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Can Reading Novels Improve Your English?

July 28, 2019 by Ana Martín Leave a Comment

Can reading novels improve your English? The short answer is yes!

Of course it can. If you are getting more exposure to English your English should improve.

However it’s not as simple as that. If you’re reading old books with language that isn’t relevant or books that are too difficult for you then you may not actually see that much improvement.

But don’t worry, there are steps you can take to maximise your learning whilst reading.

So can reading novels improve your English? Let’s take a look at if this is possible and how you can increase your chances of improving your English skills through reading.

Finding A Novel For Your Level

The first thing you need to do when looking for a novel to help improve your English is to find a novel that is suitable for your level.

The first mistake that many people make is finding a novel that may be too difficult for them because they want to read that specific novel.

If you read a book that’s too difficult for you, you won’t be able to take in the information and your brain may even switch off while you read.

There may be books that look interesting to you but if their level is too difficult you’re not going to benefit from them.

In that circumstance it would be better to find a book that is more suitable to the level you’re at than to try and read Charles Dickens if you’re only a beginner.

If you’re at a beginner level then try and read children’s books or graded readers.

If you’re at an intermediate level you can try more difficult texts.

And if you’re at an advanced level then you have many more options available.

The most important thing is to find a novel at your level so it challenges you but it’s still readable.

Finding A Novel That Interests You

Another important thing when reading novels to improve your English is to find a novel that interests you!

If you wouldn’t read it in your own language then don’t try and read it in English.

Reading should be fun and if you’re trying to improve your English then it will already be a bit difficult. Don’t make this more difficult by finding a book that you aren’t interested in.

You’ll have much more success if you look for a book that you’re interested in and you would want to read for fun not just to learn.

That way you’re more likely to continue reading the book even if it becomes difficult.

So make sure you choose an English novel that you find interesting as well as it being suitable for your level.

Finding a Novel That’s Relevant Today

Lots of people want to read older novels like Jane Austen or Shakespeare when they’re learning English.

These authors are famous and people want to know why.

However, unless your English is near native and you want to learn more about English literature, choosing these stories may not be for you.

This is because as great as those older books are, they tend to use language that is outdated and not used anymore.

Of course, some of the words in the books will still be used today, but others won’t.

A big problem is the dialogues. The conversations that characters have in older books don’t tend to be very natural and you wouldn’t hear people talking like that nowadays.

If you’re reading to specifically improve your English then it might be better for you to read modern books with more natural dialogues.

However, if you’re looking to improve your English but learn more about English literature then feel free to pick up Chaucer and see how you go.

Why Not Try Graded Readers?

If your English is already quite advanced then maybe you can skip graded readers and go straight to English novels.

But if your English reading skills are at a beginner or intermediate level then you may want to try reading graded readers to improve your English.

A graded reader is a book or novel that has been written specifically for a level. So if you’re a beginner you can find a book written for beginners etc. This can be very useful as you know immediately if a book is appropriate for you rather than having to try lots of different books.

The only problem with graded readers is that sometimes they’re not as good as regular novels, but our answer to this would be: you just haven’t found the right graded reader yet.

Check out our English novels for beginners and English novels for intermediates.

So will reading a novel actually improve your English?

You’ll have to start reading to find out, but if you find something that is appropriate to your reading level and something that you find interesting then we think it should.

Let us know which novels you find!

Very Short English Stories – To Improve Your English!

July 15, 2019 by Ana Martín Leave a Comment

Very Short English Stories

A great way to improve your English is to read short stories in English.

When you’re learning a foreign language it can be difficult to read big books with lots of text. But you do want to try to read something.

A common problem that lots of people face is that they will buy long and complicated books to improve their English and then they won’t read them.

A great way to get around this is to read very short English stories. That way you can read and practise your English but you don’t have to read a lot. You can read a little bit every single day and your English will get better.

This is better than buying a book that you won’t read.

Our English books To Improve English

These are some of the very short English stories that we have published to help you improve your English skills.

In our stories, we value targeted language, appropriate grammar structures and for them to be fun.

Short English Stories For Beginners

English Short Stories For Beginners – Charlotte Hatton

Contains 5 short stories for beginners
Easy vocabulary
Simple grammar structures

Buy it on Amazon or read it for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

English Stories For Beginners Volume 2. – Charlotte Hatton

Contains natural conversations
5 stories written for a beginner level
Easy grammar

Read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited or buy from Amazon

English Short Stories For Beginners Vol 3. – Charlotte Hatton

5 very short English stories
Written specifically for a beginner learner
Engaging stories

Find this book on Amazon where you can buy it or read it for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

English Beginner Crime Series – Charlotte Hatton

4 short stories for beginner English learners
Fast paced crime stories
Beginner vocabulary and grammar

Find it here on Amazon where you can buy or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

English Upper Beginner Science Fiction Series – Charlotte Hatton

4 short English stories for upper beginners
Vocab. targeted specifically at upper beginners
Stories written for fans of science fiction

Read for FREE on Kindle Unlimited or buy from Amazon.

You can find complete collection of English books for beginners here. Take a look to learn about our short stories in English in more detail.

Short English stories for Intermediates

English Short Stories For Intermediates – Charlotte Hatton

5 short stories in English
Vocabulary and grammar targeted to an intermediate reader
Fun and engaging stories

Buy on Amazon or read with Kindle Unlimited for FREE

If you want to find more information on our short stories in English for intermediate take a look at our English intermediate page.

We are currently writing a second series of intermediate stories. Our team of writers are also planning to begin an advanced collection. Hopefully both of these books will be released at the start of 2020.

The most important thing for us is that our books are fun and that they help you to learn. So please let us know if you’ve enjoyed our stories.

Our Thoughts

We hope this list of very short English stories has been useful to you.

Very short English stories are a great way for you to get started on improving your reading skills in English.

Not only do they expose you to lots of new vocabulary, they also help you practise grammar structures.

It is important that you become familiar with new words and grammar and reading is a great way to do that.

When you read you see words that you’ve already come across before and this can help you commit them to memory. The more you see the words the more familiar you will become with them.

Another great feature of these short stories in English is the length.

It’s hard for us to read something when we don’t know how long we will be reading for. If you pick up a big book and it’s too difficult then you’re not going to finish it. However if the text is quite short, then you’ll find it easier to read and you’ll be more likely to finish the story.

The great thing about the length of these stories is that you could feasibly read one in a day. Or if you don’t want to read a story in a day, you could definitely read a chapter in a day.

Make sure you let us know if there are any other skills that you’re looking to improve and we’ll see how we can help you. Remember it’s not just reading that you need to practise, when learning English, it’s also important to practise your writing, listening and speaking skills as well.

Good luck and let us know if you enjoy our recommendations.

10 Best Textbooks For The HSK – Ace The Exam!

May 11, 2019 by Ana Martín Leave a Comment

Thinking about taking the HSK exam and want to find the best textbooks to help you prepare? Then you’re in luck, because here we have selected what we think are the best HSK textbooks to help you get ready for the exam.

It’s important that you enter the HSK exam as prepared as you can possibly be, and although you can’t learn everything from a textbook, they definitely help you to prepare. Mandarin is an incredibly difficult language to learn and although you should be learning in lots of different ways, a textbook can give you the structure to work you way through the language and make sure that you understand all of the grammar points and have learned all of the characters.

We’ve broken our recommendations down into best HSK textbooks and best HSK workbooks so you can practise the skills you’ve learned.

Best HSK textbooks

These are the textbooks that we believe you will need for whichever level of learning you’re currently at. With the HSK it is necessary to invest in a textbook and a workbook so you can do the exercises and check your progress.

HSK1 Standard Course
HSK2 Standard Course
HSK3 Standard Course
HSK4 Standard Course – book 1 and 2
HSK 5 Standard Course – book 1 and 2
HSK1 Workbook
HSK2 Workbook
HSK3 Workbook
HSK4 Workbook
HSK5 Workbook

The following HSK textbooks are incredibly useful. They take you through all of the grammar, sentence structures and provide you with all of the necessary vocabulary that you will need to pass the HSK exams.

HSK1 textbook

HSK standard course book takes you through the first 150 characters, and the appropriate grammar for this level. It will help you to learn how to make basic sentences and talk about yourself, your family and where you’re from.

HSK2 textbook

At HSK you learn 150 new characters so the jump isn’t too great. The HSK 2 standard course is the perfect textbook to help you to make this jump.

HSK3 textbook

HSK 3 is a bit more difficult but still manageable. In this HSK textbook you will learn 300 new characters to prepare you for HSK3.

HSK4 textbook

There are two textbooks to cover the HSK4 material as there is much more to learn than in the previous exams.

HSK4 is where things really start hotting up and you have to learn a whopping new 600 characters, which is why we the textbook is now divided in to two to cover the big leap in material that you have to learn compared to 1, 2 and 3.

HSK4 textbook 2

This HSK4 textbook is simply a continuation of the first textbook and will help you to learn the grammar and vocabulary necessary to pass the HSK4.

HSK5 textbook

There are also two HSK5 textbooks to help you learn to cover everything you’ll need to know ready for the HSK exam.

HSK5 is an incredibly difficult exam but with these two textbooks and a lot of practise there is no reason that you shouldn’t be able to nail it. In these textbooks you will learn 1200 new characters. Thats pretty much everything you’ve learned up to now again! But don’t worry, with the basis in Mandarin that you now already have this should be much easier than learning the first 1200 characters.

HSK5 textbook 2

Best HSK Workbooks

The following workbooks are the perfect way to practise what you’ve learnt from the textbooks. The workbooks provide you with a series of activities to practise your Chinese and help you develop the skills that you’ll need in order to ace the exam. They’re necessary because without the HSK workbooks you wouldn’t be able to check your progress or have the chance to practise the new grammar structures that you’ve learned.

HSK1 workbook

The HSK1 standard course workbook takes you through exercises to practise the first 150 characters.

Because the HSK1 workbook is so short, you’ll be finished it in no time!
HSK2 workbook

The HSK2 standard course workbook is a great accompaniment to your other textbook as it will allow you to do exercises to see how you are progressing and to practise the skills you’re learning.

A HSK2 workbook is very useful and shouldn’t take you that long to progress through.
HSK3 workbook

The HSK3 standard course workbook will help you to go through the material you have learned in the HSK3 textbook.

HSK4 workbook

At HSK4 a workbook is more necessary than ever. With 600 characters to learn and the grammar to go with it you’ll definitely need a workbook to help complement your learning.

HSK5 workbook

Finally the HSK5 workbook is more necessary than any of the other ones because at HSK5 you have the most to learn. You will need this workbook to practise the grammar and new characters that you have learned in your HSK textbook.

Common Questions About The HSK

As well as recommending some of the best HSK textbooks for you, we’ve also compiled a list of common questions about the HSK to help you feel prepared for your exam.

What is the HSK?

The HSK is the official Chinese language exam.

What does HSK stand for?

Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi – which means Chinese proficiency test

Why should I take the HSK?

If you want to study in Chinese universities or work for a Chinese company in a Chinese speaking role then it is necessary you take the HSK exam to demonstrate your level.

How many levels are there in the HSK?

There are six different levels:

HSK1
HSK2
HSK3
HSK4
HSK5
HSK6

What does the HSK test?

The HSK tests your listening, reading and writing skills. If you want to test your speaking skills then you need to sign up for the HSK-K exam, which is under the same examination board but is tested separately.

How can I prepare for the HSK exam?

I would recommend you prepare for the HSK exam by taking either formal languages or learning with a Chinese speaker.
Chinese is a difficult language to learn, especially the pronunciation of the phonemes and I believe it is necessary to take classes with a native Chinese speaker to fully grasp this.
To learn the grammar I would recommend buying a Chinese workbook textbook in order to learn the necessary grammar and vocab at each level.
Drilling vocab can also be useful for the HSK as there are a set amount of words that you have to learn.
Another thing you can do to improve your chances in the HSK is to improve your Chinese accent.
Finally it is incredibly important that you do past papers before the actual exam to make sure you understand the format of the exam and what you need to do.
Get plenty of sleep the night before the exam and make sure you know where the exam centre is
Try and remain calm; although it’s important you always have the chance to retake if you fail first time round

How long is the HSK certificate valid for?

From the time you take the exam, the HSK certificate is valid for two years. So if you’re thinking about taking the exam, it may be useful to wait until you will be able to use it, for example to apply to a university or if you want to work or live in China.

Many people find this unfair, especially given that other language certificates last much longer, but if you don’t practise your Chinese in two years, it’s unlikely that it would’ve stayed at the same level. Therefore having an expiry date on the qualification is necessary if it demonstrates your level of fluency.

How long does the exam last?

The length of the exam depends on which level you’re taking. The higher the level the longer the exam will take.

Where can I find dates for the HSK exam?

You can find dates for the HSK exam on this website

How can I sign up for the HSK exam?

You also sign up for the HSK exam on this website. I would recommend giving yourself plenty of time to sign up to avoid any disappointment in case all of the places were booked up.

Where can I take the HSK exam?

The HSK exam can be taken in cities all over the world, to find out where take a look here. You don’t need to be in China to take the exam, you can take it from your own country or even city. You just need to find the location of the nearest exam centre.

How long does it take to receive the HSK results?

Approximately 40-60 days after you take the exam you should receive your results.

Our favourite Chinese Graded Readers

November 28, 2018 by Ana Martín Leave a Comment

When learning Chinese, lots of students need to find ways to improve their reading skills. Usually with other languages, reading is one of the easiest things to improve but as characters aren’t phonetic and Chinese doesn’t use an alphabet, this can be pretty tricky.

Our favourite way to improve Chinese reading is through graded readers, which you can find our recommendations below. If you already know all about graded readers, then just skip down to our recommendations!

What is a graded reader?

A graded reader is a book or story that has been written (or graded) to meet your level of language learning. For example if you’re at a HSK2 level then you can find a book that’s graded for HSK2. It’s a way for you to get practise reading at a level that’s accessible to you. If you started trying to read an adults book in a foreign language you’d probably struggle and not get very far.

Why should I use them?

Graded readers are really useful to use if you want to improve your reading skills in a language but you’re not ready to read proper books yet. Without graded readers, you would have to resort to children’s stories which can become boring or exam papers, which although are great for the exam, don’t provide you with the enjoyment that a story does.

You also don’t want to be reading books that are much higher than your current level. If you keep reading things that are too difficult for you, you’re not going to enjoy them, and nothing is going to be going in.

When something is too hard for us, our brains shut off because there doesn’t seem much point to take the information in. When something enters our minds at a level we’re able to engage with then we can take it in and we can learn.

It’s also useful to read material at the level you’re at because the information is still new to you. If you’ve learnt a new grammar structure in class, you’re probably not going to be able to remember it straight away. But if you see it written down, in a natural way and it keeps being repeated in the story you’re reading, then that new grammar point is going to solidify in your mind.

Graded readers boost your confidence as you find yourself able to complete a story in a foreign language and they help you to practise reading the vocabulary and grammar structures of the level you’re at.

If you want a more in depth look at the benefits of graded readers check out our article on graded readers here.

How should I read them?

First of all, don’t worry if you don’t know every word. You’re reading to enjoy the story and graded readers allow us to read lots and naturally.

I would recommend highlighting a word and then coming back to it at the end of the chapter if you’re not sure what it means, unless it’s going to stop your understanding of the entire page. If you don’t know some words, that’s ok. You’re really not expected to know every word you’re reading but you do want to get more familiar with the words you do know, and you want to learn some new words in the process.

Therefore when you’re reading, as long as you can understand what’s happening and you can continue with the story, it’s really fine if you don’t know all the words that you’re reading.

If I’m learning a new language, a comfortable amount of words for me to not know would be ten words per page. If I’m around this amount I don’t find it frustrating when I’m reading, and I also find I’m learning new words as I go. The amount of words that you’re comfortable with not knowing may be different and that’s ok because everyone has their own learning style.

Our recommendations

Our favourite graded readers are the Mandarin Companion series. These books take well known stories such as Sherlock Holmes or Charles Dickens books and rewrite them in Chinese to an easier level.

The company was started by two men learning Chinese who were irritated at the lack of suitable reading material available for learners so decided to start their own series.

Currently the company only has level one and level two books. The level one books consist of 300 unique characters, with 8 books available and the level two books consist of 450 unique characters with 3 books available. But we’re hoping that they will be releasing more in the future.

Level one

Although there are 8 books available in level one (which you should check out!) we’re going to put our top recommendations here.

The only thing you need to be aware of when you’re reading this book is that you’re not going to see the names Sherlock Holmes or Doctor Watson. Instead, the writers have given them Chinese names, which they do in all their books and that you should be able to pick up pretty quickly.

Buy it here on Amazon.

The Secret Garden

Our other favourite level one graded reader by Mandarin Companion is The Secret Garden, but that could be because we love the English book so much.

Buy it here on Amazon

The County Of The Blind

The Country Of The Blind may not be as famous as some of the other books that have been converted into Chinese readers but it is definitely worth the time.

Buy it here

Level two

Great Expectations: Part 1

Which you can buy here on Amazon

The Great Expectations books are perhaps our favourite Chinese graded readers of all time.

Obviously the Great expectations story is just a bit too long to put into one manageable bite sized graded readers, so here we have part one, but don’t worry because they also have Great Expectation part 2.

Great Expectations: Part 2

I would recommend buying one first, and seeing how much you enjoy it before buying the second one. Though I’m sure after you’ve read the first one, you’ll definitely be downloading number two.

Final thoughts

We hope you’ve found our favourite Chinese graded readers list useful.

Improving your reading in a language is just as important as other skills. Maybe not at first, but if you want to achieve fluency and really master that language, then you’re going to have to start reading. And graded readers are a great way to do this. Even if you didn’t like our suggestions, I would recommend finding some sort of book that is graded to your level, because it can and does make a huge difference to your learning.

Graded readers are also great because most of them are available on ebook which is a lot cheaper than buying a paper book.

If you would be interested in looking at other ways to improve your reading in Chinese, you can read our handy tips article here.

If you have any other recommendations or Chinese graded readers, please let us know. We are always looking for ways to make our site more useful, and we would love to hear from you because you’re the whole reason this site can exist.

Best Spanish Textbooks For DELE Exam! – A1 – C2

November 27, 2018 by Ana Martín 1 Comment

Doing the DELE exam can be difficult, but they’re definitely worth while, and to make these examinations as easy as possible for you, you need to prepare.

You can prepare in lots of ways; class, reading, watching movies, talking to people in real life, but one of the ways you’re probably going to want to practise is by using Spanish textbooks. Which is why we wanted to write our recommendations of the best Spanish textbooks for the DELE exam.

These are the textbooks we would recommend you use to prepare for the DELE exams. In this list we have broken our recommendations down by level and we have also recommended a textbook to learn grammar and then a different textbook to help you work through past papers. We hope this list is useful to you.

The two book recommendations we are giving you are for grammar and past papers. So if you don’t want to read our tips in between, you can just scroll down to these two headings.

DELE Practise Paper Textbooks

Why are DELE practise papers important?

Practise papers are important because they give you a feel of what the actual DELE exam is going to be like.

You may be confident with your grammar, you may be able to watch television with subtitles or hold a conversation, but unless you practise the skills that are going to come up in the exams, you’re just not going to be prepared for the real thing.

How should I use these DELE textbooks?

Don’t leave them until right before your exam. I would start trying past papers a few weeks or months before the actual exam. This way you give yourself the time that you need.
If you’re working and you can only fit in one a week then that’s fine, as long as you give yourself enough time before the actual exam. If you start two months before you could get through eight practise exams and you would be really prepared.
Do try and do the past papers under exam conditions. This means try and time yourself so you take as long as you would in the actual exam, and don’t look up words you don’t know in a dictionary while you’re doing the practise paper.
Once you’ve finished, by all means go back and check out the new vocabulary but don’t do it while you’re doing the practise, because the whole point is to get you used to exam conditions and if you don’t know a word in the actual exam, you won’t be able to look it up.
Instead, you’ll have to infer it’s meaning from what’s written in the rest of the text.

These are the best textbooks we would recommend for doing past papers.

What’s in these DELE textbooks?

In these textbooks, you will find past papers for:

listening
writing
reading
speaking

Of course, with writing and speaking you won’t be able to do them alone.

But if you have a Spanish teacher, you can ask them to help you with the speaking sections or to take a look at your written work.

Each textbook should also contain a CD, but check the descriptions on the product before you buy.

A1 Practise Paper Exam Textbook

This Spanish A1 textbook has practise papers that you can do before the exam to check you understand the process and to see if you’re ready or not to take the Spanish A1 exam.