Searching online for information, news, articles, and texts is not easy and accessible for everyone, but sometimes it requires time, maybe a long time. As teachers, we always try to find additional material that we can use in our classrooms because we know that authentic material is a good way to bring reality into the classroom. But sometimes the online research is time-consuming. So this is why I have my "favorite sites" for quick research and quick use. I have to say that this has saved me some time over the years.
Where can we find age and level appropriate reading comprehension, news articles and texts for our students?
Here are a few sites that I have used and still use for my sources.
My TOP CHOICES:
This is a very useful site where you can find different types of news. Each article is presented with different versions and different levels of English. There also exercises related to the article and the chance to listen to the audio file of the article ( different audio files at different speed).
Very good site for English learners. News are presented according to categories and levels of English.
Very good site with different news articles made into ready-to-download ( and free) lessons for teaching English. Not really updated recently, but still a very good site.
Wonderful site with different reading comprehension. You can choose the grade ( level), the number of words, the type of product and the text type. Each text comes with audio file, vocabulary exercises ( in English) and comprehension questions. This site is for educators only and it is free of charge. This site is not specifically for esl/efl and can also be used to secondary school students.
Very useful news search site for teachers. It has a pro version which is not free but by logging in with a free account the main features of the sites are still possible. There are different news divided into categories and topics. The search bar at the top is very useful as you can type any kind of keyword and the site easily directs you to the news about that word. The pro account gives you the chance to assign the articles to your students and check their progress.
You will need an official educator email to log in this site. I highly recommend it as it has a wide online library with reading passages divided by books, genres, level, literary device and theme. It is not specifically for esl/efl learners but all texts can easily be used and adapted. It can be used for all age levels and all language levels.
Better for CHILDREN of PRIMARY SCHOOL
This site is for sport related articles. It is not a site specifically for esl/efl, therefore some articles may need to be adapted. The interesting thing is that some articles are even written by kids.
A news site for children. News are divided into categories. Not specifically for esl/efl learners so articles may need to be simplified. Very good site.
Use the search bar and type a topic to find information about it.
Better for SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS AND/OR ADULTS
Various news articles, not specifically for esl/efl and better suitable for secondary school students or adults.
Amazing internet archive which also works as a search engine and connects you to different sites. You can specify your research by clicking the boxes on the left and choosing the type of text, the year, the topic and the language.
This is the best way to find free ebooks. Thousands of books are available for free use.
Real life stories, told by the protagonists. Not specifically esl/efl site, but very interesting stories, especially for adults since this is authentic material.
READER'S DIGEST
Real life news. Not specifically esl/efl site, but very interesting site, especially for adults since this is authentic material.
PUBLIC DOMAIN ESSAYS
Ready to use essays on different topics, divided by categories.
MANY THINGS
Many articles divided by topics, some with audio files.
FOR THE TEACHER
Leveled Reading articles with very interesting lesson plans that might need to be adapted as the site is not specifically for esl/efl.
Hope you will find these links as useful as I do. Try them and please let me know if you find others by commenting here or writing to me. Save these links as favorites for easy future access. Trust me, it will save you some precious time!
Thank you,
Miss Alex
Thanks, for sharing this information with us, every students need this kind of information. Share this with students at student answering service.
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