An email about a new home
Read Mina's email to her friend about her new flat, her neighbours and her plans for Saturday.
13 questions · 8 min
Reading Practice
Read a short text, then answer questions to check your understanding.
30 lessons
A notice at the swimming pool
Read a notice at a town swimming pool and find the opening times, prices and rules.
14 questions · 8 min
An advert for a cooking club
Read an advert for a weekend cooking club and find out when it meets, who can join and what to bring.
14 questions · 8 min
A blog post about market day
Read Sofia's blog post about the weekly market in her town and what she does there.
14 questions · 8 min
A story about a first day
Read a short story about Aiko's first day at a new school in a new city.
14 questions · 8 min
A diary: a weekend in the mountains
Read Jamal's diary about a walking weekend in the mountains that did not go exactly as planned.
14 questions · 10 min
A news article: a garden in the city
Read a local news article about an unusual city garden and the volunteers who look after it.
14 questions · 10 min
An email to a host family
Read Ravi's first email to the family he is going to stay with during a summer language course.
14 questions · 10 min
A story: a surprise in a suitcase
Read a short story about a mistake on a train journey and the unexpected friendship that followed.
14 questions · 10 min
A blog post: thirty days of change
Read a blog post by a man who tried a month-long experiment with how he travels around his city.
14 questions · 10 min
Death Valley: land, plants and animals
Read an excerpt from a VOA Learning English report about the land, wildlife and early people of Death Valley National Park.
14 questions · 12 min
Denali National Park: the story of a name
Read an excerpt from a VOA Learning English report about Denali National Park in Alaska and the long history of its name.
14 questions · 12 min
Woodrow Wilson before the White House
Read an excerpt from a VOA Learning English report about Woodrow Wilson's education, academic work and first steps in public life.
14 questions · 12 min
John Quincy Adams: big plans for the nation
Read an excerpt from a VOA Learning English report about the ideas of President John Quincy Adams and the opposition he faced.
14 questions · 12 min
Caring for a betta fish
Read an excerpt from a VOA Learning English article with practical advice about water, food and tank mates for pet betta fish.
14 questions · 12 min
The Wright brothers and the first powered flight
Read an excerpt from a VOA Learning English report about the Wright brothers' first powered flights and what happened in the years that followed.
14 questions · 15 min
Thomas Edison: an inventor at work
Read a VOA Learning English report about Thomas Edison's childhood, his way of working and the inventions he valued most.
14 questions · 15 min
Virtual fences: good for farms and nature?
Read an excerpt from a VOA Learning English report comparing traditional fences with GPS-based virtual fences for cattle.
14 questions · 15 min
The US House of Representatives and its members
Read an excerpt from a VOA Learning English report about who can serve in the US House of Representatives and why it was designed that way.
14 questions · 15 min
The early years of the US Supreme Court
Read an excerpt from a VOA Learning English report about the uncertain early years of the US Supreme Court and a famous case from 1803.
14 questions · 15 min
Unassuming survivors: the partnership beneath the crust
A popular-science article about lichens: what they are, how they live and what they can tell us about the air.
16 questions · 25 min
The tyranny of the perfect itinerary
An opinion column that questions the habit of planning every hour of a holiday and asks what planning really costs us.
16 questions · 25 min
Maps, names and what gets left off
A book review of an invented novel, with questions on the reviewer's balanced judgement and implied criticism.
16 questions · 25 min
The four-minute clock
An original short story extract in which much of the meaning is implied: a council visitor, an old clock and a private reason.
16 questions · 25 min
More than a mended toaster
A feature article about a volunteer repair event, asking what such gatherings achieve beyond fixing objects.
16 questions · 25 min
In praise of the unmapped hour
A reflective essay on navigation apps and attention. Practise reading for implication, attitude and fine shades of meaning.
15 questions · 30 min
Pears for a fortnight
An original short story extract about a woman, an orchard and a neighbour. Practise reading for subtext, understatement and what characters leave unsaid.
15 questions · 30 min
A short treatise on standing in line
An ironic column on the unwritten rules of queueing. Practise recognising mock-solemn tone, exaggeration and the point behind the joke.
15 questions · 30 min
The long memory of wood
A popular-science article on tree rings and how they are used to date the past. Practise reading for argument, hedging and the writer's purpose.
15 questions · 30 min
A museum of nothing in particular
A review of an invented museum of everyday objects. Practise judging tone, balance and the writer's real opinion.
15 questions · 30 min
A1, A2, C1 and C2 texts are original. B1 and B2 texts are excerpts from VOA Learning English (public domain); questions and notes are by Joy English. Levels are suggestions.