Oral Reading Fluency 30: "The Workweek"

Hi everyone. I'm Jennifer from English with Jennifer. Hopefully, you're here because you want to gain fluency in English. Oral reading is a good way to build confidence and accuracy in terms of speaking and pronunciation. Any kind of reading is a way to build and reinforce grammar and vocabulary. The text I wrote for you is about work hours and the kind of work schedule that would allow us to do our best and be happy not just for a short time, but in the long term. What does in the long term mean? Over a long period of time. We want to be successful and happy in the long term, meaning far into the future. We hyphenate this to form the adjective, like your long-term goals. So long-term quality work is work that's not just good for now, but good for a long period of time. Extend is to stretch or to make longer. So an extended break or an extended vacation is a really long rest. Remember that in American English we use vacation to talk about a really long break, a rest from working, or a trip somewhere. Holiday in American English refers to a special day on the calendar, like Christmas. Another word I should explain is smart. In American English, smart means intelligent or clever. Finally, let's talk about prefixes. These are word parts at the beginning of a word. For example, re- means again, do again. So replace means to place again. If a company wants to replace an employee, they need to look again for someone to do that job. The prefix dis- means the opposite, so someone can agree or disagree. And here's a quick grammar note on the verb dare. If you dare to do something, you have the courage to do it. It might surprise other people that you choose to do this action. You could dare to disagree with someone. You could dare disagree. So two patterns are possible. Okay, we'll do four readings. First, just listen and read along silently. It doesn't mean you have to follow the crowd. Sometimes we keep an old model because it's familiar, but working fewer hours may be better for everyone. Our performance can suffer when we're tired. Who does that help? No one. Smart employers know that everyone needs a break, sometimes an extended one. It's also not easy to replace good people, especially if they've gained a lot of skill on the job, so it's worth keeping the staff happy. Of course, some industries have unusual demands, but in general, wouldn't it be nice if more people had the freedom to set their own hours? While the average person has weekends off, some might choose to work on Saturday and Sunday, if that meant earning more money or receiving more vacation time. In short, long-term quality work comes from people with a quality life. All workers need time to rest, have fun, and grow. Meeting these needs is healthy for the employees and the business. Would anyone dare to disagree? Ready for a second reading? You're going to listen and repeat. That doesn't mean you have to follow the crowd. Sometimes we keep an old model because it's familiar. But working fewer hours may be better for everyone. Our performance can suffer when we're tired. Who does that help? No one. Smart employers know that everyone needs a break, sometimes an extended one. It's also not easy to replace good people, especially if they've gained a lot of skill on the job, so it's worth keeping the staff happy. Of course, some industries have unusual demands, but in general, wouldn't it be nice if more people had the freedom to set their own hours? While the average person has weekends off, some might choose to work on Saturday and Sunday, if that meant earning more money or receiving more vacation time. In short, long-term quality work comes from people with a quality life. All workers need time to rest, have fun, and grow. Meeting these needs is healthy for the employees and the business. Would anyone dare to disagree? In our third reading, we'll read together slowly. Try to read smoothly and clearly. Do you work too much or too little? Although a 40-hour work week is standard, that doesn't mean you have to follow the crowd. Sometimes we keep an old model because it's familiar, but working fewer hours may be better for everyone. Our performance can suffer when we're tired. Who does that help? No one. Smart employers know that everyone needs a break, sometimes an extended one. It's also not easy to replace good people, especially if they've gained a lot of skill on the job, so it's worth keeping the staff happy. Of course, some industries have unusual demands, but in general, wouldn't it be nice if more people had the freedom to set their own hours? While the average person has weekends off, some might choose to work on Saturday and Sunday if that meant earning more money or receiving more vacation time. In short, long-term quality work comes from people with a quality life. All workers need time to rest, have fun, and grow. Meeting these needs is healthy for the employees and the business. Would anyone dare to disagree? In our final reading, read along with me. Read with expression. If you're not ready to go at my pace, then go back. Do the second and third readings again. Although a 40-hour work week is standard, that doesn't mean you have to follow the crowd. Sometimes we keep an old model because it's familiar, but working fewer hours may be better for everyone. Our performance can suffer when we're tired. Who does that help? No one. Smart employers know that everyone needs a break, sometimes an extended one. It's also not easy to replace good people, especially if they've gained a lot of skill on the job, so it's worth keeping the staff happy. Of course, some industries have unusual demands, but in general, wouldn't it be nice if more people had the freedom to set their own hours? While the average person has weekends off, some might choose to work on Saturday and Sunday if that meant earning more money or receiving more vacation time. In short, long-term quality work comes from people with a quality life. All workers need time to rest, have fun, and grow. Meeting these needs is healthy for the employees and the business. Would anyone dare to disagree? Here are some questions for reflection. What days do you want to work? Why? Share your thoughts in the comments. Try to use vocabulary from the reading. I hope you enjoyed this oral reading. For more practice, record yourself reading the text today. Practice every day for a week. On Day 7, record yourself again. Evaluate your progress. That's all for now. Please remember to like and share the video if you found the lesson useful. As always, thanks for watching and happy studies!