B1-Intermediate | ReadOasis

The King of the Blues

Arts B1-Intermediate BNC Levels CEFR Levels Listen!Protected Step 4 Stories

ReadOasis Step 4 B. B. King Lucille B.B. King was a great master of blues guitar. Though he passed away on May 14, 2015, he lived to be 89, and he played professionally for nearly 70 years. (His first recording was in 1949.) Because of his last name and... Read more

Fred Astaire, Dancer Extraordinaire

Arts B1-Intermediate BNC Levels CEFR Levels Courses Movies Step 2B Protected Step 3 Stories 1

ReadOasis Step 3 "Some people seem to think that good dancers are born, but all the good dancers I have known are taught or trained." -- Fred Astaire It was a dark time. In 1929, the American economy crashed. Many people lost all their money. Almost half the banks... Read more

The Boy who Became Buddha

B1-Intermediate BNC Levels CEFR Levels Courses Culture Step 2A Protected Step 2 Stories Styles 0

ReadOasis Step 2 He was born in 1935 -- in a poor farmer's home in northeast Tibet. At age 2, he was recognized as the 14th Buddha of Compassion. Buddha's soul had again appeared in a child. And this boy was the Buddha. He was taken to a palace... Read more

Diego Velázquez, Painter of Painters

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By David Bello ReadOasis Step 2 Las Meninas by Diego Velázquez Diego Velázquez (June 6, 1599 – to August 6, 1660) is one of the greatest painters of all time. With great skill he mixed color, light, space, and the rhythm of lines. He created scenes of historical and... Read more

Ichiro and the Kings of Baseball

B1-Intermediate BNC Levels CEFR Levels Courses Protected Sports Step 2A Step 2 Stories Styles 0

ReadOasis Step 2 It often happens in sport. A player just knows he will bring his team the victory. Is this true for Ichiro, that baseball wonder from Japan? Many people doubted his powers during the 2009 World Baseball Classic (WBC). He struggled under the pressure. He failed many... Read more

Isaac Albéniz, Genius of Spanish Music

Arts B1-Intermediate BNC Levels CEFR Levels Courses Music Step 2B Protected Step 2 Stories 1

By Maria SonoraReadOasis Step 2 Isaac Albéniz (May 29, 1860 - May 18, 1909) was a genius of Spanish music. He gave his first concert when he was four years old. And at the young age of nine, he began his concert career. By age 15, he had given... Read more

Throwing Shoes for Protest

B1-Intermediate BNC Levels CEFR Levels Courses Culture Step 2A Listen!Protected Step 2 Stories Styles 0

ReadOasis Step 2 In recent times, shoe throwing has become an international form of protest. On Monday, February 2, 2009, a young man threw a shoe at Wen Jiabao, the Prime Minister of China. The event took place at Cambridge University in the UK. The young man was arrested... Read more

Babe: A Good Mannered Pig

Arts B1-Intermediate BNC Levels CEFR Levels Courses Listen!Movies Step 2A Protected Step 2 Stories 3

ReadOasis Step 2 Babe is a young pig who wants to become a sheep dog. He is separated from his family, and he finds himself on a strange farm. Babe becomes confused and lonely. But a friendly sheep dog takes care of him. And Babe slowly adjusts to his... Read more

Get Down to Business in English

B1-Intermediate Biz Biz Step 2B BNC Levels CEFR Levels Courses Protected Step 2 Stories Top Picks 1

ReadOasis Step 2(Part 1) A Big Decision As usual, the boss spoke clearly and in short sentences. “Okay, it’s decided. This meeting is over. You all know what to do.” One by one, the managers closed their notebooks and stood up. There were no jokes and no laughter. Everyone... Read more

The Geisha Artist

B1-Intermediate BNC Levels CEFR Levels Protected Step 1 Stories Styles 2

By Maria Sonora ReadOasis Step 1 Geisha are traditional performing artists from Japan. These women are good at various Japanese arts, such as traditional music, dancing, and song. The word "geisha" comes from Chinese words that mean "art" (GEI) and "person" (SHA). So "geisha" actually means "artist." In the... Read more

A Wee (Wii) Gaming Machine

B1-Intermediate Biz Biz Step 2A BNC Levels CEFR Levels Courses Protected Step 2 Stories Tech 1

ReadOasis Step 2 Nintendo makes video games and gaming machines. It is one of the largest gaming companies in the world. Nintendo's popularity took off in 2006 with the release of the Nintendo Wii. The portable Nintendo DS is also extremely popular. In 2007, the company had an income... Read more

The 10-20-30 Rule

B1-Intermediate Biz BNC Levels CEFR Levels Protected Step 5 Stories 0

By Guy KawasakiReadOasis Step 5 The seventh thing is you need to follow what I call the 10-20-30 rule. I have this thing called Meniere's disease. Meniere's disease has three symptoms: hearing loss, tinnitus, which is a constant ringing in my ear, and sometimes I get dizzy or vertigo... Read more

To Sell is Human

B1-Intermediate Biz BNC Levels CEFR Levels Protected Step 5 Stories 0

Book Trailer by Daniel PinkReadOasis Step 5 What if everything we knew about sales turned out to be wrong? For instance, we think the only people in sales are the folks who try to get us to buy stuff. That's sales as we know it, and it’s huge. It's... Read more

Where Did It All Come From?

B1-Intermediate BNC Levels CEFR Levels Ideas Listen!Protected Step 2 Stories 0

ReadOasis Step 2 A father and son are enjoying the night sky together. The moon and stars are shining brightly. The boy asks, "Where did it all come from?" The father answers simply, "God made it." "But Daddy, if God made it all, who made God?" This question has... Read more

Get Your Goals!

B1-Intermediate BNC Levels CEFR Levels Listen!Protected Sciences Step 2 Stories 0

By Richard WisemanReadOasis Step 3 Note: the following is a text of a talk given by Richard Wiseman. "I tracked the lives of 5,000 people as they attempted to achieve their New Year's resolutions. Now most of them failed, but ten percent did obtain their aims and ambitions. But what... Read more

Practice Makes Genius

B1-Intermediate BNC Levels CEFR Levels Protected Sciences Step 4 Stories Top Picks 3

By D.S. Aims ReadOasis Step 4 Tiger Woods started playing golf when he was two years old. Tiger was a mere toddler when his father began training him to become a great golfer. As a boy, baseball phenomenon Ichiro Suzuki practiced with his father every day. The practice sessions... Read more

A Giant of Business (Step 2)

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By Tek SmithReadOasis Step 2 Black liquid flew out of the ground and towards the sky. It was oil, black gold. And it had the power to light up homes. It had the power to run the engine of the American economy. It had the power to make a... Read more

The Enemy is Fat

B1-Intermediate BNC Levels CEFR Levels Protected Sciences Step 3 Stories 0

ReadOasis Step 3(Part 1) George arrives at work every day at nine in the morning. All day long, he sits at his desk working with a computer. His job is pretty easy, and the pay is not bad. But little does he know that day by day George is... Read more

Culture of Innovation (Step 2)

B1-Intermediate BNC Levels CEFR Levels Courses Ideas Invention Step 2A Protected Step 2 Stories

ReadOasis Step 2(Part 1) It was a warm summer evening. The sun had already set, and the city lights were shining. In a busy part of Tokyo, people were leaving work. Some were going home. Others were going out to enjoy the evening. It was an ordinary night. But... Read more

3 Questions for Your New Year’s Resolution (Step 3)

B1-Intermediate BNC Levels CEFR Levels Ideas Public Step 3 Stories 1

ReadOasis Step 3 At the start of every year, millions of people make new resolutions. This means that they promise themselves to do something differently, or to attempt something new. For example, many people want to lose weight, quit smoking, or change another bad habit. Others want to learn... Read more