Reading Themes and Skills: A Skills-Based American Culture Reader

by Brian Altano, Brian Joseph Altano

Overview

Reading Themes and Skills contains original engaging readings designed to help intermediate students develop stronger academic reading skills and build American cultural literacy.
 
The textbook’s introduction reviews the parts of speech and vocabulary. Each chapter of Reading Themes and Skills features pre-reading activities that develop skills like predicting and building background knowledge.  The chapter readings are linked by theme and followed by reading strategies and skills:
 
Skill Study—scanning, making inferences, reading for details, finding main ideas, and understanding voice and audience
Grammar in Context—review and practice of specific grammar points
Focus on Parts of Speech—review of each part of speech
Theme Study—discussion and vocabulary activities that deepen understanding of the theme and reading passages. 
 
Each unit closes with vocabulary activities that reinforce the words practiced.
 
 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780472030712
Publisher:	University of Michigan Press
Publication date:	02/06/2007
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	8.50(w) x 10.90(h) x 0.60(d)

Table of Contents

To the Instructor     ix
Introduction: The Basics     1
Eating Out / Eating In     12
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercises     13
Building Background Knowledge     13
More Theme Study: Words about Dining     14
Subs, Heroes, Grinders, and Hoagies     16
Skill Study     18
Reading for Details     18
Reflecting on What You've Read     19
Scanning Practice     19
Vocabulary Study     20
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercises     22
Gathering Information from the Title     22
Predicting/Analyzing the Title of the Reading     22
Talking about the Ideas in the Reading     23
Dear Mom: A College Student's Letter Home     24
Skill Study     27
Understanding the Reading     27
Reading for Details     28
Finding the Main Idea of a Paragraph     29
Parts of Speech: Adjectives Study     30
Text-Based Writing Assignment     31
Theme Study: Analyzing Events/Chronology     32
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercises     33
Building Background Knowledge     33
Leftovers     34
Skill Study     37
Understanding the Reading     37
Summarizing     38
Focus on Parts of Speech: Conjunctions     39
Grammar in Context: Identifying Discourse Markers     40
Vocabulary Review Activities     44
In Style     49
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercises     50
Previewing the Vocabulary     50
Building Background Knowledge     52
Talking about the Ideas in the Reading     52
Style in America     53
Skill Study     55
Understanding the Reading     55
Reading for Details     56
Making Inferences     57
Reflecting on What You've Read     59
Grammar in Context: Simple Sentences     61
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercise     64
Talking about the Ideas in the Reading     64
The Emperor's New Clothes     65
Skill Study     69
Understanding the Reading     69
Reading for Details     70
Scanning Practice     71
Vocabulary Study     72
Reading Skills: Understanding Fiction     73
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercises      76
Vocabulary Practice     76
Talking about the Ideas in the Reading     77
Halloween: Costumes and Customs     77
Skill Study     80
Understanding the Reading     80
Reading for Details     82
Finding the Main Idea of a Paragraph     83
Text-Based Writing Assignment     83
Identifying Parts of Speech     83
Focus on Parts of Speech: Prepositions and Articles     84
Vocabulary Review Activities     85
At Home     87
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercises     88
Building Background Knowledge     88
Vocabulary Study     89
At Home with the Amish     91
Skill Study     93
Reading for Details     93
More Reading for Details     94
Comparing Two Genres     95
Understanding Film Terms and Concepts     96
Talking About the Ideas in the Film     97
Video-Based Writing Assignment     97
Focus on Parts of Speech: Nouns     97
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercise     100
Understanding Organization     100
The Adventures of a Maple Leaf     101
Skill Study      104
Finding the Meaning of Words from Context     104
Making a Chronological Outline     105
Grammar in Context: Comparative and Superlative Adjectives     106
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercises     108
Understanding the Narrator     108
Building Background Knowledge     108
Tippy, the War Hero     109
Skill Study     114
Reading for Details     114
Understanding Discourse Markers     114
Making a Chnronological Outline     115
Text-Based Writing Assignment     115
Vocabulary Review Activities     116
In Shape     121
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercises     122
Previewing the Vocabulary     122
Building Background Knowledge     123
Previewing the Reading     124
The Super Bowl     124
Skill Study     126
Understanding the Reading     126
Scanning Practice     129
Finding the Main Idea of a Paragraph     129
Reading for Details     130
Finding Facts by Scanning     131
Vocabulary Study     131
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercise      132
Understanding Symbolic Characteristics of Animals     132
The Tortoise and the Hare     133
Skill Study     136
Reading for Details     136
Talking about the Ideas in the Reading     137
Vocabulary Study     137
Grammar in Context: Irregular Past Tense Verbs     139
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercise     140
Predicting     140
Analyzing Characteristics of Family     141
A Chance for Glory     142
Skill Study     144
Making Inferences     144
Reading for Details     144
Literary Analysis     145
Text-Based Writing Assignment     145
Vocabulary Study     146
Focus on Parts of Speech: Pronouns     147
Vocabulary Review Activities     149
Out of This World     151
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercises     152
Previewing the Vocabulary     152
Building Background Knowledge     152
Skimming to Understand the Organization     153
Ghosts in the White House     154
Skill Study     157
Telling Fact from Claim or Opinion     157
Understanding the Reading      158
Talking about the Ideas in the Reading     160
Vocabulary Study     161
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercises     162
Analyzing Differences     162
Hanbu and Nobu: A Tale of Two Brothers     164
Skill Study     168
Analyzing Endings     168
Reading for Details     169
Understanding the Reading     170
Talking about the Ideas in the Reading     171
Vocabulary Study     172
Grammar in Context: Sentence Types     174
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercises     176
Building Background Knowledge     176
The Vortex in Sedona, Arizona: A Trip out of This World     176
Skill Study     178
Understanding the Reading     178
Reading for Details     180
Scanning Practice     181
Text-Based Writing Assignment     182
Focus on Parts of Speech: Verbs     183
Vocabulary Review Activities     185
It's the Weekend!     187
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercises     188
Building Background Knowledge     188
Tailgating     190
Skill Study     193
Understanding the Reading     193
Scanning Practice     195
Finding Facts by Scanning     196
Vocabulary Study     197
Handy People and Home Improvement Projects     198
Skill Study     202
Understanding the Reading     202
Understanding the Organization     203
Vocabulary Study     204
Focus on Parts of Speech: Adverbs     205
Theme Study: Pre-Reading Exercises     207
Building Background Knowledge     207
Weekend Dog     208
Skill Study     211
Understanding the Reading     211
Reading for Details     212
Reviewing Narrative Voice     212
Finding the Main Idea of a Paragraph     214
Grammar in Context: Time Words in Chronology     215
Text-Based Writing Assignment     218
Vocabulary Review Activities     218