“Read, read, read. Read everything — trash, classics, good and bad — and see how they do it. Just like a carpenter who works as an apprentice and studies the master. Read! You’ll absorb it.”
— William Faulkner
1. Choose a topic. (Bold Titles:)
2. Choose a source. ~ Example Source Title
3. Click on the title of the source. It is a link to the original website.
Reading Skills:
~ Video: What is Phonics?
~ Blog: Patterns in English Spelling
~ Phonics Activities for children: Oxford Phonics World, Oxford Owl: Phonics 1, Phonics 2, Jack and the Beanstalk, The Three Billy Goats Gruff
~ Skimming (basics): Reading Strategies
~ Skimming (exercises): Skimming for Theme, Skimming for Content, Worksheet
~ Scanning (basics): Reading Strategies
~ Scanning (exercises): Scanning for Detail, Timed Skimming/Scanning
~ Speed Reading Test
~ APP: ESL Speed Readings
“I guess there are never enough books.”
– John Steinbeck
Short Readings for English Learners:
~ British Council
~ English Club
~ My English Pages (skip ads)
~ Lingua
~ Lingua Press (intermediate readings) (advanced readings)
~ ESL Lounge (reading comprehension quizzes) Also has grammar, listening, pronunciation, vocabulary, test preparation, and games.
Children’s Stories:
~ The Fable Cottage (also has listening!)
~ Baldwin Library of Historical Children’s Literature
~ Free Children’s Stories by Daniel Errico
~ Bedtime Stories
~ UK Book Trust
“Being able to read a book in another language is a source of ego-stroking pride.”
– Emily O’Beirne
Poetry in English:
~ Poetry Foundation
~ Poets.org
~ Poem Hunter
~ BBC Poetry Archive
~ Poets’ Corner
~ All Poetry (public poetry submissions)
Classic Stories in English:
~ Project Gutenberg
~ Classic Short Stories
~ ESL Bits (Literature – can be used for extensive reading and extensive listening)
~ Extensive Reading Central
~ Pennington Library (gives links to other websites with short stories)
“Read a thousand books, and your words will flow like a river.”
– Lisa See
Book Recommendations for Advanced Readers:
~ LGBT Teen Books
~ Cool Stuff for Queer Kids and Allies (blog)
~ 100 Best Young Adult Books of All Time (2021 list, Time Magazine)
~ 115 Best Young Adult Books of All Time (from Discovery, with short descriptions)
~ American readers’ 100 Best Young Adult Books of All Time (2012 list with descriptions, NPR audience vote)
“One sure window into a person’s soul is his reading list.”
— Mary B. W. Tabor
Encyclopedias and General Topics:
~ How Stuff Works
~ Biography.com (stories about people and popular culture)
~ Atlas Obscura (stories about popular culture and history)
~ Scientific American
~ National Geographic
~ Encyclopedia Britannica
~ Wikipedia
“My alma mater was books, a good library…. I could spend the rest of my life reading, just satisfying my curiosity.”
— Malcolm X
Famous Rhetoric (Politics & Philosophy):
~ U.S. Presidential Speeches (Miller Center – reading and listening)
~ Top 100 Speeches of the 20th Century (American Rhetoric – reading and listening)
~ The 35 Greatest Speeches in History
~ Notable Speeches by Indigenous Australians
“Comic books are modern myths.”
– Abhijit Naskar
Online Comics:
~ Peanuts Archives (“Snoopy”)
~ GO Comics (mostly American comics)
~ List of UK comic strips
~ Comic Books+ (create login to access legally scanned books)
Theatrical Play Scripts & Movie Scripts:
~ Script-o-rama (famous movie and play scripts)
~ Playscripts
~ Simply Scripts
~ Theatre History
~ One-Act Plays on Project Gutenberg
~ 10-Minute Plays
~ American Variety Stage (1870-1920)
~ The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (late 1500s)
~ Selected Works of Edward O’Neill (early 20th century)
News Publications:
News for English Learners:
~ Many Things (educational + VOA news)
~ News in Levels
~ Breaking News English
~ Eikaiwa DMM
~ TIME for Kids
~ Smithsonian Tween Tribune
~ New York Times: The Learning Network
~ Entrepreneur (business news)
United States and Canada:
~ NPR News
~ VOA News
~ USA Today
~ ABC News
~ The New York Times
~ LA Times
~ The Chicago Tribune
~ The Wall Street Journal
~ Foreign Affairs
~ New Yorker
~ Newsweek
~ U.S. News & World Report
~ Canada Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)
United Kingdom and Ireland:
~ BBC News
~ Financial Times
~ The Guardian
~ The Times
~ The Irish Times
~ RTE (Ireland)
India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh:
~ The Times of India
~ The Hindu (India)
~ Indian Express
~ India Today
~ Hindustan Times (India)
~ Pakistan Today
~ The Nation (Pakistan)
~ The Express Tribune (Pakistan)
~ The Pakistan Observer
~ The News International (Pakistan)
~ Dawn (Pakistan)
~ The Daily Star (Bangladesh)
~ BD News 24 (Bangladesh)
~ Dhaka Tribune (Bangladesh)
Australia and New Zealand:
~ The Herald Sun (Australia)
~ The Sydney Morning Herald (Australia)
~ The Otago Daily Times (New Zealand)
~ New Zealand Herald
~ The Press (New Zealand)
Japan:
~ Japan Times
~ Japan Today
~ NHK World
~ The Mainichi
~ The Asahi Shimbun