Free Voluntary Reading and Readers

Lise Kragh is a trained primary school teacher from England who has lived in Denmark for over 30 years. She has been a teacher trainer for more than a decade, and has held many courses all over Denmark on just about every kind of ELT topic.

What exactly is Free Voluntary Reading?

What it means, quite simply is:

  • Reading for pleasure
  • Reading at or just below your own level of English (with no more than a couple of words per page you don’t recognise). This is also called ‘comprehensible input’.
  • Reading at your own pace and in your own time.

What are the advantages of FVR? These are innumerable. Here are the most important:

  • It improves reading comprehension
  • It improves fluency
  • It improves grammar
  • It improves writing and spelling
  • It improves self-confidence
  • It improves vocabulary
  • Learners learn other things while reading

So why is it that teachers of English here and abroad, do not seem to have understood the importance of FVR? On my numerous courses around Denmark, I have met teachers who truly invest time and money in readers and reading for pleasure in the classroom – and they say it works. Unfortunately, they are still by far the minority. There are many explanations for this – here are a few:

  • ‘Our English department simply can’t afford them’. It seems that many schools spend most of their limited budgets on course books and then say they cannot afford readers. Course books often contain or are based on intensive reading texts which cannot possibly match the level of all the learners in the classroom, so due to the mixed-ability present in most schools, they are often doomed to fail. Perhaps it would be better to invest in a library of good graded readers, teacher’s handbooks and other good supplementary materials than to invest in course books which cannot possibly cater for the mixed-ability classes of today.
  • ‘We can’t waste time reading – we have a full curriculum to get through’. I fully sympathise with this – and with SATS tests etc up ahead, it could become more and more difficult to teach creatively – or will it? Surely if learners are not motivated to learn, they won’t learn. You can lead a horse to water – but you can’t make it drink. So perhaps if we can motivate learners to read, as I outlined above, this will not only improve reading skills, but also many other skills such as fluency, grammar, writing and not least self-confidence which is exactly what they need for exams and tests.
  • ‘Reading for pleasure is a personal thing. It has no place in the classroom’. Research carried out over the past 20 years has proven that learners who read for pleasure get better grades than those who don’t. Here I would like refer to Krashen who has been promoting and researching FVR for over 2 decades, and argues that it should be a natural and essential part of learning English.

At a conference in Vladivostok, Russia in 2004, he stated the following:

‘Recreational reading or reading for pleasure is the major source of our reading competence, our vocabulary, and our ability to handle complex grammatical constructions. The evidence for FVR comes from correlational studies, showing that those who read more show superior literacy development, case histories of those whose growth in literacy and language is clearly attributable to free reading, and studies of in-school recreational reading, such as sustained silent reading (SSR).

In in-school studies, students who engage in free reading for a certain time each day are compared to similar students who have only "regular instruction." Reading has done well in these studies; in my survey, readers were at least as good as those in traditional instruction in 51 out of 53 comparisons, and when the study was long-term (longer than one school year), readers were nearly always better and were never worse. The finding that in-school reading works best in long term studies makes sense; it takes some time for children to find reading material of interest.’

Research has shown that FVR is an important part of the language classroom – so let me share with you some of the knowledge about readers I have acquired during my 30 years in Denmark. Let’s start at the very beginning…

What is a reader? At a conference in Istanbul some years ago, I met Mike Esplen who wrote one of the first ever readers called ‘Marco’ back in the sixties. He wanted to create reading material for his weakest students, so he wrote the book himself, as at that time, there was nothing like it around. His first book was an ‘original’ reader (he wrote the story himself). Following that, many other original easy readers were published, and soon after came the first simplified reader – which is a reader based on a novel already published, but rewritten in simpler English so learners of English can read it.

I remember reading Macbeth at level one with an adult beginner class back in the seventies. It was based on a 300 word vocabulary, and being Shakespeare, most of the text was just names - but the students loved reading it - they could tell their friends that they were reading already Shakespeare!

The basic idea is that easy readers have controlled language and content and are graded into levels of difficulty. The amount of new and unfamiliar vocabulary is controlled, and new items are repeated and recycled so that they become familiar to the learner. The illustrations (such as photos, drawings, maps and diagrams) can give extra help in understanding difficult words and events in the story. The organization of paragraphs and chapters, as well as the use of illustrations, helps to break up the information into manageable chunks so learners can follow the story more easily.

Running a Class Library - A class library is a library of English books or texts made directly available to students in the classroom. This is an advantage, because it saves valuable time going forward and backwards to the school library, and the teacher has more control over what is being read. We are also giving learners a clear message that we think reading English for pleasure forms an integral part of their course.

An important factor in determining the success of a class library is that the students, as well as the teacher, are responsible for setting it up and running it. The more involved our students become in its creation, the more motivated they will be to use it, and they should be encouraged to discuss which books they found most – or least interesting. You can develop the class library further and create a book club, where learners discuss their opinions or the issues raised, after reading certain books, or even prepare a short presentation on a particular reader. This builds confidence in reading, speaking and presentation skills.

Written exercises and activities – are not a natural part of FVR. The whole idea is for learners to read at their own level, purely for pleasure, and it is important for learners to know that they are not expected to do any written or oral work afterwards but simply choose a new book and carry on reading. The reason for this is that some (especially weaker less able learners) might be discouraged if they know that they have to do a book report when they have finished the book. However, some learners may want to do exercises or activities and there are often some in the back of the book. You can find a treasure trove of activities, worksheets, author information and teacher’s notes on the internet (see later section in this article).

Choosing Readers - you can choose the books yourself, or better still, the students can help you choose from catalogues or from the internet. Look together at the descriptions for each book and the cover images, notice whether there is an audio CD accompanying the book and gently guide the students to look at the levels you feel are appropriate to them.

Different kinds of tests can be set to decide on levels of easy readers for learners, but by far the most successful way of getting it right is to use your own intuition. Make an initial selection of two or three titles from each level and read them through yourself. You will then be able to suggest levels that will suit your students’ particular needs. A simple rule is, initially, to choose books slightly below the level of your students’ English. This will reduce any possible anxiety when reading and build their confidence. If they find the texts too easy, they can then try a higher level. At the end of this article you can read more about titles available and where to buy them.

Many Danish publishers such as Gyldendal and Alinea have different readers series. – and these can be seen at your local Center for Undervisningsmidler or bookshop. For the past 21 years, I have been language consultant and part-owner of the English Center in Randers where you can find every kind of international graded reader (mostly published in England). Although I no longer work there it is the best place in Denmark to buy readers published in England with a choice of over 1000 different titles. They have a wonderful web-site (which I built up myself!!) and of special interest are the ‘Frilæsningspakker’ which I first introduced some years back but which are extremely popular. There are packs for every level, and the books chosen are either bestsellers or new. Great for the busy teacher or librarian who wants to save time and money (there is a small discount)

I would like to share with you my considerable knowledge about some of the readers series published in the UK.

Cambridge Story Books – a wonderful series of readers with 4 levels for young learners (1.-4. klasse). These books are based on authentic readers – but professionally abridged and therefore classed as ‘comprehensible input’ but readers feel like they are reading an authentic text. The illustrations are very English, and at the lowest levels the books are so well illustrated, that learners can almost guess the short sentences that accompany them. Every title is recorded on CD (one for each level), and there is a wonderful teacher’s guide for each level with photo-copiable pages. Perfect for young learners. Price range – kr. 19,00 – 39,00 + moms

Macmillan Readers – originally called Heinemann Readers, this series has recently been totally re-vamped, and many titles now include a CD. Starter level is in full colour, and new titles such as books based on TV series such as ‘Dawson’s Creek’ and ‘The Princess Diaries’ will always be a hit with the girls. There are many ghost stories at elementary level which are always popular – but note that some of the titles from this series are more suitable for adults (eg. Good Wives, The Mayor of Casterbridge etc.) Find out which ones are for school age learners. Also, some of the illustrations are rather old fashioned…but also – rather English! Price range kr. 50,00 + moms.

Penguin Readers (5.-10. klasse) - although this series is now ready to be re-vamped, it still has many good titles – especially film tie-ins. Most books at the lower levels are illustrated in colour, and printed on nice shiny paper while at higher levels the paper is rather cheap looking and the illustration in black and white not inspiring. Some of the most popular titles are: Forrest Gump, Saving Private Ryan, Stephen King books and many other exciting titles. Here again, some titles are not suitable for school age learners or just too old and boring…(eg. Memoirs of a Geisha, Leonardo De Caprio etc). Price range kr. 34,00 – 57,00 + moms

Mary Glasgow Readers (6.-10. klasse) – a new series of readers – and in my opinion the best international readers on the market at present. Titles such as Buffy, Batman and Billy Elliot in full colour, all with CD, containing stories, fact-files, strip cartoons and photos from the original films/TV series, these books are perfect for teenagers. There are 4 levels, so there is something for everyone. Even the weakest readers in the oldest classes will enjoy the starter level, because the content is written for their age group. There is nothing worse than asking a teenager to read something in English that he read in Danish back in the 4th year! The only complaint I have is the binding – so just send the books back if they fall apart at the seams (which they did on one of my recent courses!!). Price range under kr. 50,00 + moms

Barringtons – (good readers) – for those readers who need a challenge, Barrington Books are perfect. These books are written for native speakers with reading problems, so although the content is relevant for teenagers, the numbers of words on the page and size of print is larger making the books easier and quicker to read than other teenage novels. Visit to see the whole list – or call the English Center for help.

Internet – I would like to recommend a few websites where you can find lots of PDF (printable) activities and exercises for those avid or fast learners.

- Mary Glasgow Readers - you can download pages from each title to check out yourself plus activities, background and author information. An added plus is all the photo-copiable materials on this site. A treasure trove of goodies.

- Macmillan Readers Resource Site has just been updated and is superb. Every title has all the resources free to download, and there is also a most informative teacher’s guide for those who want to learn more about FVR. Check out the on projects, the perfect read (book recommendations for boys and girls etc), author information and background, your thoughts with articles and ideas from teachers around the world and a readers-movie tie-in section.

- a wonderful site for teachers of young learners – plenty of free resources, book information on Cambridge Storybooks as on all other reader sites plus downloadable reading certificates and masks! Super!

Tips and activities

  • Have a chat with the school librarian – perhaps he/she is willing to invest some of the library book budget in English readers but needs a little help choosing relevant titles.
  • Appoint Class Librarians to organise borrowing and return of books. Make sure books are clearly marked by you as regards level. I use coloured stickers – different colours for different levels. Don’t worry about the level on the book (sometimes level 1 is more like level 2 – and is level one the same as elementary). Decide yourself, but be open to change your decision if learners find the book too hard or too easy.
  • Your job is to ensure that learners have chosen a book at the right level for them – rather too easy than too difficult. If they don’t like the book, they should be encouraged to choose another one. They should enjoy reading…and want to carry on when they get home. This is your goal.
  • DEAR time – drop everything and read! Don’t think of FVR as a waste of time. Spend more time encouraging reading in class-time – show you value it and explain why it is so important and the learners will be more likely to try it.
  • Don’t give up – keep encouraging and motivating reading, and after a while, you will succeed – but all change takes time…and it is no different in the English speaking classroom.

If you have any comments regarding this article, you are welcome to mail me at: . It’s always great to receive feedback!

Sources:

Extensive Reading Activities for Reading Languages – Bamford & Day – CUP 2004

Krashen, Stephen D 1981 Principles and Practice in 2nd Language Acquisition

Krashen, Stephen 1993 – The Power of Reading