Teachers
EFFE books can be used in many different teaching settings to support a variety of learning objectives. Help your students discover a ‘whole new world of cool’ with EFFE and, at the same time . . .

Improve basic reading skills
Written in an informal, conversational style, EFFE books are designed to be relatively easy to read and fun for both children and adults. Encourage students to read to themselves or read aloud in classrooms, adult literacy or ESL (English as a Second Language) classes, tutoring sessions or other learning settings. It isn’t just younger students who may need some help with country names and a few other words. For this reason, we’ve included pronunciation aids and word definitions on selected pages, as appropriate.

Improve reading comprehension skills
The structure of EFFE books makes it easier for students to grasp the main idea or ideas on a page even prior to reading the short, engaging main body of text. Encourage students to prepare for reading the text by first reading the page’s title and looking at the illustrations. What does the title suggest about the topic(s)? What do the illustrations suggest? If the title is a question, does the reader already know the answer or get an idea of it from the title and illustrations? Does the reader gain more information about the main topic by reading only the highlighted words next? (In some cases, the answer will be yes, and in other cases it will be no.) Use of this type of approach may help students (and teachers) test comprehension at several different points on a single page.

Expand their knowledge about the world and its inhabitants
EFFE books touch on a variety of subjects and disciplines relevant to today’s world. Although our books aren’t limited to geography, we rely on numerous geographical concepts and tools to help readers further develop a contextual framework (or mind map) for increasing their knowledge about the world. For example, where things are located, especially in relation to other things (or people, etc.), is a basic organizing concept or theme within geography, but it is just as applicable to other fields of study and many daily human activities. We also use it within our books.

Practice communication skills
Encourage students to share what they read through oral or written presentations, including mind maps or other graphic representations.

Develop research skills
Encourage students to follow an interest or line of inquiry beyond EFFE books. Whether that special interest is animals, people, space, physical geography, maps and other geographic tools, or any of the other subjects discussed in our books, learners will most likely find something to ignite their interest and inspire them to discover more.

Develop reasoning and critical thinking skills
Encourage students not only to verify what they read but to go beyond the text to develop and test hypotheses about the world. For example, what general principles and concepts are described or suggested by the text on a particular page? How might a principle or concept be further defined, tested or applied to other situations? Is there additional supporting information within or across EFFE books (and beyond)? What additional principles and concepts are related?

Develop map reading and interpretation skills
EFFE books make use of a variety of simplified maps and other types of illustrations to help familiarize learners with different ways of representing both the physical world and facts about the world. Over time, as learners gain familiarity with different types of map projections and conventions, they may more easily discern the ways in which 2-D representations do and do not accurately convey information about the world. We encourage (and suggest that you encourage) use of a globe as the standard comparative reference for maps of all kinds.

Understand and further develop individual learning strategies
EFFE Books are designed to help learners gain insight into their own learning preferences and to develop learning techniques and strategies that will serve them anywhere. Encourage students to consider: What do they like and dislike about a book’s format? What aspects of EFFE books seem to make it easier for them to understand and remember what they read? What aspects seem to make it harder? Which memory aids seem to help? What alternative aids or strategies might serve them better? What might they do to help themselves in other learning situations?