Paperbacks

The objective

To discuss and choose a book

The language

Present and past tenses

Relative clauses

The set-up

Choose and bring to class as many English paper-backs as you can--either from your personal library or from your school´s library. Make sure you choose variety of types: novels, classics, best-seller, etc., IF possible.

The low-down

Get students to sit in a circle and begin handing the books around to each student (it´s okay if not everyone has one in their hands at the same time) and ask them to take a look at each one, then pass it to their left. Allow them the time necessary to look at all the books; at this stage, they´re probably translating the names aloud to their own language, looking at the back cover and getting a general idea of what the book is about. When they´re finished, arrange the books on the floor. Ask students if they recognize any of the titles, or have read any of them. Most likely, some people will have read them or be familiar with them. You can go into it a bit more and ask their opinions about the books or whether any of the books seem interesting to them. Once you´ve generated some discussion, ask them to silently choose one of the books which they would be most likely to read and think about why (i.e. Which book seems most interesting to you? Write down the name of the book and why it seems interesting to you.) They can mention the cover art, the title, the back cover, the type of book, the author, etc. as their reason. When they´re finished, collect all the books and put them in your bag, or cover them up. Put students into pairs/groups and ask them to talk about what they chose and why but not the title or author´s name. The other students have to listen and guess the title and author (from memory). As an example, "I chose a book that was a mystery. It was written by a famous mystery author who I really like. I chose it because I like the author and also because it seems easy to understand. The other books were more complicated. Also I have read other books by the author and I like them all." Encourage students to ask questions and discuss the books in general.

Now what?

Go around the class and ask for their votes for the most interesting-looking book. As they tell you, pick the book they chose out of your bag. Tally the votes and ask one or two students who had chosen the winner why they chose it. Finish by encouraging students to read the books they chose and tell you their impressions.

Time to teach

The purpose of this activity was mainly to generate and/or gauge interest in reading in English. It´s a good way to explain to learners how extensive reading, that is reading a lot over long period of time without looking up words in the dictionary, can benefit their overall learning. It´s important to stress that using a dictionary is not a good idea; the object is to practice reading and to learn to enjoy it. However, form more advanced learners, you can also pick up the winning book and dictate the synopsis (or part of it) on the back. It´s a good way to look closely at relative clauses, which I think every synopsis contains. Ask them to rewrite the sentences so that they don´t contain relative clauses. For example, "Drawing on his own experiences as a solidier in India, the author is able to give us a glimpse into a mysterious world" will be rewritten as, "The author draws on his own experiences as a soldier in India in order to be able to give us a glimpse into a mysterious world". Ask learners what the difference is and why we use relative clauses. Write down a few remodeled sentences from the same or a different book and ask them to rewrite them using relative clauses.

More talk-time

Do you read very often? Do you read much in English?

What kinds of books do you like to read?

How do you choose a book from the book-shop or library?

Do you think people read less nowadays than they used to? Do you?