Texts+for+Reading+Aloud

After the class on Teaching Reading, I thought it might be a good idea to list some short stories or texts which would work well for reading aloud in class. Please add your own recommendations as we go along:

__[|Cheeseburger Subversive]__ by Richard Scarsbrook is a funny novel. It is perhaps a better book for a male audience, but girls enjoy it too. Each chapter tells the story of a different adventure / misadventure of the protagonist, Dak Sifter. The story begins in Gr. 7 and chronicles his first job, his first girlfriend, dealing with the 'tough guy / bully' of the school and his paren​ts and neighbours. A good story, and you can break it into smaller chunks. I see there was also a play made of it. It might work well for readers theatre.  __Suggested text for reading aloud (by Kitty Tse) __  I think Franke James' visual essays would work well for reading aloud in class, especially for ESL students or students at junior levels. Franke James is a Canadian artistic writer whose mission is "to do something green and document it" (James, 2009, para.1). Therefore, she has published a lot of visual essays, aiming at drawing readers' attention to environmental issues such as global warming (e.g. //A Green Winter//) and climate change (e.g. //Bothered by My Green Conscience//). Although the diction and syntax are simple, all the visual essays have a clear thesis. What is more is that the use of drawings and photos make the essays fun and easy to understand. Teachers can either read aloud themselves, or ask students to do so, or even click on the animated version (which can be found on the following website: []). Reading aloud these fun but meaningful texts can serve as a good lead-in to arouse students’ interest in reading.

Reference: James, F. (2009). //Franke's Visual Essay.// Retrieved from December 17, 2009, from Franke James website: []

__Some short poems written by teenagers (by Virginia Choy)__
Recently I have found some interesting pieces written by teenagers. I think they are easy to read and more connected to students. The pieces are collected in //Young Voices'09//, a magazine published by Toronto Public Library. The language of the texts are rather simple, for example, on page 48, the poem "Sibling War" written by a 14-year old girl Lily Stafford, is a good piece for ESL students with lower English standards to practise the stress, emotions and repetition of words, etc. The poem is quite interesting on reflecting the daily life between siblings, which they may argue for minor and unimportant issues and the content of the argument may be silly and has no meaning at all. For example, in the poem, when one says, “Well, you’re not. It’s just annoying”, the other one would repl y , “You’re annoying” ; “Oh, stop it” <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">follows by <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">“You stop it” <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> and <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">“Shut up, will you?” versus “You shut up.” <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> The similar sentence structures appear in t <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">he <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">arguments <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">between the sibling <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">s <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">can <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"> definitely happen in any other famil <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">ies <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">. Even students with lower English levels <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">would immediately laugh as they <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">can immediately <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">refer these to their personal experiences <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">.

Attached with the poem "Sibling War" by Lily Stafford, page 48: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';">“This is do or die.” “Pardon?” “Means you have to do it, or you DIE!” “Thanks for the translation, dumbass, I know what it means.” “Well, you said pardon, so I figured you didn’t understand.” “I understand fine.” “Fine.” “Fine.”

“I’m not going to die if I don’t finish this…” “Yes, you are.” “Who says?” “Me.”

“Whatcha gonna do? Kill me?” “Uh huh.” “Oh yeah? How are you gonna do that?” “With this toilet plunger right here.” “I see.” “You laughing at me?” “Yep.”

“So…” “Shut up, okay, I’m trying to think…” “Oh, right. Should have known.” “You think you’re funny by being sarcastic.” “Yes.” “Well, you’re not. It’s just annoying.” “You’re annoying.” “Oh, stop it.” “You stop it.” “Shut up, will you?” “You shut up.”

“So…what should I do?” “Dunno.” “Oh, great help you are.” “Pfft. Not like you’re doing much more.” “I was just asking your opinion.” “Oh, sure you were…you wanted me to give you the answer.” “What?! Why would I ask you for the answer? You’re so dumb, you wouldn’t even know the answer.” “Are you kidding me, I’m the one who skipped Grade 1 because I was too smart.” “So? I’m getting way better marks in school than you are!” “Well, that’s because you’re three grades higher than me.” “That doesn't make a difference.” “Yes, it does.” “No, it doesn't.” “Does!” “Doesn’t.” “Does!” “Doesn’t!” “DOES!” “DOESN’T!” “Does…”

“Would you quit it?! Turn the music down! I can't concentrate!” “No. I like this song.” “Well, turn it down. ” “Why should I?” “Because I want upi to and I’m older and more important than you.” “I can’t hear you!” “If you would turn down you stupid music, then you would hear me.” “Exactly why I’m not turning it down.” “Ha! You can hear me? I win.” “What? Did you say something? I can’t hear you…” “Urrg! By the way, this is a really stupid song.” “Huh?”

“I hate you so much!” “I love you too!”

P.S. the magazine is free of charge and there are million copies in any library branches!^^