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E5 E - My reading strategies

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E5 E - My reading strategies

Can you understand a text without knowing every word? Yes!

In this course, you learn five simple reading strategies. Use clues first. Look up a word only when you really need it.

Lernschleife: see → hear → understand → repeat → use → feedback → use again

Start: look, listen, think

Look at the picture. What do you think this course is about?

Now listen and repeat.

Listen twice. First: only listen. Second: say read after the audio.

Say: book.

Mini task: Point to a book. Say: I can read this book.

Watch a short part. Listen for the words text, understand or reading. You do not need to understand every sentence.

Lernziele

After this course, you can:

use a heading and a picture before you read.
use known words, word parts and context to guess meaning.
decide when you really need to look up a word.
explain your strategy with short English sentences.

New words and useful chunks

English	Easy help	Useful chunk
heading	Überschrift	The heading tells me ...
clue	Hinweis	This is a clue.
context	Wörter und Sätze rund um ein Wort	The context helps me.
word part	Wortbestandteil	I know this word part.
guess	vermuten	I guess it means ...
look up	gezielt nachschlagen	I need to look up ...

Remember: You do not have to translate every unknown word.

Vorwissen-Check

Think for 20 seconds.

When you see an unknown word, do you always stop?
Do pictures help you understand a text?
Can you find a small known word inside a longer word?

Pair talk:

A: What do you do first? B: First, I look at the heading and the picture.

Strategy 1: Use the heading and the picture

Before you read every line, look at the heading and the picture.

Example heading: A day at the book swap

What can you guess?

I think the text is about books.

Hilfe auf Deutsch: Überschrift und Bild geben dir eine erste Idee. Lies danach weiter und prüfe deine Vermutung.

Strategy 2: Use known words

You already know many English words.

Read:

Mia has a new school bag. She puts a book, a pencil and an apple in it.

Maybe you do not know every word. But school, bag, book, pencil and apple give you clues.

Useful chunk:

I know the word ___. It helps me.

Strategy 3: Use word parts

Some long words have small parts you know.

reread = re + read

re- can mean again.

So:

reread = read again

Another example:

unhappy = un + happy

un- can mean not.

So:

unhappy = not happy

Watch and pause. Can you hear or see a word part you know?

Useful chunk:

I know the part ___. I guess ___ means ___.

Strategy 4: Use the context

Read the whole sentence, not only the unknown word.

Leo is exhausted. He sits down, closes his eyes and says, “I need a rest.”

Maybe exhausted is new.

Look at the context:

sits down – closes his eyes – needs a rest

A good guess is:

exhausted = very tired

You did not need a full translation first.

Watch for the idea: Look at the words around an unknown word.

Strategy 5: Look up only what you need

Sometimes the clues are not enough. Then look up one important word.

Ask yourself:

Do I need this word to understand the main idea or answer the task?

If yes: use your class word list, textbook vocabulary or a suitable dictionary.

If no: keep reading.

Good readers do not stop at every unknown word.

My strategy order

Step	What I do	My English chunk
1	Heading and picture	I think the text is about ...
2	Known words	I know ...
3	Word parts	I know the part ...
4	Context	The context tells me ...
5	Look up	I need to look up ...

Reading example: A book swap

A book swap at school

On Tuesday, Mia and Ben go to the school library. A sign says: Book swap today! Mia knows the words book and today, but she does not know swap. She looks around. Children put old books on a table and take different books home.

Mia smiles. “I think swap means give one book and get another.”

Ben finds a note: “Please reread page one before you choose.” He knows read and the word part re-. He says: “Reread means read again.”

At the end, Mia sees one important word she still cannot guess. She checks the class word list.

All names, places and data in this text are fictional.

Check the text

Answer in short English sentences.

Where are Mia and Ben?
What happens at a book swap?
How does Mia guess the word swap?
How does Ben understand reread?
When does Mia use the class word list?

Quick feedback: If an answer is difficult, go back to the strategy that gives the best clue. Then try again.

Say it: a mini dialogue

A: What does “reread” mean? B: I think it means “read again”. A: Why? B: Because re- can mean “again”. A: Good clue!

Now change one word.

A: What does “unhappy” mean? B: I think it means “not happy”.

Speak clearly. Verständlichkeit ist wichtiger als Akzentfreiheit.

Grammar in use: because

Use because to give a reason.

I think swap means exchange because children give and take books.

Pattern:

I think ___ means ___ because ___.

Your turn:

I think reread means ___ because ___.

Listening and speaking loop

See: Look at the word.
Hear: Play the audio or listen to your teacher.
Understand: Connect sound and meaning.
Repeat: Say the word or chunk.
Use: Put it in your own sentence.
Feedback: Ask a partner: “Is my meaning clear?”
Use again: Say the sentence once more.

A private recording can help, but it is optional. Keep it on your own device or school system. Do not upload it publicly unless your teacher and family have agreed.

Mini-Wiederholung

Complete the strategy chain in your head:

heading + picture → known words → word parts → context → look up if needed

Say one sentence:

First, I look for clues.

Then say:

I do not translate every new word.

I-can-Check

I can ...	Yes	Almost	Not yet
use a heading and a picture.	☐	☐	☐
use known words.	☐	☐	☐
use word parts.	☐	☐	☐
use context.	☐	☐	☐
decide when to look up a word.	☐	☐	☐
explain my guess with because.	☐	☐	☐

If you tick Almost or Not yet, choose one strategy and do the reading example again.

Safe learning with media and AI

Use fictional names and data in your own examples.
Recordings are voluntary and private.
No public upload is needed for this course.
No external AI tool is required.
If you use an AI tool with permission, check its suggestion against the text.
Keep your own English: use AI as a clue, not as a replacement for your answer.
Do not use cultural stereotypes. Describe people as individuals.

Bildungsplanbezug Baden-Württemberg

This course supports learning in Englisch als erste Fremdsprache, Klasse 5/6. The focus is on Leseverstehen, Sprachlernkompetenz and Text- und Medienkompetenz.

It uses visual support, familiar vocabulary, short texts, simple connected sentences and guided reading strategies.

Bildungsplan Baden-Württemberg: Englisch als erste Fremdsprache

Folgekurs

Continue with:

Next course: Reading for main ideas

There you practise finding the main idea and important details.

Interaktive Aufgaben

Quiz: Teste Dein Wissen

Diesen aiMOOC als Battle spielen

What should you look at before you read every line? (The heading and the picture) (!Every unknown word in a dictionary) (!Only the last sentence) (!Only the longest word)

What can known words do? (They can give you clues) (!They make every text shorter) (!They translate the whole text) (!They remove difficult sentences)

What does re- often mean in reread? (Again) (!Very) (!Under) (!Yesterday)

What should you do with an unknown word first? (Look for clues) (!Stop reading at once) (!Translate the whole text) (!Skip the whole paragraph)

What is context? (The words and sentences around a word) (!The page number) (!The book cover only) (!The writer's name only)

When should you look up a word? (When it is important and clues are not enough) (!Every time you see a new word) (!Before you read the heading) (!Only after you finish the whole book)

Which sentence gives a reason? (I think it means tired because he needs a rest) (!The word is long) (!I have a pencil) (!This is page five)

What does reread mean? (Read again) (!Write again) (!Read faster) (!Close the book)

Which is a good reading strategy? (Use known words and word parts) (!Translate every word first) (!Ignore the heading) (!Stop after one difficult word)

What is the main message of this course? (Use clues before you look up a word) (!Every text needs a full translation) (!Unknown words are always important) (!Pictures cannot help reading)

Memory

Heading	tells you what a text may be about
Picture	gives a visual clue
Context	words and sentences around an unknown word
Word part	a small part that can carry meaning
Look up	check an important word when clues are not enough
Known word	a familiar word that helps you understand

Drag and Drop

Ordne die richtigen Begriffe zu.	Reading action
Heading	Look before reading the full text
Known words	Use words you already understand
Word parts	Break a longer word into smaller parts
Context	Read the words and sentences around the unknown word
Look up	Check one important word when needed

Kreuzworträtsel

Heading	What can tell you the topic before you read?
Picture	What visual clue can help you understand a text?
Context	What do we call the words and sentences around an unknown word?
Prefix	What word part comes before a base word?
Dictionary	What can you use for a targeted word check?
Guess	What can you make when clues help you understand a new word?

LearningApps

Lückentext

Offene Aufgaben

Leicht

Reading clue poster: Make a small poster with the five strategies. Add one simple English chunk for each strategy.
Picture prediction: Choose a school-safe picture and write three English guesses about a possible text before reading it.
Known word hunt: Take a short English text and mark ten words you already know. Explain how three of them help you understand the text.
Word-part cards: Make cards for re-, un-, -er and one more useful word part. Add one example word to each card.

Standard

Context detective: Write four short sentences with one invented or difficult word. Add enough context so a partner can guess its meaning.
Strategy dialogue: Write and perform a short dialogue using “I think … means … because …”.
Targeted lookup: Read a short text, choose only two words to look up and explain why those two are important.
Private reading audio: If you want, record three of your own sentences privately. Listen again and check if your meaning is easy to understand. No public upload is needed.

Schwer

Strategy comparison: Read two short texts. Explain which strategy helped most in each text and why.
Mini reading guide: Create a one-page guide for another Year 5 learner. Use simple English examples and short German help only where needed.
Clue challenge: Write a 90–120 word fictional text with three unknown-looking words that readers can understand from heading, word parts or context.
AI clue check: With teacher permission only, compare your own word guess with an AI suggestion. Check both against the text and explain which evidence is stronger. Keep your final explanation in your own words.

Lernkontrolle

Transfer auf einen neuen Text: You receive a new short English text. Explain which two strategies you use first and why.
Meaning from context: Infer the meaning of an unknown word from a new sentence and name the exact context clue that helped you.
Word-part reasoning: Explain how a known prefix or suffix can change the meaning of a base word. Give a new example.
Useful or not useful: Decide whether three unknown words in a short text need to be looked up. Justify each decision.
Strategy repair: A learner stops at every new word. Give two better actions and explain how they improve reading flow.
Mini explanation: In four connected English sentences, explain your personal reading strategy and use the chunk “I think … because …”.

Lernnachweis

For a successful Lernnachweis, you should show that you can:

understand the main idea of a short class-5 English text without translating every word.
use heading, picture, known words, word parts and context as clues.
choose important words for targeted lookup.
explain at least one guess with evidence from the text.
use simple connected English sentences to describe your strategy.
revise an answer after feedback.
create your own short, fictional reading example.
use media and optional digital tools responsibly and keep your own language production.

OERs zum Thema

Freie Medien im Kurs: Die verwendeten Bilder und Audiodateien stammen aus Wikimedia Commons. Prüfe auf der jeweiligen Dateiseite Autor, Lizenz und Bedingungen für eine Weiterverwendung.

Externe Lernvideos: Die eingebetteten YouTube-Videos bleiben bei den jeweiligen Anbietern. Für diesen Kurs ist kein Upload und kein eigenes YouTube-Konto nötig.

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