Educators, please click here to request a desk copy.

Key Features of the Ten Steps Series

Focus on the basics.  The book is designed to explain, in a clear, step-by-step way, the essential elements of each skill. Many examples are provided to ensure that students understand each point. In general, the focus is on teaching the skills—not just on explaining them and not just on testing them.

Frequent practice and feedback.  Because abundant practice and careful feedback are essential to learning, this book includes numerous activities. Students can get immediate feedback on the practice exercises in Part One by turning to the limited answer key at the back of the book. The answers to the review and mastery tests in Part One, the reading questions in Part Two, and the relationships and combined-skills tests in Part Three are in the Instructor’s Edition and the Instructor's Manual.

High interest level.  Dull and unvaried readings and exercises work against learning. Students need to experience genuine interest and enjoyment in what they read. Teachers as well should be able to take pleasure in the selections, for their own good feeling about them can carry over favorably into class work. The readings in the book, then, have been chosen not only for the appropriateness of their reading level but also for their compelling content. They should engage students and teachers alike.

Ease of use.  The logical sequence in each chapter—from explanation to example to practice to review tests to mastery tests—helps make the skills easy to teach. The book’s organization into distinct parts also makes for ease of use. Within a single class, for instance, instructors  can work on a particular skill in Part One, review another skill with one or more mastery tests, and provide variety by having students read one of the selections in Part Two. The limited answer key at the back of the book also makes for versatility: the teacher can assign parts of some chapters for self-teaching. Finally, the mastery tests—each on its own tear-out page—and the combined-skills tests make it a simple matter for a teacher to test and evaluate student progress.

Integration of skills.  Students do more than learn the skills individually in Part One. They also learn to apply the skills together through the reading selections in Parts One and Two as well as the combined-skills tests in Part Three. They become effective readers and thinkers through repeated practice in applying a combination of skills.

Thinking activities.  Thinking activities—in the form of outlining, mapping, and summarizing—are a distinctive feature of the book. In addition, four discussion questions at the end of each reading selection encourage student reflection, as do the writing activities that are provided for each selection.

Available electronic resources. This text can be purchased with Ten Steps Plus, a subscription-based collection of digital materials including interactive exercises, mastery tests, assessments, bonus readings, instructional videos, eBooks* of the entire Ten Steps Series, and more than 100 Townsend Library titles. Click here to learn more about subscription options, including discounted digital/textbook bundles.

*eBooks are not included with Ten Steps Plus LE (Limited Edition).

Efficacy Report. Results from a study that examined the impact of the Townsend Press Ten Steps Series on students' reading skills in higher education developmental reading courses are available (full report, short report). This study was conducted by an independent research firm.

Table of Contents

 

Preface: To the Instructor         

INTRODUCTION 
1    How to Become a Better Reader and Thinker     
2    Some Quick Study Tips          
3    The Power of Reading      

PART ONE 
Ten Steps to Advancing College Reading Skills  
    
1    Vocabulary in Context
        Reading: All Washed Up? Sara Hansen
        Mastery Tests  

2    Main Ideas 
        Reading: How Dual-Earner Couples Cope Diane E. Papalia and Sally Wendkos Olds 
        Mastery Tests

3   Supporting Details
        Reading: Now More Than Ever: Community Colleges  Daniel Wister
        Mastery Tests

4    Implied Main Ideas
        Reading: Forget What You Know about Good Study Habits Benedict Carey
        Mastery Tests

5    Relationships I
        Reading: Soft Addictions Tim Bashard 
        Mastery Tests  

6    Relationships II
        Reading: The Influence of the Self-Fulfilling Prophecy   Ronald B. Adler and Neil Towne
        Mastery Tests

7    Inferences
        Reading: He Was First  John Kellmayer
        Mastery Tests           

8    Purpose and Tone
        Reading: What Causes Hearing Loss Jane E. Brody
        Mastery Tests

9    Argument
        Reading: Obedience: Milgram's Controversial Studies Mary M. Gergen and others
        Mastery Tests

10   Critical Reading
        Reading: Managing Conflicts in Relationships Rudolph F. Verderber 
        Mastery Tests

PART TWO
Ten Reading Selections

1    The Professor Is a Dropout Beth Johnson

2    Taming the Anger Monster Anne Davidson

3    Young and Isolated Jennifer M. Silva

4    My Father's Hands  Calvin R. Worthington

5    Motivation and Needs Virginia Quinn

6    Effects of the Automobile James M. Henslin
 
7    Two Main Forms of Scientific Inquiry Neil A. Campbell, and others 

8    Bad Managers Michael W. Drafke and Stan Kossen
 
9    Better, More Affordable Colleges Start Online  L. Rafael Reif

10   Into the Light Tanya Savory

PART THREE 
Relationships and Combined-Skills Tests

1. Relationships Tests

2. Combined Skill Tests
 

PART FOUR
For Further Study

1. More about Summarizing and Outlining

2. Additional Tests on Fact and Opinion

3. Three Additional Readings

4. Understanding Bias

5. Writing Assignments

 

Appendixes 
      Pronunciation Guide 
      Limited Answer Key

What's included in this Ten Steps Plus textbook bundle:

NEW! Ten Steps eBooks:

Ten Steps is the best selling series of books for teaching college-level reading. A subscription to Ten Steps Plus provides access to eBooks of the entire series inside the Learning Center!  

NEW! The Readings Bank:

This collection of new readings—complete with Lexile scores, reading comprehension questions, and writing assignments—retains the same lively, high-interest tone and content found in our books.

NEW! The Skills Bank:

Exercises and tests from Ten Steps have been restructured for tutoring programs, labs, or co-requisite classes. The result? You can now choose the skill, level, and sequence you want to teach. Want to cover a unit on main ideas? Looking to teach a modular course on inferences? The Skills Bank makes it easy.

NEW! The Townsend Library:

To become stronger readers, students need to read. With Ten Steps Plus, they can. eBooks of all 100+ titles in the popular Townsend Library are available AND can be assigned in classes.

The Learning Center has long hosted thousands of Ten Steps exercises and test items to teach reading skills. These acclaimed materials are now part of Ten Steps Plus.

Supplementary Materials

Print Supplement

Like all Ten Steps texts, this edition features an annotated Instructor’s Edition, which is identical to the student book except that it provides answers to all the practices and tests. In addition, the Instructor's Edition includes useful hints for teachers as well instructive annotation to help scaffold lessons. No other book on the market has such detailed and helpful annotations.

Digital Supplements

1. A downloadable Instructor’s Manual and Test Bank includes suggestions for teaching, a model syllabus, and readability levels for the text and the reading selections. The test bank contains four additional mastery tests for each of the skills chapters in Part I—all on letter-sized sheets so they can be copied easily for use with students. This resource is available to all instructors in the Learning Center. 

2. Downloadable PowerPoint presentations. Crafted to teach key skills and concepts directly to students, these PowerPoints are available free to instructors in the Learning Center. 

3. This discounted bundle includes a printed textbook and Ten Steps Plus, a collection of digital resources including an eBook of this and other Ten Steps texts, accompanying exercises, mastery tests, a comprehensive Skills Bank, a Readings Bank, and access to over 100 Townsend Library eBooks. Note:Students must have a paid subscription to access Ten Steps Plus materials. 

 

To Obtain Supplements

Print supplements can be obtained quickly by calling Townsend Press (1-800-772-6410), by sending a fax on school letterhead to 1-800-225-8894, or by e-mailing Customer Service at cs@townsendpress.com. Digitalsupplements are free to educators with a valid instructor account in the Learning Center. Get yours here.