青少儿英语作文范文

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篇1

[Key Word] Reading interesting; reading material; literature reading; young adult literature; adolescence

[摘要] 当前中学所普遍存在的英语文学阅读状况是:学生阅读是为了完成老师布置的任务和应付考试。当阅读满足他们的这些任务后，他们的课外阅读行为就停止。本文针对这种现象作了具体的原因分析，指出在国内大部分中学英语教学中，阅读材料是影响学生进行英语文学阅读的一个重要原因。回顾国外学者在这领域所做的理论和实践研究，提出把青少年文学的特点和中学生所处发展时期的各方面的需求结合加以分析，采用把青少年文学作为课外阅读材料这一教学方法。我们通过一系列的教学活动如课外兴趣小组，课外阅读活动，阅读作业，培养和提高中学生英语学习能力和文学阅读兴趣。作者对为什么以及如何运用青少年文学读物作为新型课外阅读材料以培养学生的兴趣和情感进行初步的讨论， 以此引发更多的讨论。

[关键词] 阅读兴趣;阅读材料;文学阅读;青少年文学;青少年时期

1. Introduction

As a rule， the teaching of reading in senior schools， both public and private， will move in one of two directions: up or down. When effectively taught， the study of reading can be the most exciting event of the adolescent student’s day. Young people can become deeply engrossed in what they read. They can respond with intensity and conviction.

Interests as factors in genuinely productive reading study are slippery elements indeed. Inventories provided to students in an attempt to discover what they prefer in reading materials can be， and often are， faked by the inventory takers. Thus， the discrepancy between what some young people claim they enjoy reading and what they will actually interact with can be a significant one. Furthermore， teachers must be ever mindful of the differences between their interest， taste， and enthusiasms for certain material selections and those of their students.

How about the situation of reading in senior schools in China? Most students are lack of interest and motivations in reading. The purpose of their reading is to pass the exam. As a result， the students do a little reading outside lessons. Why did these problems exsist?

2. Interest in Reading

In leading young people toward increased reading awareness， teachers used to consider the nature and extent of the interest factor on those efforts. Interesting are a two-edged sword. When positive， they can enhance teachers’ efforts to involve their students in the concern with reading materials and do so most significantly. When negative， however， they present a formidable obstacle to meaningful transaction taking place between texts and readers.

2.1The Status of Reading in senior Middle School

This is an accurate picture of the reading programs in many middle and secondary schools that still have students move chronologically through the literature anthology and choose the traditional classics as their outside reading. Most students are simply unable to connect the text with their goals， level of development and experience. Language development affects cognitive development and vice versa students at this age read at a much higher level of ability when they are reading something that matches their developmental interests and goals. Most students cannot read classic literature well [i.e， they cannot have personal involvement with it]. Students think of the literature as something they cannot understand; therefore， they think they are not intelligent inpiduals.

‘‘The result of the survey about the status of reading which were done by John S. Simmons reflected that Middle school and high school students often balk at display of overt enthusiasm for the selections they are asked to read in the class precisely because they are adolescents. To many of them， the fact that a work is on the required list means that it simply cannot be interesting. They will doggedly refrain from any display of enthusiastic or appreciate response despite the teachers ’creative efforts or the actual effect the work has had on them. ‘Boring’ become the operative judgment. In reading that categorical implacable judgment， they retain their cool demeanor， on which they value above all else. When faced with such study they often have melodramatic indifference.’’[1]p(20)

It seems that school have accomplished just the opposite of what they intended to do. They have turned students off from reading rather than made them lifelong readers. Teachers have failed to choose reading materials that enable students to become emotionally and cognitively involved in what they read. If students are asked to read literature that is not consistent with their development tasks， they will not be able to interact fully with that literature. As a result， students who do not interact with the literature are left with leaning only about literature.

“The same problems also exist in most senior schools in China. Students’ purpose of reading is only to finish the work given by teachers or pass exam. When they finish their work， they stopping reading， for they are asked to read the traditional classics that are chosen in order to complete the teaching mission. But the classics are written in a style and with syntax and vocabulary that are often quite foreign to students in senior middle school. So most students think of literature as something that is difficult for them’’.[2] I have talked to some teachers and students in senior middle school. I have found that most students appeal that their reading materials are difficult and not suitable for them. They can understand the meaning well. So they don’t like to read.

2.2 Factors That Affect Interest in Reading

“The key factor to determine reading is choosing suitable reading material to students. Obviously， there will be many students who will turn away from the task of studying literature because of inadequate competence in the necessary reading skill. Metaphoric expressions， for example， abound in all literary works， whether they are fictional， poetic， or dramatic. Such expressions are placed in those works to clarity indeed intensity， the meanings those works. When students are unable to establish precise relationships between metaphors and their referents， however， what was put there to clarity produces confusion instead. It doesn’t take many such experiences in missed communication to discourage or vex less able readers. Given the additional problem of these students’ probably limited attention spans， the options of giving up selection which is metaphoric are often the one taken. Even though the classics literature may speak to the universal human condition， young people have trouble relating because they have not experienced many of those human condition.

At the same time， some links need to be established between that ability and the interest. Interest in reading fluctuates widely before the age of sixteen， an age at which many students begin to think seriously about choices affecting their future: college， military service， industrial careers， dropping out of the academic scene altogether， and so forth. For most young people， interest in reading usually peaks between the age of twelve and fourteen. It is a period of intense， prolonged introspection in which the desire to raise and organize problems about self is at its height. It is a kind of limbo between a lost childhood and approaching adulthood. People at this age tend to be more interested in being alone with their lives. For some， reading fictions， especially novels which delve into the teenage experience， can be a source of comfort， challenge， stimulation， and escape. Young adult literature focuses on the nature and availability of literature with which youngsters at that difficult stage of their lives can identify.”[3]

John S. Simmons point out “People in these years are also capable of， and often involved in， deeper reflection that centers on abstract concepts: love， loyalty， fear， justice， betrayal， and the like. Obviously， their reading can feed this preoccupation， but the fare must be nourishing. In short， abstract thinking may contain a profound concern with interpersonal relationships， and reading can provide countless opportunities for them to view their problems from the detached prism of fiction.’’[4](p75)

‘‘Some of these interpersonal problems will be quite obvious. Some mention of them should be made.

1)

Problems related to communication with younger siblings， partially stemming from thirteen-year-olds’ desire that the ‘‘little people’’ regard them as adult-and these younger children’s irritating reluctance to cooperate;

2)

Problems related to the conflicting need to be accepted into a peer group;

3)

Problems which reside in thirteen-year-olds’ ambivalence toward members of the opposite sex (i.e， culture and peer pressure， clash with hormones). The gap between girls’ and boys’ relative immaturity exacerbates this greatly.

In all of the above， imaginative literature can become a source of excitement， revelation， guidance， and solace. Teachers as guidance counselors can be of great personal assistance to adolescents in their struggles. The movement of middle school curricula toward an emphasis on the personal and social identities of early adolescents， rather than on the cultural heritage into which they will someday be assimilated， provides a whole new niche for literature to occupy， one in which its relevance to the nature of the early teenage years can be maximized.’’[5](p75-76)

3. The Possibility and Practicality of Using Young Adult Literature as Reading Materials for Outside Reading

Teachers in senior middle school are usually responsible for introducing the study of literature to their students: Young Adult Literature can serve as an excellent vehicle for such an introduction. Teachers in senior middle school who deal with students of lower ability， non-academic motivations， and limited cultural backgrounds should also consider the use of Young Adult Literature to provide insight into the nature of literature study for those inpiduals. Young Adult Literature seems to offer an abundant and valuable resource to teachers who want to guide their students through this transition.

3.1 The Character of Young Adult Literature

Donelson and Nilsen offer the definition of Young Adult Literature:‘‘ any book freely choose for reading by some one in this age group’’.[6]p(2) Later it was defined as ‘literature written or marketed primarily for teenagers; Books to whose main characters the teenagers can personally relate; stories with an uncomplicated， often single plot line; books with plot that address the concerns of the young adults; literature that attracts a young adult readership’[7]p(2) Compared with the definition offered by Nilsen and Donelson， this definition is more specific and comprehensive. In recent years， Young Adult Literature is also considered as ‘books written for adult， about young adult and liked by young adults’ and more and more teachers prefer to match young adult books with classics bearing similar themes; thus， the genre of Young Adult Literature is further expanded.

As a reading material， young adult literature has many common characteristics: conflicts are often consisted with the young adult’s experience， themes are of interest to young people， protagonists and most characters are young adults， and language parallels that of young people. It is simply written in a natural， flowing language much like the way in which the young adults speak. Young adult literature is usually shorter. The young adult can finish in a comparatively short time without feeling tired and bored. This will guarantee an engaged and efficient reading. And Young Adult Literature is graded reading materials meeting young people’s different level intellectual development.

3.1.1 Young adult’s emotional development

‘‘Adolescence and preadolescence are difficult， unsettled periods for young people. They are no longer children. They are no yet adults. It is a time of change: a time for physical growth， sexual awareness， emotional and cognitive development. As young people move through these experiences or stages， they seem to be so alone in their struggle. But few of young people asked their parents and other adults to help them through their difficult period in their lives. Reading books helps young adults in their journey –their rites of passage—into adulthood. Books provide experiences that may help young adults through their adolescent years. Providing young people with Young Adult Literature not only in the bookstores but also in the class is imperative if we want adolescents to read about more experiences than they could have on their own. In addition， this literature serves young people in their struggle with identity， with their relationships with adults， and with their choices， which often suggest their concern with moral questions of right and wrong.’[8](p25)

3.2 Effective and Positive Influence

‘‘Young adult literature provides enjoyment， satisfaction and literary quality while it brings life and hope and reality to young people. The wide range of topics in Young Adult Literature such as friendship， death， porce， alienation， sibling rivalry， peer cruelty， racism， hostility and egocentricity， even struggle， conflict and feeling of the futility and hopelessness of life dramatize life in unfamiliar environments as experienced by characters of the learner’s own age. And therefore stimulate learners in encouraging self-expression and idea exploration. In this way， literature enlarges the students’ knowledge and understanding of human behavior for it exhibits thoughts and feelings which are often concealed in real life. Students， on the other hand， bring their unique life experience and world look when coming to read a text in class. Their confirming， revising or refuting the original outlook after confronting the writer’s view enable them to come up with a new understanding of the world .Then they will share their readings with their peers and teachers and reshape their understanding if needed. This aesthetic stance of reading is quite different from the traditional way of reading in that the former allows readers to have a virtual experience， living in the story world， connecting with characters， being emotionally involved while the latter focuses on looking for facts defined by Rosenblatt as ‘efferent reading’ which actually prevents learner from achieving the power of English expression.

Young Adult Literature is an attractive and motivational reading source that will satisfy the young adults’ reading interest at a particular age and help develop youngsters’ reading proficiency. Over a long period of time， Chinese young learners have been usually recommended to read some classic adult literature in simplified various which are considered as unappealing or out-dated. Young Adult Literature is a bridge between children’s literature and adult literature. It reflects a unique yet universal period of biological change and development for each human being.’’[9](p21-22)

3.3 Students Own Response

When Sullivan asked her students for information about their reading interest and habit， a ninth student said: ‘I love to read， but I hate literature’. He suggested that what he was reading in school had nothing， or at least very little， to do with him. He told us that his book report offered some relief because he could usually choose something that he knew how he would like， but what he read in the classroom was as he called it ‘dumb’.[10]P(156)

The details those students offer support the previous summary most have a very exciting experience with literature during their elementary schooling， but the break in this happy experience comes as they enter junior high or middle school.

There is obviously a wide chasm between what the school offers for students to read and what the students want to read in reading program. Students have had fewer experiences—and for some， no experience at all—in such areas as marriage and porce， ambition， greed and hate， so it is more difficult for them to make honest responses about what meaning is true for them. In contrast， when the book has a teenager as the protagonist and other young adult characters， the balance of knowledge and the authority that is brought in that reading is changed. Young adult are more easily able to evaluate the characters， their problems and the resolution of these problems.

4. The Power of Young Adult Literature Reading

One of the key reasons for students’ low interest in English learning is lack of the attractive and coherent reading material. Reading material which are used in the school are exam-oriented and boring which may hinder the students enthusiasm for learning English. Simultaneously， affect plays an important role in the learning English and English teaching should arouse the learners’ interest and motivation. The influence of Young Adult Literature reading materials in stimulating the learners’ love of reading and English learning from the prospect of affective factors is obvious. The qualitative evidence further proves that students really enjoy reading and sharing what they read with the peers. Benefits of other kinds from the Young Adult Literature reading are also obvious; such as increased vocabulary， faster reading speed and better reading comprehension. More encouraging is the fact that the majority of students are determined to read continuously after the experiment.

5. Using Young Adult Literature Materials outside Class in Senior Middle School---The Teaching Procedure

Outside reading promotes the initiative activity with the students. It is not forced by teaching missions. Students can choose the reading materials which they are interested in. As the counselors， teachers have to teach students how to ensure an effective outside reading.

5.1 Selecting Reading Materials

Choosing the appropriate reading materials is a key factor to the students’ love of reading. A very important part of the appropriate materials selection for any English or language is age appropriate. Day and Bamford state that ‘‘getting students to read extensively depends critically on what they read. The reading materials must be both easy and interesting. If the books do not appeal to most of the class， then all the efforts will be in vain.’’[11](P49) It seems appropriate to offer a minimal reminder as we select a novel for study as an example of what can be done in a response-centered class. If we expect students to have sufficient experience for a response， they must be able to relate in some manner to the assigned literature.

Karolides states the significance of using appropriate reading materials: ‘‘the language of a text the situation， characters， or the expressed issues can dissuade a reader from comprehension of the text and thus inhibit involvement with it. In effect， if the reader has insufficient linguistic or experiential background to allow participation， the reader cannot relate to the text， and reading act will be short-circuited.’’[12]) (P132)

In practice of selection， students can be invited to skim the information about a book around the book cover. Use the information in the picture， the famous critiques， the plot summary， the table of contents， the classified category， ect， to make guesses about what they are going to read is an efficient way to select interesting book.

Therefore， teachers must find the interesting， attractive and enjoyable materials that are personally significant to our students and that are within their linguistic ability.

5.2 Conducting Group-discussion

It is best， however， to allow students to lead the discussion of the novel. This approach teaches students that they can function with self-sufficiency and without teachers influencing their responses.

‘‘Small-group discussions may give students an opportunity to discuss some of their most important responses before sharing them in the large group. The small groups may also be used to allow students to further explore the general response that they shared in the large group. Students often feel less threatened in small groups and are more willing to explore ideas in that setting. Like large groups， smaller groups must have rules of behavior that enable students to function effectively in the interaction. Students must feel secure with their responses， and they must responses to others. They will recognize similarly among all of the responses.’’[13]

‘‘The teachers’ listening skills are crucial in this initial phase. As students react， you may need to make follow-up statements， questions， or acknowledgments to help them clarify， justify， or elaborate on their ideas. If the discussion drags， use generic question early in the discussion and more content-specific question later in the process. Try to keep these questions at a minimum and emphasize the teachers’ spontaneous reaction to students’ response because reactions are much more meaningful to students， and they help move the discussion on using students’ ideas rather than teachers’.

Here are some questions types to elicit students ’response:

Questions requiring students to remember facts:

Describe…

List…

What…?

Questions requiring students to prove or disprove a generalization made by someone else.

Would someone like to comment on that point?

OK. Anybody wants to add to what…said?

Question requiring students to derive their own generalizations.

How did you feel at the end of the story?

What did it mean to you?

Anything you want to talk about?

Questions requiring students to generalize about the relation of the total work to human experience

What …mean? / What is the author saying by….?

What is the significance of the statement…?

Question requiring students to carry generalization derived from the work into their own lives.

What were your first associations?

Can you relate the story to anything in your own experience?’’[14](p31)

5.3 Performing a Creative Drama

Role-play and improvisation expand the boundaries of experiences for students so that they develop a more complete understanding of themselves and the literature they are reading. Through role-playing and improvisation， students are able to think as characters would think and act as characters would act. Students take on a persona different from their own and work at making that character come alive as they perceive what that character would be like if he or she was real.

5.4 Writing a Book Report

“Responding reports including book report， the journal， the narrative， the personal essay， help students to become personally involved with the literature. They begin by having students make personal responses. After students have read and written about the novel on a personal level， they are ready to move to a more ‘intellectual’ level. They now think about the author’s craft: what strategies and techniques did the author use to generate the responses students have?

Responding reports also integrate reading and writing. Students can enjoy the totality of the novel by responding to the ideas presented and by understanding the techniques used by the author. Their thoughts about a particular issue or a question are a novel change as they move through the first draft of that paper. Many say that they use the journal in making these initial drafts. The very act of writing triggers other new responses. Some ideas are abandoned; other is expanded. Students feel more at ease when responding to a work in this way because they are in control of how they respond: how they structure their responses， what they include， and what they omit. As a result， they will grow in their understanding of their novel in particular and of literature in general.’’[15]

5.5 Reading management

Whether young Adult Literature can be used successfully as English outside reading materials largely depends on skillful management of the teachers that should be alert to avoid the old-ways of teaching. Traditional approach in teaching emphasizes close reading of the text with all the historical and cultural clues removed to find the only correct meaning in the text. Experienced teachers have with needed the degree to which motivation， whatever its origins， can lead to over learning by students who otherwise lack needed reading skills or broad sophistication in facing certain works of literature. When they are genuinely turned on， it is amazing what some youngsters can accomplish in the classroom. Conversely， well-prepared teachers usually find only frustration when they present works to indifferent groups， no matter how high the quality of those works are.

“Wang Xiaoping suggests that the following methods are effective:

1)

Using a familiar literary source or a song， a poem， a picture， a book cover， etc. to lead students into the text;

2)

Allowing students a quiet reading of partial text;

3)

Revealing just enough facts about the text to arouse students’ interest in the new work;

4)

Relating in discussion the text themes to students’ present concerns. [16](p30)

Positive teachers create enthusiastic readers. Creative oral and written activities with young adult literature have a positive effect on young people. Teachers must create within each class a positive atmosphere， a way of life conductive to promoting reading through positive affect. Positive teachers are realistic but always look for the best in their students. Teachers have an important role in fostering this reader response. They also share in the responsibility of helping students with their developmental tasks， growing moral judgment， and reading appreciation. The teacher participates in the discussion as an ordinary reader but also as a facilitator

Encourage students to talk extensively

Help students makes a community of meaning

Talk turns talking

Don’t interrupt

Ask. Don’t tell

Give comments， but be nice

Affirm students’ responses

Encourage reluctant readers

The affective studies of Rosenthal and Jacobsin showed that teacher’s positive attitudes toward the learning capabilities of students designated as likely to make substantial gains did， in fact help teachers provide a learning environment where those students prospered.[17](p49) We believe that creative oral and written activities with young adult literature have a positive effect on young people.

6. Conclusion

Young Adult Literature with its special features is considered as the reading material for the students in senior middle school. Its effective power is very helpful for the students. The teachers who work in some way with young people require familiarity with the characteristics of this age group. It is important that teachers know about young adult literature. In the western countries， reading literature is one of the most important courses in the school. In addition the relationships between teachers and students and teaching material are free and active. They can choose the teaching materials which they are interested in and change the teaching courses or ways freely. So they taught young adult literature to students in the classroom. The situation in China is similar. Different from the native speakers， the students in China do little literature reading because of the difficulty and cultural difference. Most teachings are done only for exams and teaching missions. So in China we have greater difficulties in promoting the use of young adult literature for outside reading.

So far， the research in this field is comparatively limited. Young adult literature is not available in most of the schools and most teachers find it difficult to put it into practice. And we have a lot of practical problems to solve. Nevertheless， if we keep on trying a practice we will fine more effective ways to enhance our students’ English interest and improve reading abilities.

Bibliography

[1] John S. Simmons & H. Edward Deluzain. Teaching Literature in Middle and Secondary Greades. [M] United State: Allyn and Bacon，1992.

[2] 赵均. 情感与初中英语课外读物达标. [J] 北京。首都师范大学 2004.

[3] 王初明. 外语学习中的认知与情感需要. [J] 第四期

[4] Donelson，k.，& Nilsen， A..Literature for Today’s Young Adult. [M] 5th edition. Glenview， IL:Scott，Foresman，1997.

[5] John H.bushman&Kay Parks Haas. Using Young Adult Literature in The English Classroom. [M] 3rd edition.Merrill Prentice Hall 67.2001

[6] 隋莉英 The Power of Young Adult Literature Reading Material in Fostering Learns’ Positive Affect in English Reading [J] 北京 首都师范大学学报 2005

[7] Sullivan，A.M.. The natural reading life: A high school anomaly. [M] english Journal， 80(6)， [M]40-46.1991

[8] Karolides， N.J. The Transactional Theory of Literature. In N.J.Kaolides(Ed.)，reader response in the classroom [M] 1992