Students often ask me ‘How do I improve my reading and listening skills?’ The short answer is ‘Read and listen more.’ However, this is not a very good answer because you need to know HOW to practice and WHERE to get good sources of reading and listening material. This article will help you: Learn HOW […]
Reading
Advanced Reading Skills – Guessing Meaning From Context
In this video lesson we look at one of the most, if not THE most essential reading skill, guessing meaning from context. We look at: What ‘meaning from context’ means. Why it is so essential. How to improve this skill? What does meaning from context mean? You need this skill when you don’t understand a […]
IELTS Reading- Skimming and Scanning
Skimming and scanning are two of the most misunderstood and misused skills in the whole IELTS test. Most students think they know what they are and when to use them, but many use them incorrectly or innapropriately. In my Facebook group, lots of students ask how to improve their reading score and most of the […]
IELTS Reading- Short Answer Questions
This post will help you answer short answer questions more effectively by looking at a sample question, identifying common problems and giving you a strategy to use on exam day. Short Answer Questions These questions are often called ‘comprehension’ questions and they are very common in English classrooms all over the world. Most students have […]
Speed Reading: How to Increase Your Reading Speed
Do you know how many words you will have to read on the IELTS reading test? About 900! When you think about having to answer 40 questions, in an hour, in a foreign language, it seems impossible. Don’t worry, there are lots of ways you can improve both your exam technique and reading skills, so […]
IELTS Reading- Matching Information to Paragraphs
In this kind of question you are asked to match statements to paragraphs in the reading text. Click here for an example. The statements could be reasons, descriptions, summaries, definitions, facts or explanations. What they are doesn’t really matter. You are not expected to have specialist knowledge in the reading test. You do not need […]