National Geographic Resources. Topics

In our previous articles, we covered coursebooks and academic skills’ books. This time we’ll have a look at resources on different topics, such as exam preparation, graded reader, idioms, teacher development, ESP, Business English and dictionaries.

Exam preparation

1. Success with Business

This series covers levels from Pre-Intermediate to Upper-Intermediate. It’s aimed at preparing students for BEC, a business English qualification students take to demonstrate their ability to use language in professional contexts. Although its focus is on exam preparation, it can be used as a general business course for learners who want to develop their Business English skills. 

As for IELTS, there are plenty of resources you can find from this publisher. I’ll cover some of them.

2. The Complete Guide to IELTS

This book covers all tasks and text types and skills. It can be used either in class or by students on their own. There are sample questions, tips, strategies, skill-building exercises, tasks analysis; vocabulary lessons; video lessons for listening practice; grammar practice exercises and full practice test. Check some sample tasks here and the table of contents.

3. Exam Essentials

This series is written for FCE, CAE and IELTS preparation. These are practice tests that include not only exam practice and typical exam questions but information about the exam and tasks tips; model responses and answers for Speaking and Writing parts. The tests are written by exam experts. They offer practice in all four skills. You can see sample tests and read more about it here.

Graded readers

1. Footprint Reading Library

There are 8 levels (pre-intermediate-advanced) of non-fiction graded readers that include interesting stories on several topics: Incredible Animals, Fascinating Places, Remarkable People, Exciting Activities, Amazing Science. Each reader includes video and audio content.

2. Page Turners Reading Library

There are 12 levels in this series that cover various genres: drama, action, thriller, romance, mystery, etc. There is audio recording for each reader,  review section that checks comprehension, extra non-fiction passage, worksheets and glossary.

3. Classic Graphic Novel Collection

It’s a series of contemporary storytelling of classical literature for young adults that is illustrated in comic strips. It also includes a biography of the author, descriptions of the main characters and a glossary. The examples of readers are: Henry V, A Christmas Carol, Dracula, Frankenstein, Great Expectations, etc.

Professional Development

These series include 13 books that are based on the idea that teachers develop more when they reflect on their own teaching and experience rather than acquiring new knowledge. Each book provides three interdependent perspectives: Voices, Frameworks, and Investigations. Books include activities to provoke discussion on teaching and classroom experience and examine your own practice. The examples of topics: Designing Language Courses, Teaching Language: From Grammar to Grammaring, Learning New Languages: A Guide to Second Language Acquisition, Teaching Bilingual Children: Beliefs and Behaviors, Learning About Language Assessment and many other.

Vocabulary and Idioms

There are 2 series on this topic: Key Words for Fluency and Academic Word Power.

Key Words for Fluency covers Intermediate and Upper-Intermediate levels and gives practice in collocations. Academic Word Power covers the same levels but is divided into 4 books on 140 word-families from the Academic Word List. 

Business English

Total Business is a three-level course (Pre-Intermediate-Upper-Intermediate) for students who want to improve their Business English skills. There are business-related topics, various activities on grammar and functions.

English for Specific Purposes

Energy English is a course (both for self-study or group lessons) that is aimed at improving English for students working in gas or electricity areas. The focus of the books is mainly on enriching learners’ vocabulary, but it includes lots of activities on grammar, pronunciation and skills exercises. There are also review units and Business communications skills units to practise speaking and writing. In addition, there is a picture glossary, wordlists and a grammar reference sections with exercises. 

Dictionaries

1. The Heinle Picture Dictionary

This dictionary illustrates words with pictures. The wordlists are divided into topics, the top ten most frequent words are in bold. It also includes sections that:

• show how the words are used in context;
• provide activities on practising the new language;
• show collocations. 

There are also lesson planners, grammar exercises, workbooks and Interactive Presentation Tools. 

2. The Heinle Picture Dictionary for Children

This dictionary presents vocabulary through pictures and in context with readings (“Rhyme Time” and “Fun Facts”). It also includes the multi-level practice of every word, “Playing With Words” — fun activities where students increase understanding of the language.