Reading is one of the best ways to learn a language.  For ESL students abroad, a great idea is to form a book club for all the ESL students.  With the help perhaps of your teacher or advice on ESL websites, select books which are recommended for you level of English but are still challenging and with themes and in genres that you favour.  Once you have formed your book club, you need to have a way of discussing the book you all have read, and of sharing opinions and ideas.  You can also discuss new vocabulary and phrases that you learnt while reading the book.

Questions For An ESL Book Club

The first time the club meets, ask each member about their taste in books so you can compile a reading list.  Create a questionnaire:

• Who is your favourite author?
• What is your favourite story?
• Who is your favourite character?
• What is your favourite genre?
  • Mystery
  • Science Fiction
  • Action
  • Detective
  • Suspense
  • War
  • Children’s books
  • Travel books
  • History
  • Non-fiction
  • Self-help books
  • Autobiography
  • Gothic
  • Biography
  • Modern Literature
  • Classic Literature
• Have you ever joined a book club before?
  • What did you read?
• What is the longest book you’ve read?
  • How many page and how long did it take you to read it?
• What books have been recommended to you that you would recommend?

Then, ask each member to put five book titles and their genres in hat and draw say, 12 titles from the hat.  Give each book a designated time by which they must be read – it can be 2 weeks, or 4 weeks. Each week the club member shares where they are in the book and what they are discovering.  When the book is finished, each member must write and short review and share it with the club

Taking student initiative and starting your own ESL book club can be fun, so why not get some fellow students together and establish a place and a weekly time and date for your club.  Bring snacks and drinks and make it a fun gathering.