Author Description

SERIES INTRODUCTION Welcome to National Geographic Learning’s new Reading and Vocabulary Focus series. The series delivers memorable reading experiences, develops essential reading skills, and showcases a wide variety of high-utility vocabulary. The passages take readers to exciting new places where they can apply the skills of successful academic readers. While engaged with the content, readers encounter target vocabulary that is ample, diverse, and presented with a fresh, pragmatic view of what the term vocabulary item truly means. Great reading classes depend on top-of-the-line content. That’s why we’ve taken such great care in selecting content for Reading and Vocabulary Focus. Through all four levels (high beginning to low advanced), Reading and Vocabulary Focus draws from the vast resources of National Geographic. High-interest reading content written by some of the world’s most authoritative and thought-provoking reporters and explorers is presented in level-appropriate language and used to build reading skills and to promote vocabulary learning. Skill building is of course important, but not for its own sake. Our goal is always, first and foremost, for students to enjoy working with readings that are truly interesting and worth reading. A BROADBAND APPROACH TO VOCABULARY A distinctive feature of Focus is its broadband approach to vocabulary. For each reading passage, three groups of vocabulary are called out: 1) 10–12 topic-related vocabulary items to consider in pre-reading activities 2) 6–8 academic words―single word items essential to building an academic vocabulary 3) 6–8 multiword vocabulary items useful in academic reading A systematic focus on multiword vocabulary sets Reading and Vocabulary Focus apart from most reading/vocabulary texts. Increasingly, more and more teachers and many textbooks recognize that some vocabulary items consist of more than one word, especially phrasal/prepositional verbs (hurry up, take on) and compound nouns (glass ceilin