When young learners reach the middle school age, teaching them a foreign language can sometimes be a difficult task. A book that effectively captures and maintains their interest is the perfect remedy for this problem. When such a need arises, English Know It All 3 is the perfect book to use. It’s informative, interesting, and it will help students improve their English speaking skills.
Like the other books in this series, English Know It All 3 mostly focuses on reading comprehension activities which deal with topics relating to science. Along with these reading activities, students will also come across writing portions, critical thinking and discussion questions, and listening activities. Each unit is centered on a certain theme and provides students with a variety of activities to help them work on all four language skills.
"Each chapter is very colorful and visually appealing; this is also a plus since it captures young learners’ attention and maintains their interest throughout each unit."
English Know it All 3 is a bit thin and only has 8 chapters. Each chapter focuses on a specific topic like dinosaurs, the human body, transportation, and geography. The book also follows the story of three teenagers from different nationalities who work and learn together as they embark on different adventures. As far as material goes, the book has a lot of reading activities, listening exercises, and an abundance of useful vocabulary. As far as grammar goes, the book doesn’t provide too many activities for students to work on and teachers may have to find extra material to complement the book. The book also comes with a number of surveys, conversation questions and group activities to help the class work together and put their speaking skills to use. Each chapter is also very colorful and visually appealing; this is also a plus since it captures young learners’ attention and maintains their interest throughout each unit.
Pros:
· The book comes with many practice tests to help students improve their skills.
· Throughout the units, students will learn vocabulary that they can use in real life situations.
· The book puts a strong focus on reading comprehension.
· The material and topics in the book are relevant to the students’ age group (11-13).
Cons:
· At times the book focuses too much on teaching science and not enough English language skills.
· The book could use more grammar exercises.
Recommended For:
· Classes of at least 8 students.
· Teachers who give lessons to students between the ages of 11-13.
· Young learners who are at the intermediate level and want to improve their language skills.
· Students who need to improve their reading comprehension skills.
English Know it All 3 is a great book to use in group classes, but at times the chapters might seem a bit challenging due to the scientific vocabulary and uncommon words that students will come across in certain units. Nonetheless there are plenty of group activities and engaging speaking tasks that students will enjoy working with. After finishing this book, students will also see an improvement on their reading skills due to the strong focus each chapter places on reading comprehension. I would highly recommend this book to middle school students who are keen on English and/or science.
