Murder at Ocean View College Reading for Pleasure by Karen Batchelor The young Brazilian woman raised her fist in the air and shouted "Go Jade! I love that part!" The class cheered. This is one of the reactions an ESL student at City College of San Francisco had after reading Murder at Ocean View College. Other comments include, "I couldn't stop" and "I had to find out the murderer." For years I tried to find material that was both linguistically accessible to my students, and interesting enough to hold their interest. Difficult. After trying several novels with my classes, I decided that they really needed something that did not yet exist. So, I started writing an ESL novel. (It is also appropriate for remedial and reluctant readers.) It took me several years, and I used my own students as guinea pigs. When I finally had a draft complete, I asked other teachers to try it with their students. I got very positive feedback. The intended audience is high school and community college students. The reading level is approximately sixth grade.
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