今まで、多読にトライして、続かなかった方や、多読初心者の方にとって、洋書選びは悩みの一つかもしれませんね。この記事を読むことで、どんな洋書を選べば良いのかが分かります。一番始めに選ぶべき洋書が分かったら、是非当ブログを参考に、洋書を読み進めてくださいね。どんどん英語学習が楽しくなりますよ!
ORTを選ぶ理由はこれ!
洋書を読むには、洋書選びがとても大切です。興味がある分野から選ぶことも間違いではありませんが、英語初心者や、英語初心者の方には、挫折する危険性が高いです。そこで、先ずはレベル別になっていて、自分のレベルより易しい英語から読み進めることをお勧めします。
Oxford reading tree(ORT)は、細かくレベル分けをされているシリーズで、イギリスの多くの小学校の副教材として使用され、正しい英語を学ぶことが出来る洋書です。同じレベルの英語を何冊も読むことが出来、レベルも徐々に上がっていくため、無理なく英語を段階的に学ぶことが出来ます。
文法的にも、同じような文章が繰り返し出てきたり、登場人物も同じでストーリー生があるので、読んでいて飽きません。描写も細かく書かれているので、分からない単語が出てきても、絵から推測しやすくなっています。
ORTを読み進めることで、英文を読むことに慣れることが出来ます。そこで、次のステップに移行しやすくなるので、洋書が初めての方や、英語初心者の方の洋書を挫折してしまう可能性が低くなるのです。
ORT stage1と、stage9を見比べると分かりますが、ORTをレベル別で読み進めることで、こんなにも英語が読めるようになるのか!と驚かれると思います。
当ブログのORTに関する記事では、1冊1冊ごとに、ただ読むだけでは無く、物語の内容について質問と、その答えの例文を英文で載せています。繰り返し読み、質問に答える練習をすることで、英会話の学習にもなります。是非利用してくださいね。
ORT stage9 more stories A
この記事では、ORT stage9 more storiesAの4冊をご紹介します。もっと易しいレベルを読んでみたい方は、stage1からstage8までの記事を参考にしてくださいね。
Dutch Adventure オランダの冒険 (Magic Keyのお話)
Dadは、スーパーでオランダ製のチーズを買いました。チーズを車の上に置き忘れ、出発して、車から落ちたチーズはひかれて潰れてしまいました。その後、帰宅してMagic Keyが光り出します。子どもたちの冒険先は、オランダです。チーズが出てくる冒険になる予感・・・
Where did Dad take Biff and Chip?
Dad took Biff and Chip to the supermarket.
What did Dad buy at the cheese counter?
Dad bought some Dutch cheese called Edam.
こんな質問もしてみよう!
Question: Why did Dad end up buying four cheeses instead of two?
Answer: Dad ended up buying four cheeses because Biff thought it was unfair that Chip got a free baseball cap, so Dad bought extra cheeses to get more caps.
Question: What happened to the cheeses when Dad drove off with them on the roof of the car?
Answer: The cheeses fell off the roof of the car when Dad stopped suddenly, and some of them got squashed by a passing lorry.
Question: Where did the magic take Biff and Chip on their adventure?
Answer: The magic took Biff and Chip back in time to The Netherlands.
Question: What problem did Trudy and Chip encounter near the windmill?
Answer: They discovered a man stealing diamonds hidden inside the cheese.
Question: How did they catch the thief?
Answer: Trudy and Chip told Trudy’s father about the stolen diamonds, and the villagers tied the thief to the windmill until the mayor arrived.
Question: What did Trudy’s father and the villagers do to fix the leaking dyke?
Answer: They filled the hole with cheeses to temporarily stop the water, then they mended the dyke using sand and other materials.
Question: What reward did Trudy’s father give Biff and Chip?
Answer: Trudy’s father gave Biff and Chip two cheeses as a reward.
Question: Why was Dad cross at the end of the story?
Answer: Dad was cross because Biff and Chip lost their free baseball caps.
The Finest in the Land この土地で一番の者 (Magic Keyのお話)
Kipperの誕生日に、即席で作られたBiffたちのバンドメンバーで誕生日の曲を演奏することになりました。今回は、Magic Keyはこのメンバーを中世まで冒険に連れて行きます。そこでは、人助けをするために、演奏をすることになりました。どんな人助けをしたのでしょうか?
Who came round to play with Biff and Chip?
Anneena, Wilf, Wilma, and Nadim came round to play with Biff and Chip.
What idea did Wilma have when Kipper went to the shops?
Wilma suggested forming a band so they could play Happy Birthday to Kipper.
こんな質問もしてみよう!
Question: What instruments did Biff suggest they play in the band?
Answer: Biff suggested playing the kazoo and the tambourine, and they all sang.
Question: Where did the magic take the children on their adventure?
Answer: The magic took the children back in time to the Middle Ages.
Question: Why did the Duke’s daughter, Edith, and Hugh pretend to be entertainers?
Answer: Edith and Hugh pretended to be entertainers to get into the castle because Edith’s father wouldn’t let them marry yet.
Question: What was the plan to help Edith and Hugh escape from the castle?
Answer: The plan was for Edith to pour a sleeping mixture into the wine at the feast, causing everyone to fall asleep so they could escape.
Question: Why did the sleeping mixture not work at first?
Answer: The sleeping mixture did not work at first because it was not properly mixed with the wine.
Question: What did Wilma whisper to Hugh during the performance?
Answer: Wilma whispered to Hugh to take Edith and escape from the castle.
Question: How did the Duke react when he found out Edith had run away to get married? Answer: The Duke decided to chase after Edith but felt very sleepy and decided to have a snooze instead.
Question: What did Kipper think of the band’s performance on his birthday?
Answer: Kipper thought the band’s performance was brilliant and didn’t realize they were pretending to be musicians.
The Flying Machine 飛ぶ機械(Magic Keyのお話)
Nadimは、アメリカで休暇を過ごした後、帰路につきます。帰りの飛行機では、操縦席を見学させてもらえました。今回は、AnneenaとNadimが冒険に行きます。そこは飛行機の発明をしている双子がいました。二人は、双子にアドバイスをしますが、成功するでしょうか?
Where was Nadim with his parents at the beginning of the story?
Nadim was at the airport with his parents, returning home from a holiday in America.
What surprised Nadim on the flight back home?
Nadim was surprised when the steward invited him to see the flight deck of the airplane.
こんな質問もしてみよう!
Question: Who did Nadim and Anneena meet when they traveled back in time with the magic key?
Answer: They met Henry and Harold, who were trying to build and fly a strange-looking aeroplane.
Question: Why did Nadim and Anneena think the aeroplane wouldn’t fly?
Answer: They thought the aeroplane wouldn’t fly because the propeller was too flat and it didn’t have proper wings for lift.
Question: What happened when the aeroplane finally flew?
Answer: The aeroplane flew briefly but crashed into a farm, causing chaos by running over laundry, squashing melons, and frightening people.
Question: Who did they see flying another aeroplane over the town?
Answer: They saw Wilbur Wright flying another aeroplane over the town.
Question: How did Henry and Harold react when they saw Wilbur Wright flying?
Answer: They realized they weren’t the first to fly, but Harold had an idea for a new invention – a boat that goes underwater.
Question: What did Nadim, Anneena, and the others joke about at the end?
Answer: They joked about how time flew by and how it wasn’t just time that flew, referring to the airplane crashing.
Key Trouble 鍵の事件(Magic Keyのお話)
おばあちゃんが遊びに来ました。Kipperは、おばあちゃんの昔のアルバムを見ます。その写真たちは、みんな灰色をしていました。そんなKipperは、たった一人で冒険に行くことに!今回の旅は、世界がみんな灰色です。冒険を終わらせたいKipperは、Magic keyをたたきつけてしまいます。無事に冒険から帰宅できましたが、ある大問題が起きてしまいました。Kipperはどうなってしまうのでしょうか?
Who came to stay with the family at the beginning of the story?
Gran came to stay with the family.
What did Gran bring as presents for the children?
Gran brought Super Squirters as presents for the children
こんな質問もしてみよう!
Question: What did Gran do when the children went outside to play with the Super Squirters? Answer: Gran followed them outside and joined in the fun with the Super Squirters.
Question: What did Gran show Mum and Dad after the children went to play?
Answer: Gran showed Mum and Dad some old photograph albums.
Question: Why did Kipper become grey after his adventure with the magic key?
Answer: Kipper became grey because something went wrong with the magic key during his adventure.
Question: How did Gran distract Mum and Dad from noticing Kipper’s grey color?
Answer: Gran distracted Mum and Dad by squirting them with water from the Super Squirters and pretending to play spooks.
Question: What did the children do to try to hide Kipper’s grey color from Mum and Dad? Answer: The children tried to hide Kipper’s grey color by dressing him up in sheets to look like a ghost.
Question: How did Kipper’s color return to normal at the end of the story?
Answer: Kipper’s color returned to normal when he apologized to the magic key, and it gave a little glow, restoring his color.
最後に
洋書を読めるようになりたい!英語を学びたい!と言う方のために、どんな本を選び、どう活用したら良いのかをお伝えしました。ORTは、絵の描写も細かいので、英語を読む手助けになりますし、簡単な英語や、単文から、ご自分でクイズを作っても楽しいです。ORTをたくさん読み、是非英語を読む楽しさを体験してください。絵本に出てくる登場人物になりきって、台詞を何度も言うことで、英会話の練習にもなります。1冊で学べることがとても多く、お得な絵本です。