5.0. WHAT ARE READING SKILLS?

When we read in our native language, we automatically apply certain skills that
perhaps, we are completely unaware of. We have a pretty good idea of the
content of a text, before even reading the first word, based on the text genre and
our existing knowledge and experience of the world. However, students of a new
language tend to forget their native reading skills and think that they must
understand every word of a text, line by line, in order to get the meaning. This
can lead to reading becoming a frustrating experience, as it involves asking
someone or using a dictionary to look up every other word.

Reading skills help students to get the most out of reading in another language.
It follows that if we are going help our students improve their reading skills we
need to help them to develop a range of strategies.