3655. One Teacher who Learned a Lot Just by Reading Books

 If I want to learn a language, well, I have to practice all four language skills, namely listening, speaking, reading, and writing. 

Okay. You may be a foreign or second language teacher, and may have a textbook or course-book to apply in class and even useful for your students to learn that language. And you may have for instance only two lessons per week and per class of students. 

Definitely two classes a week is not enough to master that tongue. 

You as a learner ought to put in six or seven days of the week to learn it, dedicating perhaps some minutes to that school subject. Well, better it’s to devote like half an hour or even more to that learning. At least some minutes. 

With some of my students – they’re adults – we have such a textbook, yet I encourage them to read in English, for example a graded reader their choice; some of them can afford to read unabridged books. 

Reading, reading is necessary. 

It gives us the vocab and grammar we need to participate in class. 

A couple of days ago or so I said to one of my students, when the class already was over, that they had shown eager to participate in class, even with some earnest trying … but they also showed lack of lexis and grammar. I mean, they wished to tell me things in class in English, but … words faltered. 

You know, I’m positive and optimistic, they’re going to learn a lot and they’ve advanced also a lot, but they need to read, read, read. 

I know a teacher that has clearly improved his English … through reading many books. Also he has to practice the other three language skills, anyway. He’s working on it. Have a nice day. --- Oh, something else: Stephen Krashen put that reading books, especially fiction, makes you learn and acquire a lot of the target language. 

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