Making Reading Fun for Teenagers

I've always believed that when it comes to teaching teenagers, the personality of the teacher is more important than the material in keeping the students interested. Whether your using High Flyer, Snapshot, or any other pathetic course book designed for younger learners, somehow you can make it fun. However, we all have our off days when entertaining a bunch of ungrateful teens is too much of an effort. In a perfect world there would be a course book for teens full of horrific stories, love and romance, real teenage problems - not the same old 'music, health, sports, jobs, etc. format. So I have taken it upon myself to put together a list of reading exercises that teenagers of all levels might find interesting. So when you're sick of the continuing "Vision of Danger" Saga in High Flyer Upper-Intermediate, have a browse through the list below!!

Talking About the Past

• Once Upon a Time - True to Life Elementary, Unit 10 - Past Simple, page 62-63
• Noises in the Night - Lifelines Elementary, Unit 8 - Past Simple, page 54
• Chairlift Terror - Lifelines Elementary, Unit 9 - Past Simple reg. verbs, page 64-65
• Shark Attack - Lifelines Pre-Intermediate, Unit 3 - Past Simple, page 31
• Couple Who Survived an Amazing 66 Days at Sea - Headway Pre-int. (old), Unit 3 - Past Simple and Continuous, page 19
• Mr. All or Nothing - Lifelines Intermediate, Unit 2, page 16
• I survived 9 Days Alone in Plane of Death - Lifelines Intermediate, Unit 2, page 19
• How do you Explain it? - Snapshot Intermediate, Unit 3, page 23
• The Holiday that Wasn't - Headway Intermediate, Unit 3 - Adverbs in a narrative, page 32-32

The Passive Voice

• What Evidence is Collected - Lifelines Intermediate, Unit 5, page 40-41
• Who Killed Harry Squires - Lifelines Intermediate, Unit 5, page 46-47

Perfect Tenses

• The Strange Story of Martin Guerre - Lifelines Pre-Intermediate, Unit 13 - Past Perfect, page 110-111
• Is This Man Britain's Unluckiest Criminal? - Cutting Edge Pre-Intermediate, Module 15 - Past Perfect, Describing Differences, page 128-129
• Rock and Roll Will Never Die - Lifelines Intermediate, Unit 7 - Present Perfect, page 62-63
• 'Here! Have one of Mine!' 'Death cigarettes? You must be joking!' - Headway Intermediate, Unit 10- Present Perfect Continuous, page 100-101
• Graffiti Rules, OK! - Streetwise Intermediate, Unit 2 - Present Perfect or Simple Past, page 10
• World's Laziest Slob - Hasn't been Up Since 1932 - Intermediate Matters, Unit 13 - since/for and Present Perfect Continuous, page 94-95

-ing Forms and Infinitive

• Do We Really Need to Sleep? - English File Intermediate, 2C, page 32-33
• Coincidence - Lifelines Intermediate, Unit 9, page 74-75

Reported Speech

• The Truth About Lying - Interchange 2 (Pre-int.), Unit 14, page93
• Lizardman Leaps into U.S. Folklore - Lifelines Intermediate, Unit 13, page 103
• The Knightsbridge Safe Deposit Robbery - Cutting Edge Intermediate, Module 10, page 104-105

Comparative/Superlative

• Are We Alone in the Universe? - Lifelines Elementary, Unit 12, page 84-85
• You're Gorgeous - Cutting Edge Pre-Intermediate, Module 5, page 40-41
• Amazing Cities - Cutting Edge Intermediate, Module 3, page 30-31

Modals

• Friends in Need - Read All About it 2 (Pre-Int.), Unit 7 - Can/Can't, page 52-53
• Di-Di's Story - Lifelines Intermediate, Unit 11 - Causative have; make/let/get, page 91
• At School for 17 Hours A Day - English File Intermediate, 3B; make/let/be allowed, page 40
• It's all a Conspiracy! - Cutting Edge Upper-Intermediate, Module 9 - Past Modals, page 104-105

Other Grammar Focus

• Places - Lifelines Elementary, Unit 7, page 48-49
• The Big Man - Lifelines Pre-Intermediate, Unit 8 - Count./Uncount., page 66-67
• Unusual Customs - Interchange 2 (Pre-int.), Unit 8 - Adverbial clauses of Time, page 53
• Against the Law - Interchange 2 (Pre-int.), Unit 9 - If clauses, page 59
• The Day I Came Face to Face with a Tiger - Headway Pre-Int. (old), Unit 12 - Verb Patterns, page 84-85
• Second Time Unlucky - Intermediate Matters, Unit 5 - Verbs and Prep., page 37
• Bruce Lee - What a Life! Intermediate, Unit 16 - Vocab. Trouble and Fighting, page 106
• A Year Out - Lifelines Intermediate, Unit 3, page 31
• Freedom of Choice - Cutting Edge Intermediate, Module 11 - Linking Words, page 116-117
• What's in Teenage Magazines? - Streetwise Intermediate, Unit 9 - Speaking, page 90
• The Great Whale's Mistake - Intermediate Matters, Unit 20 - Revision, page 146
• Crime and Passion - Upper-Intermediate Matters, Unit 12 - 3rd Conditional and wish, page 84-87
• Countdown to First Certificate - Upper-Intermediate level materials for teenage learners, geared towards taking a FCE preparation course. *Please come browse at Kropotkinskaya*

Reading and Vocabulary

• Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, Penguin Reader, Elementary
• El Nino - Read All About it 2 (Pre-Int.), Unit 7 - Vocabulary for Disasters, page 56
• Kudzu - Read All About it 2 (Pre-Int.), Unit 10 - Vocabulary for Plants, page 78
• You and Your Body - True to Life (Pre-Int.), Unit 5 - Vocabulary, page 30-31
• The Chrysalids by John Wyndham, Penguin Reader, Pre-Intermediate
• Going Out Around the World - Cutting Edge Intermediate, Module 7 - vocabulary for social occasions, page 68-69
• Intermediate Stories for Reproduction 2 - Vocabulary and exercises
• Embroidery by Ray Bradbury - The Whole Story (Upper-int./FCE), Unit 12 - Vocabulary for dangerous situations

So there you go. Some of them may not be quite right for your class, but there are ways to make them better. One strategy is that if your students find a particular story boring, then turn the class into a writing lesson. Put the students into groups to brainstorm ways to improve the story - add more adventure, a horrific ending, more passion, more humour, change the names, setting, whatever! They can write out a new story line, and the finished piece could be set for homework. Another great source of material are tabloid magazines. Stories like, Lightening Strike Turns Woman into Man, and Lisa Marie Shark Attack Terror may appeal to the twisted teenager mind. And the celebrity fashion sections may be an alternative to the typical Clothing unit in most course books - a good way to encourage teens to describe and give opinions on clothing, and at the same time let them poke fun at the horrific outfits some superstars wear.

Mike Belicic