Using Literature for Children and Adolescents for Intermediate Language Acquisition

This article suggests that literature written for children and adolescents is appropriate for use with intermediate‐level students of English as a second or foreign language of all ages (including adults). Following a description of this literature, three instructional applications are reviewed: extensive free reading based on language acquisition theory, close reading while attending to form and function using stylistic analyses along with a language awareness perspective, and reading a story to develop essential cultural understanding of the target language. These applications are framed by a discussion of related research. Literature for children and adolescents offers a light linguistic and content load. With interesting characters, themes, insights, and styles, these texts may capture adult interest and act as a bridge to more complex texts.