Tag Archives: option

SOLVING READING DIFFICULTIES

16.1.2026 Raimo J Leave a comment

When there are problems with reading comprehension the key to solve the promlems is to identify the causes for the difficulties: lack of vocabulary, grammatical knowledge or skill in translation, or dyslexia, for example. The next step is to find the remedies.

The foundation for reading comprehension is laid in the elementary school or in the basic lessons. I have discussed these ideas under the last horizontal main heading ‘The structure of a text-book based lesson’ THE STRUCTURE OF A TEXTBOOK-BASED LESSON and expand the ideas at the end of this article.

the most important piece of homework: students study or translate the next chapter in the textbook in advance at home
if the students come to the lesson and understand, say, 80 % of the text, a lot of time is saved and a proper foundation for the lesson is laid
however we must remember that understanding a text is a much more profound process than word by word translation
we can teach reading only indirectly by giving tips on the process of reading but we have no idea what is really going on in the heads of the students when they are reading a text
becoming a good reader is a long process in the mother tongue and even longer in a foreign language; time, patience and guidance are needed
we can help students if we can identify what causes the problems in understanding: lack of vocabulary, unknown grammar, translation skills or reading strategies are inadequate

Those suffering from dyslexia are not lazy or stupid. They can’t help it but they can be helped by experts. On average every class has 2 – 3 students who need help either in reading or writing or both.

if the reason for reading difficulties is some form of dyslexia, a specialist’s help is neeeded, up to 10 % of students suffer from it and the issue was acknowledged by school authorities only 20 years ago and many teachers pay little attention to it
the symptoms of dyslexia can be manyfold: slow or erratic reading, weak short-term memory, mixing or ignoring letters, problems in concentration, often the same problems in writing
identifying dyslexia is vital since often these students carry a stigma of being lazy or stupid even if they are trying their best and it unnecessarily breaks their self-confidence

What I mean by reading here is reading comprehension as opposed to reading aloud in class, which was discussed under heading ‘Pronunciation’. Reading is sometimes taken for granted with a false assumption that everyone understands a sentence or a text in the same way if they master the basics of reading. This is wrong since the process of understanding a text is an individual process and there are many things that can prevent proper understanding.

A short individual discussion with a student about a text the students do not understand will reveal to an experienced teacher where the problem probably lies. Most likely it is one of the reasons below.

Common reasons for reading difficulties

First of all the student’s vocabulary has to be wide enough to understand a text. If the student stumbles too often with unknown words, understanding the text turns out to be impossible. In the vocabulary section we already pointed out that there are many things the students must master in order to ‘know’ a word. In reading ‘the recognition of the written form’ is vital and so is knowing the ‘meaning’ of the word. Sometimes the context reveals the meaning but this ‘guessing game’, which is perfectly acceptable, is a skill of its own and has to be taught to students as well.
Secondly, I also noted that in some simple situations it may be enough to know the words to understand the sentences or ideas. However, in most cases the students have to have some idea about the grammar of the new language; i.e. he/she has to know how to combine words, how they are arranged in a sentence. Knowledge of grammar helps us to guess the meanings of words. If the student is not able to translate a particular sentence or explain the meaning in his/her own words, the source of not understanding the sentence can usually be easily found by the teacher. But the trick is to let the student get stuck and pinpoint the difficult point him-/herself – and then you can find the remedy together.
Thirdly, when I discussed the model for a text-based lesson, I strongly recommended that the students always study/translate the text for the next lesson in advance at home. I also discussed the reasons for it: saving time in the lessons and preventing frustration in class due to not understanding the text. The benefits of this kind of flipped learning are undeniable: The students come to school and understand most of the content of the new text. True learning can start!
Fourthly, we teachers have to teach our students what to do at home when they study / translate the text at home. I discussed the ideas already in the model lesson. Everything becomes so much easier if the students have prepared themselves for the lesson. I think this preparation is by far the most important piece of homework, much more important than exercises (which are often mechanical).
Fifth, every time I get a new class in junior high (aged 12) I check that they know how to translate a text since far too many students have no clue how it is done; how to use bilingual wordlists or a dictionary, for example. These student float somewhere in mid-air understanding only fragments of what they need to grasp.
Sixth,as for translation at home I give my students three options: a) the text is fully translated in the mother tongue in their notebook, b) new words are translated with pencil in between the lines in the textbook, c) the translation is done immediately if I snap my finger in class, no need to write down anything.
Seventh, there are many other things as for reading that we can teach our students. Linguists call them reading strategies but in simple terms they are just tips how to become a better reader. I will discuss these reading tips / strategies in another article.

Slide the photos using the arrows. Which groups do you think your students want to be in? Those who enjoy your lessons or those who come there with little hope to learn anything.

The benefits of studying or translating chapters in advance at home

I perfectly understand if some of you wonder why I talk so much in favour of translating the texts into the mother tongue. ‘Translation’ is not a curse word for me and should not be for anyone else. I give up all translation the minute I know there is no need for it in my class. Let me clarify my points in the matter.

First of all, I want the students to learn to do translations at home and minimize the time spent on translating the text in class. Besides this is a way for the parents to get involved in their kid learning a new language. At school time is more wisely used in practising using the language than translating the text.
Secondly, I see no point in going through a text if it is not understood. It will only lead to restlessness in the class. If I am learning, say, Polish and understand next to nothing of the text, I cannot participate at all and I will find something else to do in class. Talk to my friends, fiddle with my phone or anything just to make the time go by. Too many students face this situation but feel ashamed to admit it or pretend not to care. itself
Thirdly, I cannot stand the idea of students sitting in lessons for many years learning just a few words when the learning process could be drastically improved by helping them to do the translation for every lesson. It might take a few lessons or a couple of weeks but in the end the students would thank you for doing it.
If some of your students have this problem, have a special lesson for them. If very many students suffer from this problem, ask your star students to teach the others how to do the translation in groups. I’ve bribed them with candy and doughnuts.
If lack of translation skill was the problem and my advice helped any of you, I’d like to hear about it. Stop teaching your language for a while and lay the foundation again. You will get the time back manyfold in better results and raise in students’ motivation.
N.B. The translation method itself, translating texts from English into the mother tongue and vice versa, is an appalling method and that is why I never learnt English properly at school in the 1970s.

Learning to translate a text is the foundation for understanding a foreign language and it is a massive boost to motivation and self-confidence. However, the final aim is to think in English and skip mental translations altogether.

Class management

Four types of learners, implications

29.10.2025 Raimo J Leave a comment

Are you a green, blue, grey or a red learner? What about your students? Are you able to take learner profiles into account in your lessons?

Source: many ideas modified from a http://www.pedanet.com/rauma article in Finnish on differentiation ‘Eriyttäminen’

I have already dealt with the first two items below so in this article the focus is on learner profiles and the ways we can take them into account in our lessons.

Learning styles: auditive, visual and kinesthetic or a combination of them. THIS ARTICLE is an expanded view to learner styles!
Learning strategies: each of us finding the best ways we can improve our language skills; i.e. what techniques to use to learn new words or how to become a better speaker, etc.
Learning profiles: due to our personalities and personal characteristics we respond to situations in different ways – something that both we and our teachers should recognize

All students are different and they also learn in different ways. Consequently, one starts to wonder how on earth we can teach them in the same class if they all have their own style of learning.

In CLT methology we believe that the answer lies in

student-oriented methods and practices in class
well-planned lessons even if the teacher remains in the role of organizer
and above all the students being taught and becoming aware of what kind of learning styles, strategies and profiles there are
then it is up to the students to choose the best ways for them to learn the language better

In other words, we first teach our students these things and then the students will try out any methods, styles or strategies that appeal to them and seem to work for them.

After all, the students themselves are the best judges in how they learn best but they need to know what options/choice they have.

The means how we learn a language does not matter that much but the final practical outcome does. In my school years I learnt more English from songs than ever at school. Everybody’s route is a bit different.

Still, it is very interesting to consider for a moment what the four learner categories below have to offer and how we could take them into account in class.

Read through the learner profiles and think if you have students like it and if you have been able to take them into account in your everyday teaching. Maybe you find yourself in one of the profiles. I found myself to be mostly a red learner with some blue characteristics. In reality we may all be a different combination of these features.

My own conclusions on how to apply this information are at the end of this article.

Green learners …

learn by doing and experimenting
lose interest if the content is too theoretical
get irritated if there is too much pondering
like to move about in class, holistic learners
learn well from models and practical applications
need an adult to guide them
like action as well as pair and group work
can organize practical things
need very clear instructions
like to work with their hands

Blue learners ...

like to discuss and argue
demand to have reasons and justifications for everything
can learn new things even if they talk at the same time
noise does not bother them
are active and quick in actions, like pair and group work
like to move about in class but do not disturb
learn if they are allowed to talk a lot
like to work and sit on a sofa, on the floor but not at a desk
are verbally skillful and alert all the time
are critical about the tasks given

Grey learners ...

observe others and stick in the background
ponder upon issues from many angles
are visual and learn from pictures and drawings
do not like to be in the centre of attention or in a hurry
do not like noise, need peace and quiet around them
are conscientious and careful with their work, good imagination
need a lot of time, lack of time makes them anxious
get nervous in exams and are under-achievers in exams
are slow in raising their hands due to pondering on various views
like learning in small groups with students who are like them

Red learners …

are theoretical, analytical, systematic and logical
want to know exact details, ask; why? what if?
question, ponder on and analyze information
find it difficult to describe feelings
are perfectionists who like to work alone, self-directed
learn best when solving problems or in doing projects
thinkers who are often deep in their own thoughts
demand very clear and logical instructions
appreciate discussions and clearing up background information
like to have order and safety around them

Practical implications of applying learner profiles

The principles below are derived from the CLT methology and from the learner profiles. See if they make sense to you as well.

I always have my instructions on the screen in addition to saying them aloud.
I use a lot of pair and group work because of effective learning and to allow discussions and to encourage the shy ones to interact socially with the others to boost their self-esteem. Laughter and humorous comments in class are music to my ears.
I constantly justify and give reasons why we are going certain things in class. At the same time I reveal my beliefs and the students can challenge them.
I randomly vary the composition of the groups to make it possible for the students to get t know each other and to allow them to move about to another table and hope they will express their feelings a lot.
I go to help the students who seem to need my guidance even if they are in a group. I follow eagerly even heated discussions in groups and say my own opinion or point out a new thing to them or acknowledge not being an expert in the matter.
I control the volume level in the classroom and sometimes allow the students to go and work in the corridor or school library. I let my students listen to music using their headset while working individually.
I explain grammatical terms and theoretical terms in layman’s style and I am pleased with low-achievers if they can express themselves in speech or writing using a model which they more or less simply copy.
I use visual stimuli (photos, videos and youtube), recorded textbook or internet materials to serve auditive learners and try to keep the kinesthetic learners busy by giving them minor chores and allowing them to move about in the room every now and then.
I insist little by little that every student comes in front of the class with his/her group and says something during the presentation: one sentence leading to a five-minute talks on their own.
I always tell the students how much time they have for a task, warn them when the time is running out and tell them not to worry if they did not finish the task. As long as they work hard I am pleased.
We practise for all exams in a special lesson so the students know what kind of questions will be asked and they have a chance to ask me to clarify things they have not understood. All of this to relieve exam anxiety.
I tell the perfectionists that the grades are not the measure of man and that failing is normal in life, not something to be ashamed of.

Yleinen

Identify 22 strategies to learn new words

29.10.2025 Raimo J Leave a comment

Many students struggle in learning new words. Let’s give them a hand!

They do not easily come up with the strategies themselves but you have to tell them what the options/strategies are. That opens the ideal road for each student to utilize their own favourite strategies.

We all learn words in a different way. If our students experiment and find their own style / strategy / way of learning words, we have helped them much more than making them do a lot of exercises that actually do not work for them. This is what worries me in ready-made exercises.

The other articles under Vocabulary heading are

3 ways to enhance vocabulary learning

The easy way out in making your students learn new words is to use the ready-made workbook exercises. Unfortunately, they are not always very motivating or do not match with the students learning style.
In the 3rd model lesson article I suggest an oral pre-task in pairs as the solution at the beginning of handling a new chapter. This is my number 1 favourite. A lot of oral practice.
The third option is to reveal the strategies below to the students and let them write exercises of their own, which is the point in this article.

Let the students get to know what strategies there are (use my version below or make a list of your own). This is a MUST even if you decide to nothing else about strategies. You can introduce them gradually or have a crash course lesson with all of them.
Use my exercise below (or one of your own) and let your students try to recognize which type of strategy it is in question in each case. This way the students will get an idea how to make word exercises.
Organize a lesson where your students make exercises to revise recently studied vocabulary. It is up to you if they write one type of tasks or make use of any of the strategy types.

22 strategies to learn new words

Here is the same list of vocabulary learning strategies that I introduced in the previous article. You can study them first but the main idea is to introduce at least some of them to your students. We all have our favourites and that is exactly what we are trying to do with our students, too: The minute they identify what the best ways to learn new words for them are, you have done a great job.

Nevertheless, before you do anything else you might ask your students to discuss in groups the ways they learn and practise words best. You will be surprised with their creativity when they present their own strategies.

I hope to be able to add some videos on these strategies later on.

Link the new word with a picture or photo.
Link the new word to your mother tongue.
Write the unknown words of the chapter on a paper and make up a mindmap or a story.
Associate the new word with another (funny) word, story or setting. Explain to your pair how the association works for you.
Record a word list on your phone ( word in mother tongue – 1 sec pause– English word). Listen to it many times. (The favourite of my wife!)
Make word lists (mother tongue – English), cover up the other side and say the words aloud or write them down before checking. (My favourite + I make orally sentences of my own))
Make or have a look at a word list (mother tongue – English). Then make an exam for yourself or others.
Say or write a sentence where you use the new word.
Tell a story in your group where you use the new words. (Humour is the best medicine!)
Make two-sided word cards and use them in a game.
Learn words in groups (linked with a topic, nouns, adjectives etc.). Write them down in a grid or an excel file.
Use word formation technique. One word leads to a family of words.
Find synonyms or opposites for the word.
Make a gap exercise of the lyrics of a song.
Consult a dictionary (online or hard copy).
By doing various exercises (crossword puzzles, gap filling, hidden grid odd one out, etc.)
Guess the meaning of new words on the basis of the context.
Make use of free computer vocab exercises provided by publishers +
Give a definition of a word and your pair has to guess which it is (e.g. it is an adjective which means the same as ‘adequate’ – well ‘enough’ or ‘sufficient’)
Your say a word and your pair has to give a definition for it or explain it in another way (a vaccination – well, it is a shot given with a needle so that you do not get a disease)
Make use of the free vocab learning computer programmes in the internet.
When reading extra English materials such as magazines or books, take out your notebook and write down new words and phrases that you find interesting and useful.

Look at the examples below and decide which of the 2 2 types it is.

Sample A Work in pairs and point at the following ‘objects’: a bridge, a church, a river, a boat, a river bank, a pedestrian, a tall office block. Make up an oral story where you use these words and any other words. Each students making a short story of his/her own OR each student continuing the story by one sentemce, for example.

PANKKI	ASPHALT
BANAANI	SCHOOL
ASFALTTI	BANK
KOULU	BANANA

Sample B Which of the 18 choices is this one?

Sample C nation, international, nationality, national, native

Sample D weak – strong, interesting – boring, lazy – industrious

Sample E brick, concrete, seam, fireplace, chimney, flame

Sample F duty free, customs, metal detector, security check, passport control, gate

Sample G marvellous, superb, wonderful, terrific, excellent OR terrible >< awsome, terrific ><awful, day >< night, nearby >< remote

Sample H guarantee: I can guarantee you that the toaster is new.

Sample I gloves, extension cord, bulb, broom, hoover: Last Saturday when I began cleaning my garage, I put my gloves on and first used the broom to get rid of the sand. It turned out to be too dusty a job and therefore I fetched my vacuum cleaner. I have no electricity socket in my garage so I had to pick up an extension cord for the hoover. Next the bulb was gone and I had to open the garage door to see something. …

Sample J

D	E	Y	S	H	U	T	T	L	E
C	M	N	U	I	S	Q	M	B	L
U	L	O	R	T	E	P	O	I	C
S	C	E	T	U	N	N	E	L	I
T	E	S	P	O	L	V	C	D	H
O	A	K	T	A	R	M	A	C	E
M	L	O	S	K	S	W	X	Z	V
S	N	Z	B	I	E	N	O	L	K
A	I	K	O	R	V	A	E	Y	G
P	L	A	T	F	O	R	M	T	L

Find the 10 words linked with ‘travelling’. The words can be horizontal, vertical, diagonal and even backwards. (N.B. This is a demanding task. If all the words were horizontal or vertical, the task would be easy.)

Sample K: strawberries, blood, cherries, most roses, tomatoes // grass, leaves, moss, cucumber // banana, sun, lemon, butter, cheese OR strawberries, blood, cherries, most roses, snow, tomatoes // grass, leaves, desert, moss, cucumber // banana, sun, lemon, butter, cheese, polar bear

Sample L: Look at the photos below. Which ‘vehicles’ can you find in the photos? Make a(n oral) story using the photos.

Sample M:

Sample N below

L	A	M	B
	S	H	A	V	E
	A	D	R	E	S	S
		A	B	O	V	E
E	N	T	E	R
D	O	O	R

The hints can be given as pictures, definitions, in mother tongue, in a gap sentence etc.

Teach your students to make this kind of exercises and they will learn the words while doing so.

Sample O O Sole Mio, It’s Now or Never sung by Raimo

“When I first _______ you with your smile so __________ my h_________ was captured my s__________ surrended, I’d s_________ a life time waiting ______ the right time, now that you’re here the _________ is here _____ last …

https://raimoenglish.blog/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/its-now-or-never.mp3

Sample P Hemingway, “Farewell to arms” garrison, casulty, rifle, ward, wounded, ambush, bullet

Did you notice how I made you go up and down the strategy list when you were making up your mind? This way the strategies will stick better in your mind and you have learnt many of them at least on the level of recognition. I did not actually teach you the strategies but made your learning possible, in CLT style.

The next article deals with what is meant by knowing a word and some other basic ideas on vocab learning
In the following two articles I will demonstrate what you need to take into account when you make you students write vocabulary tasks themselves. Practical tips!

Knowing a word, What does it really mean? Passive and active vocabulary.
Getting students to design vocab tasks, Points 1-10, more detailed advice how to do it in practice
Getting students to design vocab tasks, Points 11-22, practical advice

The point in this article is to identify and memorize as many of the 22 strategies of learning vocabulary as possible.

Historical perspectives

DIFFERENTIATION

29.10.2025 Raimo J Leave a comment

Differentiation can be defined as all the measures that help individual students to work at the most suitable level at that point. I favour a system that I call ‘invisible optional differentiation’.

N.B. You will find many other examples on differentiation in my other articles all through these web pages. So here we are scratching the surface really.

This article will clarify the concept of ‘differentiation’, give an example of it and provide a historical perspective on it in Finland.

What do I mean by ‘invisible optional differentiation’?

invisible = an outsider who steps into the class does not immediately know who are weak or excellent students since everyone is working in a serious manner at their own pace. I seldom use the term ‘differentiation’ but simply make the students work in pairs or groups and let them choose the tasks.
optional = the students are not forced to do certain exercises but there is a choice, a number of options, so that the students can pick up the tasks they prefer, they can also mostly choose the ones they work with
differentiation = in mixed-ability classes very many activities in class are planned carefully in advance so that even the weakest students find tasks that suit their level and the best ones have tasks that are challenging enough

Let’s take an example: Checking the understanding of a chapter in a textbook. Usually the teachers ask questions and one student answers at a time. How can we make all students work hard at a level that suits them best? Topic of the chapter: ‘Travelling abroad’

If we differentiate and apply CLT principles, we give the students 3 options: A is mechanical (answers can be found in the text), B is semi-communicative since the answers/comments are at least partially based on the text, C is communicative since the ideas are based on the students’ experiences, not on the textbook.

A Work in pairs and answer the questions on the screen (or a handout) B Tell in your own words what the text is about (key words: platform …) C What do you think about travelling on the train compared with travelling by car or by plane?

Does this kind of differentiation cause us extra work as a teacher? Not really since we have always done A and B/C do not need any/much preparation.

Students are not labelled at any point according to their abilities.
Students are given options on what to do in some parts of the lesson and they can choose between tasks that vary in difficulty level.
Students can make progress at their own pace and they choose themselves which of the tasks given they will work on.
The teacher organizes the activities in class but does not tell the students which tasks they must do.
Differentiation can be used to help students in many ways.

– Differentiation using quantity: some students simply do much more exercises than the slow ones during the lesson.
– Differentiation using choice: Everybody is allowed to choose any tasks given which they want during the lesson.
– Differentiation based on learning styles or strategies or learner profile
– Differentiation based on proficiency level and flexible grouping: This is basically the same as streaming used to be: advanced students, average ones and slow learners in their own groups (temporary grouping)
– Differentiation guided by a special teacher having remedial teaching outside regular lessons

A historical view on differentiation in Finland

In the early 1980s when we first started to apply communicative language teaching, CLT, ideas we still had the streaming operating in Finnish language classes. Streaming meant dividing the students into three classes/levels according to their proficiency level and test results. We taught the groups in separate classrooms and even had special textbooks for them.

There is no denying that there was a lot of discussion about the abolition of the streaming system when we gradually introduced a completely new curriculum in the elementary and junior high schools in the 1980s. Teachers had little idea how one could possibly teach mixed-ability groups and it was feared that the level of learning would drop drastically.

Luckily the CLT ideas were the main things that were pushed ahead in our teachers’ in-service training days and we got a fresh start. We were also lucky since the Finnish publishers responded to the challenge by producing excellent and modern textbook materials full of CLT applications. In fact, the transition was rather smooth and it took only a few years and all of Finland was teaching mixed-ability classes with confidence.

As a result, no matter where you lived in Finland the students received the same kind of high quality language teaching. CLT and differentiation principles were a child of democracy entering schools more and more. One of the basic principles in our new curriculum was to try to make sure every single pupil and student had an opportunity to develop their skills in full. It practice it meant not only teaching English well but other skill areas too: social skills, manners and self-control, study skills and technical skills needed in working life.

One of the reasons Finland is so high in PISA results is that our weakest students are the best in the world. We do not give upon them and let them drop out.

We teachers started to take care of every individual and never gave up on them. Special teachers entered the schools to help the ones with serious learning difficulties such as dyslexia and ADHD. We realized that students learn differently, in their own style, and that we have to allow this happening in class too. We learnt to give positive, constructive feedback to enhance students’ self-confidence and motivation. And we learnt to evaluate the students not only on the basis of the course exams but took class participation and other factors into account.

When I graduated from senior high school in 1973 my final English examination was simple: translation from English into Finnish and from Finnish into English. Nothing else was tested. The evaluation was harsh: 2, 4, 6 and 9 point mistakes and some of my friends got minus 4, – 4?, as their grade out of 10 for the whole exam. How can someone’s knowledge of English be worth minus something? Luckily things have changed completely from those days.

Well now we English teachers are testing our students in reading, writing, listening, grammar, vocabulary and even speaking and differentiation is taken into acoount even in exams. What a dramatic change! I have described and discussed this change in the articles on the front page under heading ‘ The structure of an ideal text-based lesson’.

In my experience having three options in differentiation is quite sufficient in any skill area.

In the old streaming system we divided students into three proficiency levels and in CLT tasks dividing the tasks is most typically done in three categories too: mechanical, semi-communicative and communicative.

It is worth pointing out that differentiation can be efficiently done only in student-centered teaching, in classes where the teacher fascilitates and organizes the learning situations. All my articles on these web pages actually are part of this story even if there have been several massive changes in teaching since the late 1980s.

In my next articles I will clarify my principles and practical applications in differentiation and scaffolding, introduce four learner profiles and finally consider when differentiation is feasible and sensible in class and when it is not. These ideas have made me change many practices in my class.

Differentiation	Differentiation, how to apply the ideas
	Four types of learners, implications
	Differentiation in text-based lessons
	N.B. See also other articles