2. Ask more able students to write a problem letter to a teenage magazine or newspaper using Cindy’s letter as a model. Tell students to write down the keywords describing their problems and the main points of their letters first. Then ask them to formulate complete sentences using the main points and keywords. Encourage students to read their letters in class.

Main task

Objectives

1. For stronger classes, cut out or photocopy problem letters from magazines and newspapers. Give them out to groups of students. Ask students to go through their letters and identify the main points and keywords, invite a representative form each group to talk about the group’s letter in class.

8. Tell students to read the main points and keywords again, and answer the ‘Wh-’ questions. Students can work in pairs or groups of four. Then ask some of the pairs or groups to answer the questions in class.

Extension activities

7. You can ask more able students to underline main points and circle keywords at the same time.

6. Now ask students to read the letter again and circle the other keywords using a pencil. Invite students to compare their answers in their groups. Then check the answers orally with the whole class.

5. Ask students to read the letter carefully and underline the main points on their own suing a pencil initially. Remind them to refer to the ‘Wh-’ questions at the top of the page. Divide the class into groups of four and ask students to compare the main points they have underlined. Go through the letter again sentence by sentence and check the answers.

4. Briefly explain to students that they can understand information more quickly if they identify main points and keywords first. It is a good idea if students remember the questions listed on page 14 so that they can use them when reading through other texts. Ask students to study the questions for one minute, then close their books and say them to their partners to check if they have memorized them.

3. Read the letter to the whole class. You can ask more able students to close their books while you read. Then ask some open questions, e.g., ‘Who is Cindy? Why is Cindy unhappy? What is Cindy’s problem?’ Elicit a list of the details which describe Cindy and her problems. Explain difficult or unfamiliar words.

2. For weaker classes, read the questions on the page together with the students and explain that answering these questions will help them find the main points or ideas in a passage. Tell students that not all the words in a passage are important and that they should always look for keywords (words of great importance) in a passage.

1. Ask more able students what they want to find out when they read a passage. Write ‘What is it about?’ on the board and try to elicit the other questions listed on the page. Underline the ‘Wh-’ words.