke up and found himself in the same position as when he went to sleep the night before. He then picked up the knife and opened his bedroom door and ran into the living room and cried out, "Mom, Dad where are you?" But there was no response. He then went outside again and found no one. He suddenly remembered the locket. He started thinking about all the things that were related to the red color, the locket, the TV channels, and the Internet websites. He decided to go back to the graveyard and throw the locket back from where he picked it. He went to the graveyard and suddenly he saw the same puppy there again. He was scared as he has not seen any living creature as yet. A thought came to his mind and he realized that the locket had some kind of magical powers and he was no longer interested in keeping the locket. He threw the locket back to its place and then ran home.

He had some fruits in the refrigerator and decided not to go anywhere until the next day. He tried to switch on the television and surf the Internet again but red screens kept on appearing at in all the channels. Jay hated the red color and thought it to be the worst color in the universe. He spent hours praying and remembering the moments he had with his family. At nine pm he locked all the doors, kept the knife with him and went to bed. The next morning Jay woke up at the sound of his bedroom door being opened. Somebody was knocking and calling out his name. Suddenly Jay screamed "Mom". Jay jumped out of his bed, opened the door and hugged his mother. His mother cried "Jay, what's wrong? Did you have a bad dream?". Jay cried and explained everything that had happened to him. His mother replied saying, "Jay, you just had a bad dream last night." Jay replied, "I am confused mom, but I dont think I was dreaming". Jay's mother held his hand and told him to forget about the dream and to get ready for school. Jay got ready and headed to the school to explain to his friends about the events. He told them about all that he had faced and they decided to go to the graveyard to look for the locket. In the afternoon Jay went with his friends to the graveyard, but this time he neither found the puppy nor the locket. His friends said Jay that was either dreaming or lying. Jay was depressed as none of his friends believed him and he decided to go back home. He reached home and he kept thinking of the locket while having dinner with his family and suddenly he heard the voice again "Jermiee... Help me". Jay looked around and asked his mother if she had heard the voice but she was engaged in unpacking a parcel they just received. When Jay saw the parcel box which was i red, he shouted and said "Mom don't open the pack" but it was too late. His mom was already holding the chain with the red locket.

By Asma Al Ahmed Published: 8/5/2011

TASK: Re-tell a story from the point of view of the main character

2. 4 Skimming and Scanning

Skimming is used to quickly identify the main ideas of a text. Skimming is done at a speed three to four times faster than normal reading. People often skim when they have lots of material to read in a limited amount of time. Strategies for skimming:- Read the title, subtitles, subheading, and illustrations. Read the first sentence of each paragraph. This technique is useful when you're looking for specific information rather than reading for comprehension. Skimming works well to find dates, names, and places. It might be used to review graphs, tables, and charts People often skim when they have lots of material to read in a limited amount of time. Use skimming when you want to see if an article may be of interest in your research.

Scanning is a technique often used when looking up a word in the telephone book or dictionary. You search for key words or ideas. When you scan,, you know what you're looking for.. Scanning involves moving your eyes quickly down the page seeking specific words and phrases. Scanning is also used when you first find a resource to determine whether it will answer your questions. Once you've scanned the document, you might go back and skim it. When scanning, look for the author's use of organizers such as numbers, letters, steps, or the words, first, second, or next. Look for words that are bold faced, italics, or in a different font size, style, or color. Sometimes the author will put key ideas in the margin.
Skimming Tasks: (Preparation for the tasks below should be done by the lecturer concerned.) TASK 1: Read the headline and the first sentence of each paragraph of an article. They then pair up to discuss the guessed-at topic of the article. TASK 2: Read the first paragraph and the last paragraph of the article. They then work in pairs to discuss the guessed-at contents of the piece. TASK 3: Students have two minutes to read the article. After two minutes, students get into pairs to discuss the contents of the piece. Additional points may also be discussed, such as overall tone (humorous, serious, persuasive), whether the writer supports or opposes the main idea, Scanning Tasks: Task 1: Several content-specific questions are written on the board before students receive the article. Students read through the text and answer the questions. TASK 2: Key vocabulary words are written on the board before students receive the article. Students read through the text and circle the words, then read the sentence for each word for context. TASK 3: Lecturer reads aloud the beginning of a sentence. Students go through the article, find the sentence, and read it aloud.

Time Allocation.

Time allocation is the allocation of time to different tasks and activities. The measurement of such allocations may be used analytically in studies of human behaviour. Scheduling and time management may be used to plan and control the amount of time allocated to various activities. The emphasis on oral language itself also involves a certain adjustment and, on the face of it, has immediate implications for time allocation. Because of its importance as a learning strategy, the use of oral language activity will permeate every facet of the curriculum. It is also the single most important element in realizing the integrated language learning experience envisaged in the 2.5 Semantic Mapping Semantic mapping is a visual strategy for vocabulary expansion and extension of knowledge by displaying in categories words related to one another. Semantic mapping is an adaptation of concept definition mapping but builds on students prior knowledge or schema. While it draws on prior knowledge it recognizes important components and shows the relationships among the components. The framework of semantic mapping includes: the concept word, two category examples, and other examples. This is a very interactive process and should be modeled by the teacher first. The steps involved in semantic mapping are: write the concept word on the board, explain the steps involved and have students think of as many words as they can for the concept word, write the list on the board or overhead and have students copy it, and finally in groups have students put the words into categories. Example of a concept word, Pearson and Johnson offer the example of the concept of "federal," attached. Notice that federal is in the class of things called "forms of government." It is one of many such forms, including monarchy, patriarchy, plutocracy, etc. The properties of federal include a) the uniting common interests of various political units like sovereign states and b) the division of power among sub-units like the legislative, judicial, and executive units of our own government. Examples of the federal form of government include the governments of the United States, Canada, and Australia. ACTIVITY Scribble The goal is to create as many words as you can using the eight letters that are generated in the box below. C T P S M R B D

Just scribble down the words as fast as you can think of them. ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________ _
ECOLOGY Things that come to mind when you think of this word. Write your words in the box below.

****Ecology is a kind of study. Ecology is exemplified by cleaning up after ourselves, protecting the environment, conservation, and recycling; it is not pollution. One property of ecology is the idea of respect. The major purpose of the semantic map is to allow students to organize their prior knowledge into these formal relations and to provide themselves a basis for understanding what they are about to read and study. Comprehension can be thought of as the elaboration and refinement of prior knowledge. What the semantic map provides is a graphic structure of that knowledge to be used as the basis for organizing new ideas as they are understood. 2.6 GUESSING Reading is an activity with a purpose. A person may read in order to gain information or verify existing knowledge, or in order to critique a writer's ideas or writing style. A person may also read for enjoyment, or to enhance knowledge of the language being read. The purpose(s) for reading guide the reader's selection of texts 1. To predict (a result or an event) without sufficient information. 2. To assume, presume, or assert (a fact) without sufficient information. 3. To form a correct estimate or conjecture of: guessed the answer. 4. To suppose; think: I guess he was wrong. 5. To make an estimate or conjecture: We could only guess at her motives. 6. To estimate or conjecture correctly.

During reading, the readers mind repeatedly engages in a variety of processes, seemingly all at once. Using top-down and bottom-up strategies, 1. readers use pre-reading information to make some predictions about the text they are going to read; 2. using bottom-up strategies, they start by processing information from the first sentence; 3. as they process the information that each new sentence gives them, they check to see if and how that information corresponds with their expectations and the previous information until they come to the end of the paragraph; 4. they formulate the main idea of the paragraph; (If they thought that they had recognized a main idea in the sentence at the beginning of the paragraph, they will now check if the early prediction is still valid.) The following is a list of specific reading strategies and activities: 1. Note the key words in the first sentence of the paragraph; 2. Decide which word announces the main topic of the paragraph; 9

3. Decide which words announce the specific aspect of this topic of the paragraph; 4. Note if there is a sentence that states a probable main idea; 5. Note the most important words for each sentence as you read; 6. Ask yourself how this information relates to the information that came before it; 7. Look for examples that illustrate the idea stated before; 8. Look for details that provide more specific information on the topic; 9. Look for a sentence that concludes this particular aspect or this topic; 10. Look for words that indicate a change in the kind of information; 11. Look for a sentence that provides information about a new aspect of this topic. Reading is a constant process of guessing and what a reader brings to the text is often more important than the text itself. Students benefit from learning to use what they know to understand unknown elements through a global approach to the text. Post-reading activity: review reading by writing a quick, closed-book summary in class. A popular and useful pre-reading activity: organizing activities in which students receive pieces of information from a text and are asked to put them in order. 2.7 Vocabulary Words Vocabulary also is very important to reading comprehension. Readers cannot understand what they are reading without knowing what most of the words mean. As Steven Stahl (2005) puts it, "Vocabulary knowledge is knowledge; the knowledge of a word not only implies a definition, but also implies how that word fits into the world."

Your Results: The correct answer for each question is indicated by a .

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Top of Form
Analyzing Vocab no Health and Leisur 4 1740468 4

0073533890

Decide if each of the words below has a positive, a negative, or a neutral meaning. Write the correct letter after the word. a. positive b. negative c. neutral

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1. risk ________________ 2. stress _______________ 3. lifestyle ______________ 4. pressure _____________ 5. relaxed ______________

6. Well balanced ________________ 7. Environment _________________ 8. Calm 9. Tense 10 suffer _________________ _________________ __________________

World's Largest Pancake Breakfast A Local Legacy When you think of pancakes you might think of the kind served in America, hot with melted butter and maple syrup. But in reality, people around the world love pancakes. As a result, there are lots of different kinds. In America, pancakes are made with buttermilk and served for breakfast. In Russia, pancakes are called blinis, and are made from buckwheat flour and often served with caviar and sour cream. The Chinese use wheat flour and hot water to make pancakes in dozens of ways. In France, pancakes come in the form of a lacy crepe. In India, there's the Gujarati pancake. Crispy and wafer-thin, it comes stuffed with spicy potatoes and yogurt. Did you know there were so many ways to make and serve pancakes? In 1986, an event that bills itself as the World's Largest Pancake Breakfast was revived for the 350th anniversary of Springfield, Massachusetts. The breakfast has been held every year since then. Hundreds of volunteers help with the event. In 1999, more than 71,233 servings of pancakes were served to more than 40,000 people. If you stacked up all those pancakes, they'd be more than 2 miles high! Vocabulary Exercise

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Vocabulary words from this article:

Crispy flour maple melt pancake revive spicy stack stuffed syrPre-Reading

Questions What kind of food do you eat for breakfast? .. How many ways do you know to serve pancakes? ..

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The following are reasons why vocabulary is important:(1) Subject matter and ideas are expressed with more clarity and accuracy, (2) Proficiency in the work place might well depend upon individuals having a quality vocabulary, (3) individuals seemingly have more prestige if their listening, speaking, reading, and writing vocabularies are adequately developed, (4) Greater enjoyment of reading -- if a person has a rich functional vocabulary (5) A person with a rich vocabulary should have a better opportunity to develop his/her personality, (6) Conversations carried on with other persons require a rich vocabulary. There needs to be an appropriate number of words used that carry intended meanings, (7) Variety in selecting words to convey accurate meanings is necessary in speaking and writing, and (8) The use of diverse terms and concepts in speaking and writing adds variety to quality communication. Vocabulary development becomes a tool in, listening and reading, as well as provides communication to others within the framework of speaking and writing.

2.8 Definition of 'literal' (i) following the words of the original very closely and exactly (ii) true to fact; unembellished; actual or factual (iii) without exaggeration or inaccuracy LITERAL MEANING 1. Being in accordance with, conforming to, or upholding the exact or primary meaning of a word or words. 2. Word for word; verbatim: a literal translation. 3. Avoiding exaggeration, metaphor, or embellishment; factual; prosaic: a literal description; a literal mind. 4. Consisting of, using, or expressed by letters: literal notation. 5. Conforming or limited to the simplest, nonfigurative, or most obvious meaning of a word or words. Literal means a translation that strictly follows the exact words 14

The Literal Meaning: It could be argued that meaning can be created and contained by the text itself. Meaning could be produced through the formal properties of the text; the formal properties might be identified as the grammar, the language and the image. These properties can control the way a text

is read and consequently most readers would presumably arrive at the same interpretation.

The Authors Meaning: It is difficult to identify the intended meaning of an author if the only evidence available is the text itself. Therefore the authors ideas, priorities, practice and social values can only be speculated upon. Any person or text can only create meaning within the locale of Pre-existing social ideas, ways of thinking and values. In terms of personal meaning, the intention of the texts will be defined according to the authors social surroundings and cultural ideologies.
IMPLIED MEANING (Refer to the reading text: WILD CHILDREN III: THE WILD LIFE, Page 5 of Reading notes, Unit One) Making inferences helps the students to think about the texts they read on a deeper level than they have done in the past. When the time comes for an assessment on reading, the student will be able to understand and explain the implied meanings of the text

Implied meaning is a meaning that isn't explicitly stated. So an implied meaning question is something like 'Aren't you a little chilly in that outfit?' It sounds like you're just concerned for the person's health, but the implied meaning can be something rude like What are you trying to prove by wearing such a short skirt?

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Read and find the implied meanings in this context. David Johnson, known as the World Famous Bushman, is a street performer who has been entertaining passers-by (tourists) along Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco since 1980. He began the bush man act in order to be original (and to collect money.) So what is the World Famous Bushman act? David Johnson hides behind some eucalyptus branches and waits for people to walk by. As they pass, he jumps out and surprises them by yelling "Ugga-bugga!" Some of the people he surprises laugh, while others have gotten angry and have called the police. Crowds have been gathering across the street from where he usually sits to see Johnson entertain people. In a "good year", Johnson claims he has earned as much as $60,000. He has been employing a bodyguard to protect him against attacks by people who are unhappy with him and to let Johnson know if elderly people are coming so he can avoid scaring them. The police have recently received a number of complaints about the Bushman, and Fisherman's Wharf merchants have been trying to shut him down. In 2004, he was charged with four misdemeanors by the police, but a jury cleared him. The city District Attorney has given up pursuing him: "the community has spoken". If you haven't seen him yet, go to San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf and beware of that clump of leaves that looks like a bush. misdemeanors (n.) small crimes, unacceptable behavior

1. How long has David Johnson been entertaining passers-by along Fishermans Wharf? . 2. Why did some people get angry and call the police? . 3. Why do crowds gather along the street where he usually sits? .. 4. Do you think that Johnson has really earned as much as $60,000? .. 5. What is the purpose of the bodyguard? . 6. Why do you think that people have complained about this man? ... Principles for Designing Interactive Reading Techniques. 16

Reading has been long believed to be one of the mediums through which language acquisition can be facilitated. Researchers such as Stephen Krashen (2004) have thoroughly researched the benefits gained through reading, particularly in the field of language acquisition, and have consistently found that reading enhances students ability in not only expanding their lexicons, but also furthering grammar development. Picture Prompt Study the picture given below. Identify the movements. Give further explanation and justify you answers. When do you think such performances take place? Are they important? Why? Have you ever witnessed such a presentation? In which state in Malaysia do you think such a performance is popular?

. ..

Empty Outlines Completed the outline of the topics that you have learnt in unit two.

1. A grapheme is a . 2. A phoneme is the . 3. Speed reading is a skill that helps . 17

4. The act of pronouncing words in your mind is known as . 5. People often skim when they have 6. To look up a word in a dictionary, we use a technique called

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