essays for reading practice

Reading these problematic passages aloud can often help circumvent that block and help you to form a visual of what the text is trying to convey.

Tip 3: Re-read (or Skim) Previous Sections of the Text

For the most part, reading is a personal activity that happens entirely in your head. So don't feel you have to read just like anyone else if "typical" methods don't work for you. Sometimes it can make the most sense to read (or re-read) a text out of order.

It is often helpful to glance backwards through a piece of text (or even re-read large sections) to remind yourself of any information you need and have forgotten—what happened previously, what a particular word means, who a person was...the list is endless.

Previous sentences, sections, or even whole chapters can provide helpful context clues. Re-reading these passages will help to refresh your memory so that you can better understand and interpret later sections of the text.

Tip 4: Skim or Read Upcoming Sections of the Text

Just like with the previous step, don't feel that the only way to read and understand a text is to work through it completely linearly. Allow yourself the freedom to take apart the text and put it back together again in whichever way makes the most sense to you.

Sometimes a current confusion in a work will be explained later on in the text, and it can help you to know that explanations are upcoming or even just to read them ahead of time.

So skip forward or backwards, re-read or read ahead as you need to, take the piece in whatever order you need to in order to make sense of the text. Not everyone thinks linearly, and not everyone best understands texts linearly either.

Tip 5: Discuss the Text With a Friend (Even an Imaginary Friend)

Sometimes discussing what you know so far about a text can help clear up any confusion. If you have a friend who hasn't read the text in question, then explain it to them in your own words, and discuss where you feel your comprehension is lacking. You'll find that you've probably understood more than you think once you've been forced to explain it to someone who's completely unfamiliar with the piece.

Even if no one else is in the room, trying to teach or discuss what a passage says or means with "someone else" can be extremely beneficial. In fact, software engineers call this technique "rubber duck debugging," wherein they explain a coding problem to a rubber duck. This forces them to work through a problem aloud, which has proven time and time again to help people solve problems. So if a piece of text has your head spinning from trying to work through it by yourself, start chatting with your nearest friend/pet/rubber duck. You'll be surprised with how much easier it is to understand a text once you've talked it through with someone.

Even if that someone is a duck.

The Take-Aways

Improving reading comprehension takes time and effort, but it can be done. Be patient with yourself, work through your reading comprehension steps, and try not to get frustrated with yourself if you feel your progress is slow or if you feel you're "falling behind." You will utilize your reading skills throughout your life, so go at a pace that works for you, and take care to maintain that balance between reading for pure pleasure and reading for dedicated improvement.

As you begin to incorporate more and more reading into your daily life, you'll find that comprehension will become easier, and reading will become more fun. In every piece of text, there are worlds of meaning to explore, and learning how to uncover them can be the ultimate rewarding journey.

What's Next?

Can't get enough reading? Whether as part of your reading practice or just for fun, check out our picks for the 31 best books to read in high school.

Problems with procrastination? Whether you're studying for the SAT's or studying your reading comprehension vocabulary check out how to beat procrastination and get your studies back on track.

Want to earn better grades? Our guide will help you get that 4.0 you're striving for .

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How to learn English by reading: Strategies for improved comprehension

Reading is an essential part of learning English or any other language. As you read, you discover new vocabulary and grammatical structures and your knowledge of the English language becomes more complete.

Here we will share some ways to learn English by reading for beginner, intermediate, and advanced learners, as well as some general tips that can help anyone improve their reading skills and enjoy the benefits of this activity.

Reading to learn English: Quick tips

These quick tips can apply to anyone who wants to read English more and use it to improve their English skills in general:

1. Start at the right level

Pick reading materials at the right level to challenge you, but not overwhelm you. Ideally, no more than 10% of the text should be unknown words – and around 5% is about right for most learners.

You can take British Council’s free online English level test to establish your reading level, then browse their helpful reading lessons.

Keep reading to learn about more reading resources suitable for each level.

2. Set time aside to practice daily

Try to read English daily to make it a regular habit. Set aside 10, 20, or 30 minutes per day at a designated time when you’ll be able to focus and take notes.

3. Use online resources to help

Reading English doesn’t have to involve a pile of bulky English books; there are tons of great English learning websites , as well as e-books that you can download and read from your phone or tablet.

You may also benefit from an English learning app that combines reading exercises with other key skills like writing, listening, and grammar lessons.

4. Explore diverse materials in different genres

To get the most out of reading to learn English, don’t confine yourself to a single genre or type of text. Explore both fiction and nonfiction , and seek out authors from different cultures and backgrounds .

Nonfiction texts that you can read to learn English include:

• News articles
• Social media posts
• Forum discussions
• Travel guides
• Instruction manuals
• Autobiographies
• Job descriptions
• Movie reviews

Even things like food packets and billboards contain important words for you to recognize. The more you surround yourself with a new language and read it wherever you can in your everyday life, the closer you get to immersion learning .

When it comes to fiction, you can read novels or short stories (depending on your level of English proficiency ) from different genres including:

• Historical fiction
• Science fiction

By doing this, you will be exposed to a rich vocabulary and different plot structures, character dynamics, and narrative techniques.

5. Practice reading and listening with audiobooks

A great way to supplement your reading practice is with audiobooks. These shouldn’t replace reading alone, but they can help you understand a text better, read faster, and practice your pronunciation at the same time.

Most audio players have a setting that allows you to slow down the audio speed. Make use of this if needed, so you can still read at your own pace rather than relying on listening. Also take the time to repeat sections of text if you had trouble understanding them the first time.

Audible is a good place to access audiobook versions of whichever books you are reading – and you can get 30 days free to see if this technique helps your reading comprehension.

6. Make a vocabulary list or keep a language journal

If you want to build your English vocabulary, a simple way to do this is by keeping a list of new English words you encounter.

Jot down and unknown words in a notebook or on your phone, and later when you have time, look up the meaning in a dictionary (check out some of the best English learner’s dictionaries here).

To take this a step further, keep a language journal . This can include the context where you saw the new word, the definition, some example sentences you have written yourself, and even drawings or diagrams to help you visualize how to use the word.

Flashcards are a good tool to help you learn and remember vocabulary words. You can create your own physical flashcards or create a digital pack using a tool like Memrise. Be sure to review them regularly to keep those new words fresh in your memory.

7. Play English word games

Inject some fun into learning English reading by playing some word games. These can help stretch your vocabulary and encourage you to recall words you have already learned.

Try online games like Alphabet Soup and Knoword , or share the fun with friends and family with board games like Boggle and Bananagrams .

Find more of our recommended games for learning English here.

8. Practice different reading techniques

When you are reading to learn English, there are different ways you can approach a piece of text or literature. Each of these can improve your reading skills in different ways:

• Intensive reading: This method involves reading slowly through a short text and focusing on understanding every word and the full meaning behind what is written.
• Extensive reading: This method focuses on broader exposure to different texts. As long as you can get a general idea of the meaning you don’t need to scrutinize every new word.
• Re-reading: Another way to study short texts is to read them several times: First to get a basic understanding of the words, second to grasp the meaning behind them, and third to consider, on a deeper level, what the author is trying to convey or what it means for you and the world around you.

Learning to read English for beginners

Next, let’s look at some specific tools and techniques to help beginners learn to read English .

First of all, it’s important to choose beginner-level reading text that introduces new words at an appropriate level and is simple enough to understand without too much difficulty.

Beginner reading should focus on:

• Understanding main ideas
• Discovering new vocabulary
• Recognizing tenses and other basic grammar
• Identifying sequences of events

For kids learning English, the Penguin Young Readers and Step Into Reading collections have graded books for different levels. The stories are fun and engaging for young readers, and there are comprehension questions to help develop their understanding of the text.

For adults learning to read English, Penguin Readers are graded versions of classic works, simplified to suit each reading level. English Short Stories for Beginners has a collection of short stories written for people learning English as a second language.

At this level, English learners may get through short stories quite quickly. Therefore, rather than purchasing multiple books, it may be more economical to get a Kindle Unlimited subscription. This gives access to unlimited e-books, including hundreds of graded readers.

Of course, if you have access to a local library, you should be able to find books like these for free.

There are also plenty of websites offering English learning for beginners , including:

• BBC Learning English
• News In Levels

These are good for self-study, and an app like Mondly can help with more guided learning.

Learn English reading at intermediate level

As your reading comprehension improves, you can continue with graded readers at more difficult levels, but you can also start reading English articles and other simple texts written for native speakers.

For example, choose a simple blog post or news article on a topic that interests you. As you read it, try to:

• Understand the meaning of each sentence
• Use context clues to guess the meaning of unknown words
• Identify examples of cause and effect
• Spot any English idioms and learn what they mean
• Question the contents of the writing
• Look for the opinion or intent of the author
• Decide whether you agree with what is written
• Write a short summary of the key points

This book of short stories for intermediate learners has eight stories in different genres – an enjoyable way to improve your English reading.

Developing English reading skills for advanced learners

Advanced learners should feel comfortable applying their reading skills to texts written for native English speakers. This could include popular novels, classic English literature, and a broad range of online materials.

As you read, think about:

• Examining sentences for unfamiliar grammatical structures
• Understanding cultural context and how it affects the text
• Asking questions for deeper reflection on the subject
• Discussing the text with others and forming an opinion about it

An app like Gymglish can be very helpful for advanced learners wanting a fun way to practice regularly. It includes plenty of reading and listening exercises suited to your level, while also ensuring that your grammar and vocabulary knowledge are progressing at the correct level. You can try Gymglish for 1 month free to see if it suits you.

Combining reading with writing, speaking, and listening skills

As you improve your reading skills, you can use your reading time to develop other skills and build your fluency in English .

Reading and writing skills

Reading varied materials by different authors will expose you to different writing styles and influence the way you write.

Some ways to combine reading and writing practice include:

• Reading a short text and then re-writing it in your own words
• Writing a short summary of what you have read each day
• Writing a review of a book you’ve read
• Leaving a comment in a blog post or online article
• Intentionally using your new vocabulary as you write

Discover some more ways to improve your English writing skills .

Reading and speaking skills

Hopefully, as you learn to read English, you will discover some books and topics that are worth sharing with others. This is where you can practice your speaking skills as well.

Talking with a fluent English speaker gives you an opportunity to check your understanding of the text and ask any questions you might have.

If you don’t have any English-speaking friends, you could join an online book club or find a language exchange partner with similar interests to you.

You might also benefit from classes with a private tutor ( Preply is a good place to find affordable online tutors). Tell your tutor that you want to improve your English reading skills, and they can choose appropriate texts for you to study and discuss in a guided environment.

You can even benefit from conversations in your own language about things you have read in English, if you don’t have many opportunities to speak English with people.

Reading and listening skills

Finally, here are some ways you can learn English by reading and listening together:

• While reading a book, listen along with an audio recording. Try to switch your mind between relying on listening and relying on reading for comprehension. Adjust the audio speed to help with this.
• When you watch a movie in English, read the subtitles as you listen to the dialogue
• Join a book group to participate in active discussion and hear what others have to say
• Listen to podcasts that have a transcript available so you can read as you listen (many of these English learning podcasts have transcripts)

We have more resources for learning English listening here.

Setting goals and tracking progress as you learn English by reading

Setting goals and monitoring your progress will help you stay focused and motivated as you learn to read more.

We have a full guide to setting goals for learning English to help with this, but here are some ideas for goals that relate to English reading:

• Learning a certain number of new words each week
• Finishing a book or text within a specific timeframe
• Meeting with a book group regularly and being able to participate in discussions
• Reading an article every day

To track your progress, you could use a flashcard app that keeps a record of the words you have mastered. You can also keep a reading list – include books or articles you want to read and check them off as you complete them, retaining a record of everything you have accomplished.

What can I read to improve my English?

Almost anything you read in English will help broaden your vocabulary and your knowledge of grammatical structures – food packets, social media posts, newspaper articles… the more you read, the better!

Can I improve my English just by reading books?

Reading books will help improve your reading skills, and perhaps your writing, but it doesn’t help much with your listening and speaking skills. Therefore, we recommend you practice reading as part of a broader learning plan.

How can I learn English reading for free?

There are lots of websites where you can learn English for free , including many with free reading exercises and comprehension tests. If you have a local library, that’s also a good place to look for reading resources. And of course, it’s free to read content on most websites, so you can practice English while reading about your favorite sports or hobbies.

How can I improve my English pronunciation while reading?

To improve your English pronunciation while reading, practice reading out loud and try listening to audiobooks as you read along, noting how the narrator pronounces each word.

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39 comments.

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Yeah, I wouldn’t download any extensions unless you know who made them and what they are doing. Generally a bad idea.

Ain ul haya

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Josh Hichamuru

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So effective and simple too

These are great for Socratic Seminars! Thank you!

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Very interesting

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100 Writing Practice Lessons & Exercises

by Joe Bunting | 50 comments

Want to become a better writer? How much time do you spend on your writing practice? Perhaps you want to write novels, or maybe you just want to get better grades in your essay writing assignments , or maybe you'd like to start a popular blog .

If you want to write better, you need practice. But what does a writing practice actually look like? In this post, I'm going to give you everything you need to kick off your writing practice and become a better writer faster.

What Is Writing Practice?

Writing practice is a method of becoming a better writer that usually involves reading lessons about the writing process, using writing prompts, doing creative writing exercises , or finishing writing pieces, like essays, short stories , novels , or books . The best writing practice is deliberate, timed, and involves feedback.

How Do You Practice Writing?

This was the question I had when I first started The Write Practice in 2011. I knew how to practice a sport and how to practice playing an instrument. But for some reason, even after studying it in college, I wasn't sure how to practice writing.

I set out to create the best writing practice I could. The Write Practice is the result.

I found that the best writing practice has three aspects:

Deliberate . Writing whatever you feel like may be cathartic, but it's not an effective way to become a better writer or build your writing skills. You'll get better faster by practicing a specific technique or aspect of the writing process each time you sit down to write.

This is why we have a new lesson about the writing process each day on The Write Practice, followed by a practice prompt at the end so you can put what you learned to use immediately.

Timed . It's no secret writers struggle with focus. There are just too many interesting distractions—Facebook, email, Kim Kardashian's Instagram feed (just kidding about that last one, sort of)—and writing is just too hard sometimes.

Setting a timer, even for just fifteen minutes, is an easy and effective way to stay focused on what's important.

This is why in our writing practice prompt at the end of each post we have a time limit, usually with a link to an online tool egg timer , so you can focus on deliberate practice without getting distracted.

Feedback . Getting feedback is one of the requirements to deliberately practice writing or any other craft. Feedback can look like listening to the reactions of your readers or asking for constructive criticism from editors and other writers.

This is why we ask you to post your writing practice after each lesson, so that you can get feedback from other writers in The Write Practice community. It's also why we set up The Write Practice Pro community , to provide critique groups for writers to get feedback on each finished piece of writing.

Our 100+ Best Creative Writing Practice Exercises and Lessons

Now that you know how we practice writing at The Write Practice, here are our best writing practice lessons to jumpstart your writing skills with some daily writing exercises, for beginner writers to even the most expert writers:

All-Time, Top 10 Writing Lessons and Exercises

These ten posts are our most viewed articles to boost your writing practice:

1. What is Plot? The 6 Elements of Plot and How to Use Them . Great stories use similar elements in wildly different ways to build page-turning stories. Click here to read what they are and learn how to start using them !

2. Top 100 Short Story Ideas . Here are over a hundred writing prompts in a variety of genres. If you need ideas for your next story, check this out!

3. How To Use Neither, Nor, Or, and Nor Correctly . Even good writers struggle figuring out when to use neither/nor and either/or. In this post, our copy-queen Liz Bureman settles the confusion once and for all. Click to continue to the writing exercise

4. Ten Secrets To Write Better Stories . How does Pixar manage to create such great stories, year after year? And how do you write a good story? In this post, I distill everything I've learned about how to write a good story into ten tips. Click to continue to the writing exercise

5. 35 Questions To Ask Your Characters From Marcel Proust . To get to know my characters better, I use a list of questions known as the Proust Questionnaire, made famous by French author, Marcel Proust. Click to continue to the writing exercise

6. How a Scene List Can Change Your Novel-Writing Life . Creating a scene list changed my novel-writing life, and doing the same will change yours too. Includes examples of the scene lists from famous authors. Click to continue to the writing exercise

7. Why You Need to be Using the Oxford Comma . Most people I've met have no idea what the Oxford comma is, but it's probably something that you have used frequently in your writing. Click to continue to the writing exercise

8. Six Surprising Ways to Write Better Interview Questions.  The interview is the most-used tool in a journalist's bag. But that doesn't mean novelists, bloggers, and even students can't and don't interview people. Here's how to conduct a great interview. Click to continue to the writing exercise

9. Why You Should Try Writing in Second Person . You've probably used first person and third person point-of-view already. But what about second person? This post explains three reasons why you should try writing from this point-of-view. Click to continue to the writing exercise

10. The Secret to Show, Don't Tell . You've heard the classic writing rule, “Show. Don't Tell.” Every writing blog ever has talked about it, and for good reason. Showing, for some reason, is really difficult. Click to continue to the writing exercise.

12 Exercises and Lessons To Become a Better Writer

How do you become a better writer? These posts share our best advice:

• Want to Be a Better Writer? Cut These 7 Words
• What I Mean When I Say I Am A Writer
• How to Become a Writer: 3 Simple Steps
• 72% of Writers Struggle With THIS
• 7 Lies About Becoming a Writer That You Probably Believe
• 10 Questions to Find Your Unique Writing Voice
• The Best Writing Book I’ve Ever Read
• The Best Way to Become a Better Writer
• The Creative Writer’s Toolkit: 6 Tools You Can’t Write Without
• Should You Write More or Write Better: Quantity vs Quality
• How to Become a Better Writer in One, Simple Step
• 11 Writing Tips That Will Change Your Life

6 Lessons and Exercises from Great Writers

If you want to be a writer, learn from the great writers who have gone before you:

• 23 Essential Quotes from Ernest Hemingway About Writing
• 29 Quotes that Explain How to Become a Better Writer
• 10 Lessons Dr. Seuss Can Teach Writers
• 10 Writing Tips from Ursula Le Guin
• Once Upon a Time: Pixar Prompt
• All the Pretty Words: Writing In the Style of Cormac McCarthy

12 Genre and Format Specific Writing Lessons and Exercises

Here are our best writing lessons for specific types of writing, including essays, screenplays, memoir, short stories, children's books, and humor writing:

• Writing an Essay? Here Are 10 Effective Tips
• How To Write a Screenplay: The 5 Step Process
• How to Write a Great Memoir: a Complete Guide
• How to Write a Short Story from Start to Finish
• How to Write a Thriller Novel
• How to Write a Children's Book
• How to Write a Love Story
• How to Write a Coming of Age Story or Book
• How to Write an Adventure Book
• 5 Key Elements for Successful Short Stories
• 4 Tips to Write a Novel That Will Be Adapted Into a Movie
• Humor Writing for People Who Aren’t Funny

14 Characterization Lessons and Exercises

Good characters are the foundation of good fiction. Here are our best lessons to create better characters:

• Character Development: How to Create Characters Audiences Will Love
• Writing Villains: 9 Evil Examples of the Villain Archetype
• How NOT to Introduce a New Character
• The Strongest Form of Characterization
• The Most Important Character Archetype
• How Do You Build A Strong Character In Your Writing?
• 75+ Antihero Examples and How to Use Them
• How to Explore Your Characters’ Motivations
• 8 Tips for Naming Characters
• The Protagonist: How to Center Your Story
• Heroes vs. Anti-Heroes: Which Is Right For Your Story?
• The Weakest Form of Characterization
• How to Write With an Accent
• How To Create a Character Sketch Using Scrivener

15 Grammar Lessons and Exercises

I talk to so many writers, some of whom are published authors, who struggle with grammar. Here are our best writing lessons on grammar:

• Is It Okay To End A Sentence With A Preposition?
• Contractions List: When To Use and When To Avoid
• Good vs. Well
• Connotation vs. Denotation
• Per Se vs. Per Say
• When You SHOULD Use Passive Voice
• When Do You Use “Quotation Marks”
• Polysyndeton and Asyndeton: Definition and Examples
• The Case Against Twilight
• Affect Versus Effect
• Stop Saying “Literally”
• What Is a Comma Splice? And Why Do Editors Hate Them?
• Intra vs. Inter: Why No One Plays Intermural Sports
• Alright and Alot: Words That Are Not Words
• The Poor, Misunderstood Semicolon

5 Journalism Lessons and Exercises

Want to be a journalist? Or even use techniques from journalism to improve your novel, essay, or screenplay? Here are our best writing lessons on journalism:

• Six Ways to Ask Better Questions In Interviews
• How to Conduct an Author Interview
• Interview In Person or Via Email?  
• What If They Don’t Want to Talk to You?
• Eleven Habits of a Highly Effective Interviewers

16 Plot and Structure Lessons and Exercises

Want to write a good story? Our top plot and structure lessons will help:

• The Nine Types of Story and How to Master Them
• Points of a Story: 6 Plot Points Every Story Needs
• How to Shape a Story: The 6 Arcs
• 7 Keys To Write the Perfect First Line of a Novel
• The Secret to Creating Conflict
• 4 Tips to Avoid Having Your Short Story Rejected by a Literary Magazine
• 7 Steps to Creating Suspense
• 5 Elements of Storytelling
• 3 Important Rules for Writing Endings
• A Writer’s Cheatsheet to Plot and Structure
• Overcoming the Monster
• How to Satisfy Your Reader With a Great Ending
• Pow! Boom! Ka-Pow! 5 Tips to Write Fight Scenes
• The Dramatic Question and Suspense in Fiction
• How to Write a Memorable Beginning and Ending
• How to Write the Perfect First Page

6 Lessons and Exercises to Beat Writer's Block

Writer's block is real, and it can completely derail your writing. Here are six lessons to get writing again:

• How To Write Whether You Feel Like it Or Not
• This Fun Creative Writing Exercise Will Change Your Life
• When You Should Be Writing But Can't…
• What to do When Your Word Count is Too Low
• 7 Tricks to Write More with Less Willpower
• When You Don’t Know What to Write, Write About Your Insecurities

7 Literary Technique Lessons and Exercises

These writing and storytelling techniques will teach you a few tricks of the trade you may not have discovered before:

• 3 Tips to “Show, Don’t Tell” Emotions and Moods
• 3 Reasons to Write Stream of Consciousness Narrative
• 16 Observations About Real Dialogue
• Intertextuality As A Literary Device
• Why You Should Use Symbolism In Your Writing
• 6 Ways to Evoke Emotion in Poetry and Prose
• 3 Tips To Write Modern Allegorical Novels
• Symbol vs. Motif: What’s the Difference

3 Inspirational Writing Lessons and Exercises

Need some inspiration? Here are three of our most inspiring posts:

• Why We Write: Four Reasons
• You Must Remember Every Scar
• 17 Reasons to Write Something NOW

3 Publishing Blogging Lessons and Exercises

If you want to get published, these three lessons will help:

• The Secret to Writing On Your Blog Every Day
• How to Publish Your Book and Sell Your First 1,000 Copies
• How to Submit a Short Story for Publication

11 Writing Prompts

Need inspiration or just a kick in the pants to write. Try one of our top writing prompts :

• Grandfathers [writing prompt]
• Out of Place [writing prompt]
• Sleepless [writing prompt]
• Longing [writing prompt]
• Write About Yourself [writing prompt]
• 3 Reasons You Should Write Ghost Stories
• Road Trip [writing prompt]
• Morning [writing prompt]
• The Beach [writing prompt]
• Fall Writing Prompts
• How to Use Six-Word Stories As Writing Prompts

Is It Time To Begin Your Writing Practice?

It's clear that if you want to become a writer, you need to practice writing. We've created a proven process to practice your writing at The Write Practice, but even if you don't join our community, I hope you'll start practicing in some way today.

Personally, I waited  far  too long to start practicing and it set my writing back years.

How about you? Do you think practicing writing is important?  Let me know in the comments section .

Choose one of the writing practice posts above. Then, read the lesson and participate in the writing exercise, posting your work in the Pro Practice Workshop . And if you post, please give feedback to your fellow writers who also posted their practices.

Have fun and happy practicing!

Joe Bunting

Joe Bunting is an author and the leader of The Write Practice community. He is also the author of the new book Crowdsourcing Paris , a real life adventure story set in France. It was a #1 New Release on Amazon. Follow him on Instagram (@jhbunting).

Want best-seller coaching? Book Joe here.

Work with Joe Bunting?

WSJ Bestselling author, founder of The Write Practice, and book coach with 14+ years experience. Joe Bunting specializes in working with Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, How To, Literary Fiction, Memoir, Mystery, Nonfiction, Science Fiction, and Self Help books. Sound like a good fit for you?

50 Comments

You have THE BEST content for writing on this blog!!

Thank you, Kristen. This made my morning. 🙂

Thanks Mitch. 🙂

I can’t remember when I started following this website. I have to look in my notebooks because that’s where I did these practices. I didn’t have access to a computer when I did them, so I wrote them out, setting the time limit. But even when I do get to a computer, I have my reservations about putting my practices on the page. even though it’s practice, I want them to be the best, almost perfect. But I know it won’t be. I’ve gotten feedback before that says so. It still gets to me that I didn’t put something together that not everyone liked. I need to get over it. After all, that is what these practices are about: to learn and improve on our craft.

I don’t know either, George, but it’s been several years. Perfectionism is something so many of us face, and it’s made worse when you don’t have a critique community as warm and encouraging as ours is. I hope you and everyone here are always willing to try something new, even if it comes out a little messed up, because you know we’ll support you and try to make you better.

What a great share! Thanks so much!

You’re so welcome, Elizabeth. Thank you for commenting.

when I ran writing classes I wrote. when I am “a member of writing classes” the teacher/leader/facilitator is NOT MY AUDIENCE and so I don’t write as well/as much. I don’t get the feedback I need from fellow students because most of them have never run their own writing projects/workshops. So many people expect you to write their story for them. I’ve actually got quite a few stories of me own. I have finally decided I like owning them. 😉

It sounds like you need a new critique group, Patience! Hope you can find a place where you get the feedback you need.

Wow! Terrific round-up of resources. 🙂

Thanks Stephanie. 🙂

Practice is necessary, period. It doesn’t matter what you want to learn. If you want to improve, practice is vital.

It’s odd. I’ve known and applied that principle for years on a variety of things. Painting. Drawing. Blogging. Gardening. Laundry.

But never writing.

Like you, I had the notion that just writing every day was all it took to improve. Why not the same level of dedication to writing?

Perhaps it’s time to change that!

I can relate, Carrie. It’s easy to confuse the craft of writing with journaling, thinking that you can just write whatever you feel like and you’ll get better, write something worth reading. The truth is that writing interesting things to read is a skill, but the good news is that you can get better at it with practice. Thanks for practicing with us! 🙂

I love these suggestions , and have set Writing Practice as my homepage so the first 15 minutes of my day is spent writing, whether its a practice or exercise here or another that is sprinkled through out this site, Thank you for all you do everyone here at The Write Practice

This is great Debra. I want to write the first 15 minutes of my day too!

I agree with Joe, Do it. Could be your to do list… ( that could lead to something else story wse later)

I love that, Debra. Such a good way to start your day.

Thanks Joe!

The best! Thank you so much for this.

You’re very welcome!

I simply LOVE all the tips and suggestions given on this blog. They are super helpful!

THANK you. We love sharing them with you. 🙂

Hi! You forgot the link to How to Write a Story a Week: A Day-by-Day Guide.

Thanks a lot for your work! This post is amazing.

It’s a great post Thiago. Definitely one of our most shared. Thanks for mentioning it! BTW here’s the link:

https://thewritepractice.com/a-story-a-week/

Wow!! There are so many exercises…. I just love it..! I am gonna really enjoy it..!

Awesome! Thank you for reading and practicing with us. 🙂

I only read halfway , My tootie is jumping all over me, and typing this is a struggle when a 3yr old wants his Toy Story movie on Youtube in this computer. Thank you for this article, will come back later to finish reading.

I know the feeling! Good luck!

Can’t wait to get stuck in with this! 🙂

Very helpful! Thank you!

I’ve just bookmarked this page. Thanks for this wonderful list.

This is awesome! So many helpful tips. I will be coming back to this often. Thanks for posting this!

Wow, so many goodies! Thank you for always providing such amazing content!!

I have enjoyed all these articles. Thank you for the help an inspiration to get my writing on its way. My creativity is boosting with confidence. Tootle loo.

Amazing contents for beginners like me Joe. I am highly inspired by your commitment. Thank you.

Hey, thanks!

Although I have only read half of thisc article, the practice exercises are excellent. Some of them are exactly what a beginning writer like myself needs. I am committing to at least try ALL of them. Thanks Joe!!

very helpful! thank you..

Amazing articles! Thanks so much for sharing!

My god this article made me love this site . You know it’s kinda hard for a beginner writer, who don’t know where to start and fixing goals, even samll ones give us a direction . A place to go , an aim for our creativity so thanks you , this community and this site. Love you all . At your pens ! 😉

Wow. This is great. I find all your posts informative, but this one is the best for me to use as a guide to get my self starting to write….Thank you.

I’m an old lady who wants to publish one more book before I die — have published several, all non-fiction, and done two under contract to a major publisher (reference books). So help me, the BIGGEST problem I have all along, is keeping track of the damned paper work and research that goes into a book!!! Yet I never ever see articles on something as simple as “How to file” — Oh I know, there’s wonderful software these days so probably I will never find a way to get paper organized — everybody will use software and do it on the computer. I’m too old for that — just one look at the learning curve for software, even putting the damned stuff into computer files is even MORE frustrating than paper!! Oh well, somehow I managed in the past to get books published, I may be able to do it one more time.

you enjoy writing more than anything else and you do indeed care to help others write. I love writing but translation from Arabic into English and English into Arabic is taking all of my time from the early hours of the morning till the evening. I will soon get all of your books in order to read them as soon as possible. One thing I am sure of. You know what you are doing very well. Hamzah

Excellent! Many useful tips. Many thanks!

Liz and Joe, I have only looked at a few exercises. Already, I am convinced that your site is one of the best sites out there. Thank your for sharing your wisdom.

Wow, these are the best lessons and exercises for writing. Actually i’m participating in a compitition this wendsday. so, i’m quite nervous and exited. this helped me a lot

Magnificent post ever I have read. This article will help me a lot to write a right way. Thank you.

i need your help to improve to become a better writer please. i think i usually commit moist of these errors and i don;t pay attention to many advices too.

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Essay Reading: Practice and Importance of Reading Essays

Essay Reading Practice

Essay reading is a common practice in the world today for anyone who wants to perfect writing. Also, there are many good informative essays written that are interesting to read.

This article analyzes the essay reading practice and accesses the importance and benefits of reading essays.

Also Read: How to Write a Discussion Essay for University: How to Start

What is Essay Reading Practice?

Essay reading practice refers to the act of going through essays to identify all the features that the writer used to write it. It is a process that demand the reader to do several things. For essay reading practices to be regarded as complete, as the reader you should:

• Have a pencil in hand to identify all the styles and features that the writer uses in the essay
• Go through the essay quickly searching for the writer’s main idea. Basically, find out what the essay is all about. This is not the time to go into details.

If you encounter vocabularies you have never seen before, circle them for later research.

• If the words you circled are keywords, find their meaning. This will help the next time you read the essay you get the full meaning.

Include the definitions of the words at the top of the essay. To easily refer to them in case you forget the meanings.

• Go through the essay another time. Ensure that you do it slowly so that you notice all the generalizations of the author.

This time take note of the thesis statement and the line of thought. Also the structure that is used in the essay. Include the thesis in the last part of the introduction paragraph. This will help to identify it you will need to find the generalization that the author is trying to validate.

Also, look for the unifying principle of the essay or the idea that everything in the essay centers on. Remember to fully establish the main point of the writer.

Always take note that the examples the writer gives are not the main idea of the story

• If you are totally convinced that you have found the thesis or the main idea of the essay, underline it. If you have found several statements that show what the essay is all about, do not panic if they all revolve around one point.

After that it’s time to establish the structure of the essay. Note where the introduction begins, where the body paragraphs begin and end, and the conclusion.

Read through the body paragraphs so you grasp all the points that the writer presents to support the thesis. In long essays, you will find a lot of subdivisions of points explaining the main idea.

Ensure that you have separated the main ideas from the minor ones. Long essays also involve some paragraphs with no much meaning. Most of them are illustrative, transitional, or digressive paragraphs.

Label these paragraphs to avoid confusing them with paragraphs that tell more about the thesis.

• In the body paragraph identify each point through the topic sentences. These are the sentences that contain the main idea of the paragraphs.

In paragraphs where the topic is not stated but implied make sure that you notice it. Through the topic sentences you will be able to gather all the main points that the writer used to write the entire essay.

They are the ones that carry the entire meaning of the essay.

• Now that you have cracked what the author is talking about, you should be able to follow through the reasoning of the essay. If you still do not get it try summing up paragraphs as if you are annotating a text book.

Always take note of transitional words such as however, therefore, or finally because they help relay the meaning of the essay better.

• Now that you have completed reading through the essay, at the end of it you can note the thesis statement.

Write notes on why you think the writer wrote the essay and the audience that you think it was directed to and whether they are friend or hostile.

Also, make sure that you identify any assumptions that the writer made on the essay and the gaps that you feel that were not addressed.

• Now that you have fully understood the essay, any other requirements such as rhetorical techniques used by the writer and the tone of the essay should be easily identifiable if you are required to provide them.

Also Read: Is Using Old Exams Cheating? Tips how to Use Them to Pass

Importance and Benefits of Reading Essays

The following are the main reasons why you should read essays:

Know how to Write Essays

It is through reading examples of well written essays that you understand everything about their writing. You will know how the writers navigate through different topics and are able to organize ideas through the essay and maintain a stellar flow.

Also through reading average or bad essays you can take note of mistakes that you should not commit when writing essays. Therefore, reading essays can be said to be a learning process of how to write essays.

Understand the Different Types of Essays

When you read essays, you will take note of how different types of essays are written. For example, descriptive essays are different from argumentative essays and discussion essays .

Therefore, when reading through different kinds of essays you know the format for each that you will use in your writing. You are also able to note the main differences between each type and you are likely to avoid making mistakes when you write your essays.

Know how to Structure Paragraphs

Through reading essays you gain knowledge on how to structure your essay paragraphs.

You get ideas on how to word topic sentences, how to provide support evidence, and how to conclude the paragraph.

It is through reading essays that you know how to make transitions from one paragraph to another to maintain the flow of your essay.

Also, you understand the specific length that paragraphs range from and how they are balanced to make sure that some ideas are not over explained and others under explained.

Understand the Structure of Essays

When you read essays you are able to understand more about the introduction, body paragraphs and conclusion. First you know how to start essays with catchy phrases to keep the reader hooked, introduce the topic and end the introduction with a thesis statement.

Secondly, you are able to understand the organization of body paragraphs with each main point beginning as the topic sentence of the paragraph.

Lastly, you will be able to learn how to write conclusions using the right words to show that your essay is coming to an end.

Also Read: How to Write a PEEL Paragraph Essay: With Examples

Know how to Present Ideas in Writing

When you read essays you understand how to communicate using a piece of writing. You notice that you can use writing to present ideas by introducing them, explaining them and concluding them.

Through reading good essays you are able to understand the best ways you can use to relay information to people through writing.

Understanding the Audience

Essays are directed toward a particular audience. When you read essays you understand how the writer managed to center the essay towards the audience by noting the tone used and the choice of words involved.

You are able to know whether the writer was friendly or hostile to the audience and how he addressed everything towards them.

Improve your Writing Techniques

Most good essays nail all writing techniques. They use good grammar and transitions, they are well punctuated, and written in a catchy attention grabbing language to hook the reader.

By reading these kinds of essays you note all the things that you can now transfer to your writing.

Always note that the more you read essays and practice writing them, the more you become an essay writing pro.

Jessica Kasen is experienced in academic writing and academic assistance. She is well versed in academia and has a master’s degree in education. Kasen consults with us in helping students improve their grades. She also oversights the quality of work done by our writers.

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IELTS Mentor "IELTS Preparation & Sample Answer"

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Academic Reading Samples

Academic Reading Test has three sections or three reading passages that you'll have to answer in an hour. Each reading passage will come with 13-14 questions and three reading passages will have 40 questions (sometimes 41) in total. Each question carries 1 mark. For each correct answer, you will get one mark.

You can't read every single line of the reading passages and then answer the questions as time will be against you then. You need to use scanning, skimming, guessing, eliminating wrong answer etc techniques to find the answers to these questions. You are allowed to mark and make notes in your reading question booklet, but you will have to write your answers on the answer sheet. No extra time will be given to transfer the answer. Each section of the Academic Reading Test contains one long text or reading passage. These texts/passages are taken from books, journals, magazines and newspapers. They have been written for a non-specialist audience and are on academic topics of general interest. If texts contain technical terms, then a simple glossary is usually provided.

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EnglishForEveryone.org

Writing practice worksheets terms of use, finish the story writing worksheets.

• Beginning Finish the Story - The Snow Day
• Beginning Finish the Story - The Fair
• Beginning Finish the Story - Summer Camp
• Beginning Finish the Story - The Birthday Party
• Beginning Finish the Story - The Halloween Costume
• Beginning Finish the Story - The 4th of July
• Intermediate Finish the Story - The Beach Trip
• Intermediate Finish the Story - The Great Find
• Intermediate Finish the Story - Which Way?
• Intermediate Finish the Story - Finding Muffin
• Intermediate Finish the Story - The Zoo
• Advanced Finish the Story - The Troublemaker

Question Response Writing Worksheets

• Beginning Question Response - Your Favorite Color
• Beginning Question Response - Your Favorite Day
• Beginning Question Response - Your Favorite Number
• Beginning Question Response - In Your Family
• Beginning Question Response - Your Favorite Sport
• Beginning Question Response - Your Favorite Clothes
• Beginning Question Response - Your Favorite Music
• Beginning Question Response - How You Relax
• Beginning Question Response - Lunch Time
• Beginning Question Response - With Your Friends
• Beginning Question Response - Collecting Stamps
• Beginning Question Response - Your Birthplace
• Beginning Question Response - Starting Your Day
• Intermediate Question Response - Your Favorite Food
• Intermediate Question Response - Your Favorite Movie
• Intermediate Question Response - Your Favorite Song
• Intermediate Question Response - TV Programs
• Intermediate Question Response - Your Favorite Time
• Intermediate Question Response - Which Country?
• Intermediate Question Response - The Wisest Person
• Intermediate Question Response - Someone You Admire
• Advanced Question Response - A Great Accomplishment
• Advanced Question Response - The Most Exciting Thing
• Advanced Question Response - Oldest Memory
• Advanced Question Response - The Most Productive Day of the Week
• Advanced Question Response - An Interesting Person
• Advanced Question Response - What Have You Built?
• Advanced Question Response - What You Like to Read

Practical Writing Worksheets

• Beginning Practical - Grocery List
• Beginning Practical - TO Do List
• Beginning Practical - At the Beach
• Beginning Practical - The Newspaper
• Intermediate Practical - Absent From Work
• Intermediate Practical - Your Invitation
• Intermediate Practical - Paycheck
• Intermediate Practical - The New House
• Advanced Practical - Soccer Game Meeting
• Advanced Practical - Note About Dinner
• Advanced Practical - A Problem
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First Grade A4 Reading Comprehension Set

Subject: Special educational needs

Age range: 3-5

Resource type: Worksheet/Activity

Last updated

17 September 2024

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Boost first-grade reading skills with 26 engaging A4 worksheets, focusing on comprehension, fluency, phonics, and writing practice through fun, decodable passages. Reading Comprehension Worksheets for First Grade 26P / A4

This collection of 26 A4 Reading Comprehension Worksheets is designed to help first graders develop key reading skills such as phonics, fluency, and comprehension. Each worksheet includes a decodable reading passage with simple, relatable stories, followed by comprehension questions that reinforce understanding. The worksheets focus on improving vocabulary, spelling, and word recognition, all while enhancing students’ ability to answer questions and write key words.

• Engaging Stories: Each worksheet includes a short, simple, and fun story that children can relate to, making it easier for them to engage with the content.
• Comprehension Questions: Three multiple-choice questions help assess comprehension and understanding of the story.
• Writing Practice: Students are encouraged to write a focus word, building spelling and handwriting skills.
• Feedback Section: A space for students to reflect on whether they enjoyed the story using smiley faces.
• Fluency Tracking: Students can color stars to mark how many times they read the passage, promoting reading fluency.
• Phonics Focus: The passages are decodable, making them suitable for reinforcing phonics lessons.
• Daily Reading Practice: Use one worksheet per day as morning work or part of your reading centers. Encourage students to read the passage multiple times, coloring a star for each reading session.
• Small Group Activity: In small reading groups, the teacher can guide students through reading the passage aloud, answering the comprehension questions together, and discussing the story.
• Homework Assignment: These worksheets are perfect for sending home with students for additional reading practice. Parents can help their child read the story, answer the questions, and practice writing the focus word.
• Independent Practice: Once students are familiar with the format, they can complete the worksheets independently to build confidence in reading and comprehension.
• Fluency Check: Encourage students to read the passage aloud multiple times, tracking their fluency and confidence. Reward consistent readers who color all the stars after multiple readings.

These worksheets are perfect for reinforcing reading and comprehension skills while also being fun and engaging for first graders. With simple instructions, eye-catching illustrations, and thoughtful questions, these worksheets will help build students’ confidence in their reading abilities.

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