Library Reading Program
BEA’s reading program aims to help the BEA kids read their way to better English through extensive reading with graded readers. Although students have weekly reading lessons in class focusing on building reading skills, they need additional help to improve their reading fluency. One way we do this is through extensive reading, which is reading longer texts outside the class. The main goals of this type of activity is to help students improve their reading fluency and build vocabulary, as well as to promote a culture of reading for pleasure so that they can develop into independent and lifelong learners of English.
However, many Cambodian students have access to only a single textbook at public schools with no option of ever borrowing a library book. The BEA library program fills this void with providing culturally appropriate and captivating reading materials. Since our students are learning English as a foreign language, we use a variety of graded readers. These are books specifically written for language learners to develop their reading ability in English. Graded readers cover a wide range of categories, including biographies, classic literature, mystery, science fiction and many others. However, all of these titles have simplified vocabulary and grammar structures so that the reader can easily understand the story. Below, you can see a sample of some of the titles in the BEA library.
However, many Cambodian students have access to only a single textbook at public schools with no option of ever borrowing a library book. The BEA library program fills this void with providing culturally appropriate and captivating reading materials. Since our students are learning English as a foreign language, we use a variety of graded readers. These are books specifically written for language learners to develop their reading ability in English. Graded readers cover a wide range of categories, including biographies, classic literature, mystery, science fiction and many others. However, all of these titles have simplified vocabulary and grammar structures so that the reader can easily understand the story. Below, you can see a sample of some of the titles in the BEA library.
Student Guidelines
The library reading programs plays an important role in BEA’s overall school curriculum. Each semester, BEA kids are required to read a minimum of four graded readers. Students are allowed to sign-out books and return them after two weeks. As part of BEA’s orientation week at the start of September, we introduce students to the library system: they learn about the library classification system, how to choose genres, the procedures for borrowing books, and how to take care of them. Throughout the semester, students participate in "book club" discussions in which they talk about the characters, the plot and themes of their book. Afterwards, they complete a two-page book report to submit for grading. Not only do the BEA kids get the chance to enjoy reading with this program, but they also get the chance to develop their critical thinking skills through sharing and analyzing their stories with each other. Below, you can view the Library Reading Program guidelines the BEA kids get during their library orientation.
