English Skills: Online Resources
Grammar & Writing
- CCC Foundation-Guide to Grammar & Writing:
- This resource offers information, practice quizzes, PowerPoint presentations, and search devices designed to help students improve their grammar and writing skills.
- Capital Community College-Sentence Sense:
- Sentence Sense offers a three-part instructional approach designed for students to become more confident writers. This online textbook offers instruction in grammar and writing as well as exercises.
- Dave Sperling’s Grammar Page:
- This website offers online instruction for a wide range of grammatical topics.
- Jack Lynch’s Grammar & Style Notes:
- Grammar Style & Notes is an online guide that provides rules and explanations in grammar and style. Information is easily accessed through table of contents links.
- McGraw-Hill Online Learning Center:
- The McGraw-Hill Student Center offers English skills practice and instruction in 52 chapters that are focused on writing and grammar. Each chapter includes objectives, a chapter outline, self-quizzes, a glossary, online resources, and visuals.
- Institute for Writing & Rhetoric
- Materials for Students” provides extensive textbook-quality advice about all aspects of writing in an academic environment.
- Purdue Online Writing Lab:
- The OWL Online Writing Lab is a comprehensive website that offers instruction and online practice exercises for a wide variety of grammatical topics. Writing-specific PowerPoint presentations are also available.
- Townsend Press Learning Center:
- This website offers online exercises to supplement the grammar textbook English Essentials. The textbook is not needed to do these lessons.
Reading
- BBC: Learning English:
- This section of the BBC website is geared towards nonnative English speakers. Current and past news articles and relevant vocabulary are offered.
- CNN News:
- The CNN website offers headline news in areas such as U.S. and domestic news, politics, entertainment, travel, and business.
- Gallaudet University:
- This website offers reading practice along with exercises. The reading exercises include practice in finding the main idea, inference, details, and vocabulary.
- Study Guides and Strategies:
- This study skills website offers study skills and strategies for reading critically, speed and comprehension, reading essays and fiction, prereading material, reading difficult material, and more.
- Townsend Press Learning Center:
- This website offers online exercises to supplement Groundwork for College Reading and Ten Steps to Building/Advancing/Improving College Reading. Textbooks are not needed to do these lessons.
Vocabulary
- A.Word.A.Day:
- A.Word.A.Day offers a new word daily along with its meaning, pronunciation, etymology, and usage.
- English Vocabulary Guide:
- On this website, vocabulary words are presented in groups and include pictures and audio pronunciation. This site offers the vocabulary in English as well as other languages.
- Everyday English:
- Everyday English has beginning, intermediate, and advanced English audio lessons.
- Townsend Online Learning Center:
- This website offers online exercises to supplement textbooks for Vocabulary Basics, Groundwork for a Better Vocabulary, and Building, Improving, and Advancing Vocabulary Skills. Textbooks are not needed to do these lessons.
- Study Guides and Strategies:
- This study skills website offers study skills and strategies for transitional words and phrases as well as learning through picturing vocabulary. Vocabulary exercises are also included.
Spelling
- Marie Rackham’s 30 Unit Spelling Course:
- This site offers a free 30 lesson spelling course. It is best suited for students at the beginning and intermediate levels.
- Capital Community College:
- This website describes common rules and suggestions about spelling. A PowerPoint presentation on spelling rules may be viewed. Practice quizzes are also available.
- Study Guides and Strategies:
- This study skills website offers study skills and strategies for spelling. Spelling rules and strategies, common misspelled words, and spelling exercises are available.
Study Skills
- Cornell University Learning Strategies Center:
- The Learning Strategies Center offers study skills resources for time and stress management, reading, and exam taking.
- Study Guides and Strategies: (general study skills)
- This study skills website offers general study skills and strategies for self-preparation, studying, project management, research, preparing for tests, and test taking.
Communication & Pronunciation
- BBC: Learning English:
- This section of the BBC website is geared towards nonnative English speakers. Pronunciation practice is available through quizzes, videos, and downloads. Second language learners can practice communication through the use of blogs and message boards.
- Daily ESL: Conversation Starters for English Students:
- Daily ESL offers conversation starters on daily topics such as vacation, community, home, school, and more. Online lessons include reading passages, building vocabulary, and discussion questions.
- Randall’s ESL Cyber Listening Lab:
- The Cyber Listening Lab offers easy, medium, and difficult listening exercises for everyday conversations. Exercises and vocabulary are provided for each topic.
- American English Pronunciation Practice:
- This website offers pronunciation practice for minimal pairs as well as “listen and repeat podcast.”
- Learn English Effectively: The Sounds of English and the International Phonetic Alphabet:
- Learn English Effectively provides audio listening exercises for sounds of the English and International Phonetic Alphabet.
- Pronunciation Power:
- Pronunciation Power offers lessons, exercises, and games focused on pronunciation of words in English as well as other languages.
- University of Iowa:
- This university-based site contains the phonetic sounds of English, German, and Spanish. “Animated articulatory diagram, a step-by-step description, and audio video” of each vowel and consonant are available.