PART II ENGLISH: COMMUNICATION THEORY AND PRACTICE

Course Code: 21UOE201

Unit I - Listening Skill :
• Critical Listening • Comprehensive Listening• Dialogic Listening• Emphatic
Listening • Informational Listening
Speaking Skill : • Importance of Speaking skills• Three main aspects of
Effective Speaking• Elements of Speaking Skills• Methods to improve Speaking
Skills

Unit II - Reading Skill :

• The Art of Effective Reading• Need for Developing Efficient Reading•
Benefits of Effective Reading• Speed of Reading• Four Basic Steps to Effective
Reading• Overcoming the obstacles in Reading• Tips for Effective Reading•
Types of Reading – Skimming and Scanning• Reading Comprehension•
Reading and reporting an Article
Writing Skill: • Précis Writing • Paragraph Writing• Structure of Paragraph•
Construction of Paragraph• Essay Writing• Structure of Essay • Letter Writing•
Importance of Writing Letter • Elements of Structure and Layout of Letter• E-
Mail Etiquettes

Unit III - Grammar :

• Parts of Speech and its types • Prefix and Suffix• Sentence and its Types•
Error Spotting• Tenses• Articles • Question Tags• Synonyms and Antonyms

Unit IV - Laboratory Practice :

• Listening Skills • Reading Skills• Sentence and its Types• Functions of
Sentences• Vocabulary • Synonyms from the Context • Writing Skills • Reading
Comprehension• Meaning, Root word • Foreign Phrases

Unit V - Laboratory Practice: • Reading Comprehension• Word Mentor•

Error Spotting • Commonly Confused words • Guess the Words• Articles •
Anagrams• Listen and Speak • Dialogue Writing• Paragraph Writing
 Unit I, II INTRODUCTION
The word communication has been derived from the Latin word 'communis'
which means 'common' which consequently implies common understanding.
Communication is the act of giving, receiving, and sharing information – in
other words, talking or writing, and listening or reading. Good communicators
listen carefully, speak or write clearly, and respect different opinions.
Communication is simply the act of transferring information from one place,
person or group to another. The three main types of communication are verbal,
nonverbal and visual.
Every communication involves (at least) one sender, a message and a recipient.
This may sound simple, but communication is actually a very complex
subject.Accurate, effective and unambiguous communication is actually
extremely hard.
Communication is more than simply the transmission of information. The term
requires an element of success in transmitting or imparting a message, whether
information, ideas, or emotions.Communication serves five major purposes: to
inform, to express feelings, to imagine, to influence, and to meet social
expectations. Each of these purposes is reflected in a form of communication.
Spoken or Verbal Communication, which includes face-to-face, telephone,
radio or television and other media.Written Communication: which includes
letters, e-mails, social media, books, magazines, the Internet and other media.
Until recent times, a relatively small number of writers and publishers were
very powerful when it came to communicating the written word.
Non-Verbal Communication, covering body language, gestures& Posture that
is, how we dress or act, where we stand, and even our scent. There are many
subtle ways that we communicate (perhaps even unintentionally) with others.
For example, the tone of voice can give clues to mood or emotional state, whilst
hand signals or gestures can add to a spoken message.
Visualizations: graphs and charts, maps, logos and other visualizations can all
communicate messages.
Communication Process
Communication is the backbone of our society. It allows us to form
connections, influence decisions, and motivate change. Without communication
skills, the ability to progress in the working world and in life, itself, would be
nearly impossible. Public speaking is one of the most important and most
dreaded forms of communication.

L-S-R-W is the four skills of language learning, a set of four capabilities that
allow an individual to comprehend and produce spoken language for proper and
effective interpersonal communication. These skills are Listening, Speaking,
Reading, and Writing.

J. A. Bright proposed the LSRW (listening, speaking, reading, and

writing) order of teaching for learning English as a foreign language.The
listening process involves five stages: receiving, understanding, evaluating,
remembering, and responding.

Communication ranges from non-verbal, such as a glance and raised eyebrows,

to verbal, such as a change in pitch and tone. Let’s take an in-depth look at all
the ways that we communicate with each other.

1. Non-verbal communication
It is interesting to note that non-verbal communication is used both intentionally
and unintentionally.Most people do not have perfect control over their facial
expressions – we all have heard an unprofessional comment and raised our
eyebrows in response, regardless of whether or not it was wise to do so.By
learning more about how we use non-verbal communication, you will be better
able to master yours and ensure that you are conveying your message exactly
the way you wish to.

Facial expressions
We often use facial expressions as a way to communicate that we are listening
and engaged with the person speaking.A smile, furrowed eyebrows, or a
quizzical expression all convey information to the speaker about how you are
responding to their conversation.They work to help grease the conversation,
keeping it going without having to interject verbally to confirm your continued
interest.

If you have ever spoken to a stone-faced person, you will know how important
facial expressions are in a conversation.

Posture
How you position yourself during a conversation is important. If you angle
yourself towards the person, with a relaxed and open posture, you invite them to
engage with you more fully.Leaning back, crossing arms, or turning away from
the speaker conveys a very different message – and not a positive one.Just as no
one wants to have a conversation with the back of someone’s head, talking to
someone with an extremely closed posture creates a more difficult and
unpleasant conversation.

Gestures and physical touch

Depending on the person, and their country of origin, they may use gestures and
physical touch a lot, or almost never. However, there is a lot of information
conveyed in these actions.A gentle touch on the arm can signal encouragement,
while an overly strong handshake can be an act of dominance.Someone
fidgeting with their hands while talking to you about a problem can signal guilt
or avoidance and using many grand gestures while presenting an idea could
convey excitement or confidence.

Eye contact
We all know the importance of eye contact.When someone is unable to
maintain eye contact, we take this to mean that they are being untruthful, shifty,
or not paying attention.Being able to maintain eye contact while listening will
ensure that the speaker knows that you are present and engaged.While speaking,
it shows that you are connecting with the listener, and in cases where you are
delivering unpleasant news, is doubly important.Being able to tell someone an
unpleasant message while looking them directly in the eye shows that you
respect them and are an honest and sincere person.

2. Verbal communication
When we speak, we are communicating much more than just the content of our
words.We are also using pitch and tone, as well as the level of formality we use
to convey important subtext to the person we are speaking with.By carefully
choosing how we use each of these aspects, we can be sure that our message is
received exactly as intended.From greeting coworkers to leading a client pitch
meeting to present in front of the entire company, verbal communication factors
into our work lives in a massive way.

Pitch
When speaking, our emotions can often come into play.If we are angry, upset,
or frustrated, our pitch might raise, conveying to the listener that we are
experiencing a strong emotion.This is not necessarily a bad thing, but being able
to control it allows you to make sure that you are effectively communicating.

Tone
We all encounter situations that are frustrating or upsetting.Allowing that to
change our tone from calm and professional to curt, short, or rude is always a
mistake.Tone conveys a lot of information to the listener about how the speaker
views them.To build positive interpersonal relationships in an office
environment, we should all endeavour to speak in a professional and respectful
tone.

Content
Of course, content is the most important part of verbal communication. What
we say, and the words we choose to use, are crucial.While most office
communications tend to be more formal than, for example, meeting a friend for
coffee, we should make sure that we leave space for personal chats and
relationship building.Think also about how technical your content is. If you are
talking with developers about specific aspects of code, you should use different
terms than when talking to the marketing team about new developments within
the app.

3. Written communication
Effective communication by writing is a massively important skill, especially as
more people are working remotely and keep in touch throughout the workday
through Skype, Slack, or other digital mediums.From a Slack message to an
email to a customer to a new employee’s training guide, we write every day and
it is crucial that we understand how to do so effectively.

In fact, as we increasingly rely on written communication, we are all faced with

just how easy it is to create misunderstandings when using this medium.Unclear
messages, the information gone missing, or an incorrect understanding of tone
or content are all problems that happen with written communication every day.

Sometimes the reader will misread the tone of a message because they are
having a bad day, or just had a run-in with an unpleasant person.No matter
what, one important skill to have when relying on written communication is
knowing when you need to stop using it. A simple call, in almost all cases, can
solve these communication problems.If you sense that there is a
miscommunication happening, or just starting, nip it in the bud with a quick
verbal chat and you’ll save a lot of time and frustration for all parties.

Structure
When writing, it is important to think about how you are presenting the
information. Using paragraphs and line breaks are necessary.Creating an
impenetrable wall of text will disengage the reader – understanding and
applying a proper structure will let the reader take in the information in
digestible chunks.Present your argument or thesis, take the time to back it up
with clear proof, add in the relevant information to make sure that the reader
understands the point fully, then close with a conclusion.

Clarity
It is a hard balance to strike between over or under explaining concepts. If you
are writing instructions for a new employee, how detailed should you be?Of
course, this depends on the person, but over-explaining a little bit is much better
than leaving the reader clueless.Be thoughtful about your audience, what will
they know and what do you need to explain in more detail?

Content
Written content tends to be a bit more formal than verbal.Leave out the slang,
use proper punctuation and spelling, and remember that anything written –
especially in the digital age – will remain, even if you delete it.

Err on the side of professionalism every time you write something. Messages on
Slack, for example, do not need to be written as formally as a cover letter, but
they should be polite, professional, and well-written.Be aware that written jokes
can fall flat without the added context of tone or facial expressions.

4. Visual communication
Visual has become the most used type of communication, driven by social
media, YouTube, and other platforms of the digital era.As more and more
people and organisations use these channels of communication, the more we are
used to, and even dependent upon, using visual communication to stand out in a
crowded platform.

Understanding that your visual communication must be in line with your brand
and marketing, and knowing that there must be a developed and cohesive
strategy for that, is crucial.We rely heavily on visual communication.

There are many ways that visual communication, like charts, photographs,
sketches, video, graphs, and even emojis and GIFs, can help improve the
understanding of your message.Think about how charts can bring data to life,
making it much easier to understand than presenting a long stream of numbers,
or how a sketch of a new UX is much more effective than a text description.We
rely on visuals to elevate our understanding of complex ideas.
Content
While it is tempting to include visuals to add a bit of diversity and interest, you
should consider what they bring to the table.

Are they helpful?

Are they necessary?
Do they add to the overall message?
Not all communications need to have visuals added, and in some cases, they
might detract from what you are trying to communicate.

You should endeavour to make sure that you are not adding fluff to your
message, but rather strengthening your audience’s understanding of it.

Tone
As with all communications, make sure that you are meeting your audience
where they are.If you are presenting complex data, include the relevant
descriptions, at the right technical level, so that your audience can follow.Don’t
use images that are graphic or could be upsetting, and remember the same rule
applies to visual communication as does to writing: don’t create anything that
you wouldn’t want to have associated with you in the future.
The three main types of listening most common in interpersonal communication
are:
Informational Listening (Listening to Learn)
Critical Listening (Listening to Evaluate and Analyse)
Therapeutic or Empathetic Listening (Listening to Understand Feeling and
Emotion)

There are 7 types of listening skills

Informational listening.
Discriminative listening.
Biased listening.
Sympathetic listening.
Comprehensive listening.
Empathetic or therapeutic listening.
Critical listening.

Unit I
Listening Skill
Critical listening
Critical listening is a process for understanding what is said and evaluating,
judging, and forming an opinion on what you hear. The listener assesses the
strengths and weaknesses of the content, agrees or disagrees with the
information, and analyzes and synthesizes material.
Critical thinking helps people better understand themselves, their motivations
and goals. When they can deduce information to find the most important parts
and apply those to their life, they can change their situation and promote
personal growth and overall happiness.
Benefits of Critical listening
 It promotes comprehension and absorption of material
 It provides a context for facts, events, and people
 It ensures that knowledge is judged on its merits
 It improves concentration
 It demonstrates your ability to perform an essential academic skill
Steps in critical reading

1. Skimming
a. Review text prior to class
b. Look at key words, titles, headings, phrases, dates, and places
2. Annotating
a. Read actively: talk back to the text
b. Write notes in the margins
c. Underline important ideas
d. Highlight memorable images
e. Mark thesis and key words
f. Underline sources
g. Identify confusing sections
 3. Summarizing
a. Paraphrase the overall idea
b. Select key words from the text
c. Outline the writer's arguments
4. Analyzing
a. Determine the overall meaning of the text
b. Consider whether and how evidence relates to the overall message
c. Evaluate the significance of the evidence
d. Pair your analysis with examples/evidence
e. Judge the credibility of the text and its author(s)
5. Re-reading
a. First reading: skim for main ideas
b. Second reading: reflect on text
c. Third reading: answer questions

Critical listening strategies

 Find areas of interest in the material you’re listening to
 Reserve judgment: recognize your emotional biases
 Work at listening: mentally summarize and review what is being said,
organize information, and find connections to what you already know
 Avoid distractions (internal or external)
 Listen for and note main ideas; focus on central themes

Comprehensive Listening
Comprehensive listening the act or action of grasping with the intellect . It is
about interpreting the words and ideas of the speaker. Examples of
comprehensive listening include watching the news, listening to a peer give a
presentation, or taking notes during a meeting. Because our brains work
differently, sometimes comprehensive listening can be complicated.
In simple words, understanding the meaning of the message is comprehensive
listening. It will make use of various analyses and evaluations that will interpret
the message delivered by the speaker.
The three main types of Comprehensive listening are:
 Informational Listening (Listening to Learn)
 Critical Listening (Listening to Evaluate and Analyse)
 Therapeutic or Empathetic Listening (Listening to Understand Feeling
and Emotion)
Dialogic listening
The word ‘dialogue’ originated from the Greek words ‘dia’, meaning ‘through’
and ‘logos’ meaning ‘words’. Thus dialogic listening means learning through
conversation. Dialogic listening is an alternative to active listening which was
developed by John Stewart and Milt Thomas. Dialogic listening is also known
as ‘relational listening’

Dialogic listening is a central component of dialogue. This type of listening

emphasizes conversation as a shared activity, rather than encouraging
participants to focus on and communicate their own views about an issue.

Of, relating to, or characterized by dialogue

Empathic listening
Empathic listening is the practice of being attentive and responsive to others’
input during conversation. Listening empathically entails making an emotional
connection with the other person and finding similarities between their
experience and your own so you can give a more heartfelt response.
Empathetic listening can help prevent or keep misunderstandings from
happening. The better you listen and the harder you work to understand what
others are thinking and feeling, the less likely you are to misunderstand them.

The Benefits of Empathic Listening

 Builds trust and respect,
 Enables the disputants to release their emotions,
 Reduces tensions
 Encourages the surfacing of information, and.
 Creates a safe environment that is conducive to collaborative problem
solving.
“In empathic listening, you listen with your ears, but you also, and more
importantly, listen with your eyes and with your heart. You listen for feeling,
for meaning.
Informational listening
Informational listening is what you use when you are seeking new
knowledge.Examples could include attending a lecture, watching an
instructional video, attending a workshop, listening to a news broadcast, or
listening to an instructional podcast.
Informational, or informative, listening is when an individual is listening to
learn or understand something. Informational listening (or informative listening)
is the type of listening people use when they are trying to learn.
It focuses on the ability of an individual to understand a speaker's message

Speaking Skill
Speaking skills are defined as the skills which allow us to communicate
effectively. They give us the ability to convey information verbally and in a way
that the listener can understand.
Speaking is an interactive process where information is shared, and if necessary,
acted upon by the listener. So, it’s important to develop both speaking and
listening skills in order to communicate effectively.
Importance of Speaking Skill
Speaking skills are one of the most important skills we learn, as they allow us to
communicate with others and express our thoughts and feelings. Speaking skills
can be separated into formal and informal speaking skills, and we use both types
of speaking skills in a variety of contexts throughout life.
Informal speaking skills are important for conversations with friends and
family, helping us to form emotional connections. Formal speaking skill on the
other hand, is necessary for workplaces, in presentations or for conversations
with people you don’t know. Formal language is important as it helps us to
make a good impression on people and communicate politely.
It allows us to form connections, influence decisions, and motivate change.
Without communication skills, the ability to progress in the working world and
in life, itself, would be nearly impossible. Public speaking is one of the most
important and most dreaded forms of communication.
Being able to communicate an idea or thought clearly is an essential skill for
public speaking.
Three main aspects of Effective Speaking
Effective speaking means being able to say what you want to say in such a way
that it is heard and acted upon.
Your Voice
Your voice can reveal as much about your personal history as your appearance.
The sound of a voice and the content of speech can provide clues to an
individual’s emotional state. For instance, if self-esteem is low, it may be
reflected by hesitancy in the voice. A shy person may speak quietly, but
someone who is confident in themselves will be more likely to have command
of their voice and clarity of speech.
It is worth taking time to improve your command over your voice, especially if
you find it hard to speak in public. It can even help to boost your confidence!. It
is important to get used to the sound of your own voice. Most people are more
relaxed in a private situation, particularly at home, where there are no pressures
to conform to any other social rules and expectations. This is not the case in
public situations when there are all sorts of influences exerted upon the way
people speak.
Vocal Production

The following three core elements of vocal production need to be understood

for anyone wishing to become an effective speaker:
Volume - to be heard.
Clarity - to be understood.
Variety - to add interest.

Volume
This is not a question of treating the voice like the volume control on the TV
remote. Some people have naturally soft voices and physically cannot bellow.
Additionally, if the voice is raised too much, tonal quality is lost. Instead of
raising the voice, it should be ‘projected out’. Support the voice with lots of
breath – the further you want to project the voice out, the more breath you need.
It also needs to come from the diaphragm, not the throat.
Volume is the loudness or softness of your voice. If someone is talking too
loudly or too softly, it is difficult to concentrate on what he/she is saying. When
you are talking to another person it is important to speak at an appropriate
volume so that your listener can hear and understand your message.
Speaking with a proper volume is important but also make sure you are also
varying your volume. Speaking at different volumes throughout your
presentation is an effective way to highlight key points. Speaking at a lower
volume draws your audience in. Alternatively, a louder volume will emphasis
key points.

When talking to a group or meeting, it is important not to aim your talk to the
front row or just to the people nearest you. Instead, you need to consciously
project what you have to say to those furthest away. By developing a strong
voice, as opposed to a loud voice, you will be seen as someone positive.
Clarity
Clarity means you, as a sender of a message, will deliver a specific message.
Your message should have very specific goals. So rather than trying to say too
many things at the same time, make sure that you state clearly what you want
your audience to do. So make it clear about the intention of your message.
Clarity improves connection and engagement because it increases trust and
transparency. Clarity exposes purpose by unveiling expectations. Clarity tells
people exactly what you want. Testing your message reduces misinterpretation
and failure in communications.
Some people tend to speak through clenched teeth and with little movement of
their lips. It is this inability to open mouths and failure to make speech sounds
with precision that is the root cause of inaudibility. The sound is locked into the
mouth and not let out.
To have good articulation it is important to unclench the jaw, open the mouth
and give full benefit to each sound you make, paying particular attention to the
ends of words. This will also help your audience as a certain amount of lip-
reading will be possible.
Variety
To make speech effective and interesting, certain techniques can be applied.
Like Pace, Volume, Pitch, Emphasis and Pause. However, it is important not to
sound false or as if you are giving a performance. Words convey meaning, but
the way that they are said reflects feelings and emotions. Vocal variety can be
achieved by variations in:
Pace: This is the speed at which you talk. If speech is too fast, then listeners will
not have time to assimilate what is being said. It is also a good idea to vary the
pace – quickening up at times and then slowing down – because this will help to
maintain interest.
Volume: By raising or lowering volume occasionally, you can create emphasis.
If you drop your voice to almost a whisper (as long as it is projected) for a
sentence or two, it will make your audience suddenly alert. Be careful not to
overuse this technique, though, or it will lose its impact.
Pitch – Inflection – Emphasis: When speaking in public, try to convey the
information with as much vocal energy and enthusiasm as possible. This does
not mean your voice has to swoop and dive all over the place in an uncontrolled
manner. Try to make the talk interesting. Remember that when you are nervous
or excited, your vocal chords tense and shorten, causing the voice to get higher.
Emphasise certain words and phrases within the talk to convey their importance
and help to add variety.
Pause: Pauses are powerful. They can be used for effect to highlight the
preceding statement or to gain attention before an important message. Pauses
mean silence for a few seconds. Listeners interpret meaning during pauses so
have the courage to stay silent for up to five seconds – dramatic pauses like this
convey authority and confidence.

The four elements of speaking skills

Vocabulary:
To develop our speaking skills, we first need to know the right words.
Vocabulary development begins when we are infants, as we learn to describe
the world around us and communicate our needs. This progresses from single
words to sentences when children are 2 or 3, at which point they will normally
have a vocabulary of 150-300 words.
Vocabulary development is where students understand the meanings and
pronunciations of words necessary for communication.When they understand
what a word means, they can check what the word or sentence means. This is so
important so they can keep up a conversation. If they understand what the other
person is saying and they know what vocabulary to say back, they are halfway
there to communicating effectively.
Grammar:
Grammar is Not something we only need for written language. Grammar
includes lots ofimportant areas for spoken language such as an understanding of
tenses and the correct way to structure sentences. Grammar helps us to convey
information in a way that the listener will recognise and understand.
Pronunciation:
Understanding how to correctly pronounce words is another important element
of speaking skills. We learn how to pronounce words by listening to those
around us, such as our parents, friends and teachers. Pronunciation varies from
country to country, and even city to city!

A lot of this comes from phonemic awareness. This involves understanding the
small units that make up spoken language. English can differ quite a lot
compared to other languages. Some phonemes might not be in ESL students’
native languages and children’s minds are trained to categorise phonemes in
their first language, so it can become confusing. Developing this ability in
English can come from playing language games and using songs and poems to
reiterate rhythm and repetition. Phonics is where students start to see the
relationship between the sounds of spoken language and graphemes which are
the letters and spellings representing sounds in written language.
Fluency:
Fluency in spoken language is something that naturally develops as children go
through school, as they are using and practising speaking skills every day.
Reading widely (and out loud) is a good way to improve fluency as it introduces
children to new vocabulary and reinforces their knowledge of spoken language.
Fluency is the ability to hear words and understand them straight away. If they
see a word written down, they can read it aloud and pronounce it properly.
Ways to develop this include guiding your students to read passages out loud.
You could also get your students to read aloud in front of the class. This builds
their confidence and also helps them to annunciate better.
The more fluent your students are in English, the more interesting, exciting and
insightful conversations they can have.

Methods used to improve Speaking Skills :

Public speaking skills are among the most important skills that you should have.
If you are equipped with public speaking skills, you will be able to unlock many
outstanding opportunities that come your way. With that, you will have the
power to transform your life into whatever you desire.

Here is a list of seven effective methods to improve yourspeaking skills

1. Get to know about your audience
You should do a bit of background research on the audience, then you should
align your topic according to the audience. This will help you to determine the
level of information, choice of words, and the motivational statements that you
should deliver. This will also help you to reduce nervousness at the time of
public speaking.
2. Create a good preparation outline
At the time of getting ready for the speech, you need to make sure that you are
equipped with a proper outline. This outline should be linked with concise and
useful speaking notes. Ny creating a well-thought-out outline, you’ll ensure
your message is clear and that you’re able to practice it effectively. That’s
where you need to take a look at Pops Outliner. It will help you to create the
outline with ease, as well as create automatic speaking notes using artificial
intelligence.
3. Don’t read
You should never read out anything while you deliver a public speech unless
you are quoting someone or are relaying detailed technical information. Instead,
utilize your outline and speaking notes to practice well enough to where you
internalize your message and can deliver it. Note, internalization is not
memorization. When you internalize your message, the words may come out
differently during your speech, but the central idea stays intact.
4. Practice, Practice, Practice
Just like with playing the piano or any other skills, proper practice will provide
you with the opportunity to improve your public speaking skills an effective
manner. When you practice a lot, you will be able to reduce your nervousness
because you will be prepared. While you are practicing, you can get the help of
Pops Advisor as your speech coach to end up with better results. Pops Advisor
provides you feedback on your content, organization, body language, and more.
5.Grab attention at the beginning
When you are starting a speech, you need to try your best to grab attention from
the audience. Then you will be able to get people to listen to what you are going
to speak about. Likewise, you need to make sure that you are providing a
dynamic end to the speech as well, that way they remember what you told them.

6.Use your hands and voice effectively

Body language can contribute a lot towards the success of speech that you
deliver. Hence, it is important for you to use both hands and voice effectively.
Then you can communicate your message effectively to the audience. Don’t
overdo it though, body language can also become a distraction. Find a good
balance between standing completely still and running around wildly. Show you
audience you have enthusiasm without overloading their senses. Don’t distract
from your message.

7.Learn from feedback

After you deliver a public speech, try to find a few people from the audience
and ask for feedback. You may have a much different experience as the speaker
versus an observer in the audience. You will be able to figure out what you did
correct and where you didn’t do well. You can use such feedback to improve
your public speaking skills and boost confidence. You can also get such
feedback by through the tools offered by the Power of Public Speaking, or
Pops!

Unit II
Reading Skill

Reading skills are abilities that pertain to a person’s capacity to read,

comprehend, interpret and decode written language and texts. Exceptional
reading skills can be highly beneficial to assimilating and responding to written
communications like emails, messages, letters and other written messages.
There are five aspects to the process of reading: phonics, phonemic awareness,
vocabulary, reading comprehension and fluency.
Four types of Reading Skills
•Skimming. •Scanning. •Intensive. •Extensive.
• The Art of Effective Reading
Reading effectively means reading in a way that helps you understand,
evaluate, and reflect on a written text. Reading is an art form, because it
requires many of the same skills as making art. When we read, we are
making the novel, the story, the play, the poem, the memoir, with the
author. On the shelf, the pages are simply full of black marks, but the book
comes alive in our hand, our ear, our eye.
To improve students’ reading comprehension, teachers should introduce
the seven cognitive strategies of effective readers: activating, inferring,
monitoring-clarifying, questioning, searching-selecting, summarizing, and
visualizing-organizing. Reading is important because it makes you more
empathetic, and knowledgeable and stimulates your imagination. Reading
allows one to develop a better understanding of the subject and gain
conceptual clarity. It fires up your imagination and stimulates the memory
centers of your mind. It helps recall information as well as stabilize your
emotions. The importance of a reading habit is that it strengthens mental
muscles.

• Need for Developing Efficient Reading

By reading effectively you will learn to question and survey the text you are
reading to gain a better understanding of your subject. By improving your
reading skills you can reduce unnecessary reading time and this will enable you
to read in a more focused manner. Reading teaches you new words and
perspectives. It helps strengthen language and sharpens sentence structure. It
gives you a better command over the language. All of these are critical to being
a good speaker. Efficient reading is developing effective reading strategies that
match your purpose for reading. It is an active process and involves making
decisions about what you are looking for and how you can locate it.

• Benefits of Effective Reading

5 Benefits of Reading
As we celebrate Read a Book Day (6 September), let’s escape into the world of
fiction or non-fiction and learn something new. A great day for encouraging
others to read a book and share the different benefits that are associated with
reading, which is listed below:
1. Reduces stress and helps you relax
Just letting yourself get lost on a good book is the greatest escape from the
worries and stresses of the everyday world. A 2009 study at the University of
Sussex showed that stress is reduced up to 68% just by reading! So, when you
feel stress just grab a book and be engrossed in the story lines and allow your
mind and body to relax.

2. Improves your concentration and memory

Not only should we do physical exercise to be healthy, we also need to do some

mental exercise that will push our memory and focus to the limits. Reading is
the best mental exercise for us, and you have to remember different characters,
settings, plots, twists, and connections. This will strengthen your memory and
concentration because all of your attention is focused on the story.
3. Vocabulary expansion and strengthens your writing abilities
Reading a well-written book will expose you to more words, and this will help
you be a better communicator. Rather than just saying that you are sad or not in
the mood to people, you can say you’re anxious, tired, irritated, frustrated, or
weary. Because even though all those words can be described as sad, each needs
a different solution. Increasing your vocabulary, communications skills, and
being exposed to different writing styles will help improve your writing skills.
4. Enhances your knowledge
When you read recipes, magazines, newspapers, articles, or books, your head
will be filled with information. We never know when it will be useful, but
having all this information might come in handy in the future
5 Increases your imagination and creativity
Reading sparks imagination and creativity, being immersed in a new world and
characters. This will nurture your brain to develop ideas, possibilities,
understanding, and be more open to hearing the opinions of others.
Speed of Reading
Speed reading is any of many techniques claiming to improve one’s ability to
read quickly. Speed-reading methods include chunking and minimizing
subvocalization. The many available speed-reading training programs may
utilize books, videos, software, and seminars.

Speed reading is the process of rapidly recognizing and absorbing phrases or

sentences on a page all at once, rather than identifying individual words. Speed-
reading refers to mechanisms involved in improving the quick reading skill of
an individual. The techniques involved include chunking and reducing
subvocalization. Multiple programs exist to help one develop their speed-
reading skills and constitute of books, software, seminars as well as videos.

• Four Basic Steps to Effective Reading

Skimming:
Skimming, sometimes referred to as gist reading, means going through the text
to grasp the main idea. Here, the reader doesn’t pronounce each and every word
of the text but focuses their attention on the main theme or the core of the text.
Examples of skimming are reading magazines or newspapers and searching for
a name in a telephone directory.

Scanning: Here, the reader quickly scuttles across sentences to get to a

particular piece of information. Scanning involves the technique of rejecting or
ignoring irrelevant information from the text to locate a specific piece of
information.

Intensive Reading : Intensive reading is far more time-consuming than

skimming and scanning as it needs the reader’s attention to detail. It involves
close reading that aims at the accuracy of comprehension. Here, the reader has
to understand the meaning of each and every word.

Extensive reading : Extensive Reading (ER) is the process of reading longer

easier texts for an extended period of time without a breakdown of
comprehension, feeling overwhelmed, or the need to take breaks. Extensive
reading involves learners reading texts for enjoyment and to develop general
reading skills.

Extensive reading lays more emphasis on fluency and less on accuracy. It

usually involves reading for pleasure and is more of an out-of-classroom
activity. It is highly unlikely for readers to take up the extensive reading of text
they do not like.
• Overcoming the obstacles in Reading

Lack of Concentration :
Poor concentration emanates from poor reading habits. If we are not used to
reading, it often appears to be an unpleasant task when we are forced to do it.
Since there is no escape from reading, we need to cultivate an active interest in
the reading assignments. Gradually, our concentration begins to improve if we
consciously start taking interest in the reading activity.

Uninteresting Subject Matter

The type of material selected for reading often influences one’s reading. An
unfamiliar subject in school or college may pose a serious problem to the
student and his/her reading rate would come down considerably. On the other
hand, if one reads a familiar subject, naturally the reading speed would gather
greater momentum.

Lack of Motivation

Lack of motivation, at times, makes us perform below our full potential. We

may already have the latent ability to read faster than we normally do. What we
need is the inner drive, the persistent desire to improve our reading rate. Those
who prepare for competitive examinations are so motivated that they develop
greater reading speed.

Defective Reading

Defective reading happens from two sources- ophthalmic and neurological. The
former is due to defective eyesight like shortsightedness, longsightedness, etc.
Stammering( stuttering) and Alexia are neurological defects for which medical
treatment or counselling should be recommended. The problem of partial or
total deafness also impedes reading.

Indiscriminate Use of the Dictionary

Some damage to reading habits is also done because of the lack of guidance
about the proper utilisation of the dictionary. Some students are misled into
cramming the dictionary they possess. Another misuse of the dictionary is the
tendency to refer to it the moment one comes across a word one finds difficult
to understand.
• Tips for Effective Reading

Strategy & Definition

Activating - “Priming the cognitive pump” in order to recall relevent prior

knowledge and experiences from long-term memory in order to extract and
construct meaning from text

Inferring – Bringing together what is spoken (written) in the text, what is

unspoken (unwritten) in the text, and what is already known by the reader in
order to extract and construct meaning from the text

Monitoring-Clarifying - Thinking about how and what one is reading, both

during and after the act of reading, for purposes of determining if one is
comprehending the text combined with the ability to clarify and fix up any mix-
ups

Questioning - Engaging in learning dialogues with text (authors), peers, and

teachers through self-questioning, question generation, and question answering

Searching-Selecting – Searching a variety of sources in order to select

appropriate information to answer questions, define words and terms, clarify
misunderstandings, solve problems, or gather information

Summarizing – Restating the meaning of text in one’s own words — different

words from those used in the original text

Visualizing-Organizing Constructing a mental image or graphic organizer for

the purpose of extracting and constructing meaning from the text.

• Types of Reading – Skimming and Scanning

Skimming : Skimming, sometimes referred to as gist reading, means going

through the text to grasp the main idea. Here, the reader doesn’t pronounce each
and every word of the text but focuses their attention on the main theme or the
core of the text. Examples of skimming are reading magazines or newspapers
and searching for a name in a telephone directory.
Scanning : Here, the reader quickly scuttles across sentences to get to a
particular piece of information. Scanning involves the technique of rejecting or
ignoring irrelevant information from the text to locate a specific piece of
information.

• Reading Comprehension

Reading comprehension is the ability to read text, process it and understand its
meaning. It relies on two, interconnected abilities: word reading (being able to
decode the symbols on the page) and language comprehension (being able to
understand the meaning of the words and sentences).

While, according to Barret’s taxonomy, there are five types of reading

comprehension: literal comprehension, reorganization, inferential, evaluation,
and appreciation.

• Reading and reporting an Article

The reader should begin by reading the title, abstract and conclusions first. If a
decision is made to read the entire article, the key elements of the article can be
perused in a systematic manner effectively and efficiently. A cogent and
organized method is presented to read articles published in scientific journals.

State the main ideas of the article. Identify the most important details that
support the main ideas. Write your summary in your own words; avoid copying
phrases and sentences from the article unless they’re direct quotations. Express
the underlying meaning of the article, not just the superficial details.
Writing Skill

Writing skills include all the knowledge and abilities related to expressing
yourself through the written word. It is a sound understanding of language
through grammar, spelling and punctuation. People with excellent writing skills
can tailor their tone and word choice to different situations and people. Writing
skills, including: writing mechanics: grammar, sentence structure, spelling, etc.
Planning a writing strategy. Communicating ideas clearly and concisely. Basic
writing skills: These include spelling, capitalization, punctuation, handwriting
and keyboarding, and sentence structure

• Précis Writing
Precis Writing is a summary. It is an exercise of compression. A precis writing
is a gist of any passage in as few words as possible. A precis should mention all
important details of the original paragraph so that anyone who is reading it is
able to understand the idea of the original passage.

Rules of Precis Writing:

Read the comprehension carefully.

Note down the important points.

Make a rough draft of the precis.

Make use of simple and precise language, as much as possible.

Draft the final precis once all the points have been included.

• Paragraph Writing

A paragraph is a self-contained unit of discourse in writing dealing with a

particular point or idea. Though not required by the orthographic conventions of
any language with a writing system, paragraphs are a conventional means of
organizing extended segments of prose.

Paragraphs should be structured so that each one begins with a topic sentence,
followed by supporting sentences and concluding with a linking sentence. The
topic sentence tells the reader what the paragraph is about, w hilst the
supporting sentences present evidence that clarifies and further illustrates this
topic.

Each paragraph in the body of the paper should include a topic sentence,
supporting details to support the topic sentence, and a concluding sentence. The
paragraph’s purpose and scope will determine its length, but most paragraphs
contain at least two complete sentences.

• Structure of Paragraph

Like other forms of writing, paragraphs follow a standard three-part structure

with a beginning, middle, and end. These parts are the topic sentence,
development and support, and conclusion.
Parts of the Basic Paragraph :

Single Controlling Idea.

Topic Sentence.

Supporting Details.

Concluding Sentence.

• Construction of Paragraph

Usually three supporting sentences, in addition to a topic sentence and

concluding sentence, are needed for a paragraph to be complete. The concluding
sentence or last sentence of the paragraph should summarize your main idea by
reinforcing your topic sentence.

Paragraphs contain three main parts: a topic sentence, supporting sentences and
a concluding sentence.

• Essay Writing

An essay is a piece of writing that is written to convince someone of something

or to simply inform the reader about a particular topic. In order for the reader to
be convinced or adequately informed, the essay must include several important
components to make it flow in a logical way.

An essay is a focused piece of writing designed to inform or persuade. There are

many different types of essay, but they are often defined in four categories:
argumentative, expository, narrative, and descriptive essays.

• Structure of Essay

The structure of an essay is divided into an introduction that presents your topic
and thesis statement, a body containing your in-depth analysis and arguments,
and a conclusion wrapping up your ideas.
The main parts (or sections) to an essay are the intro, body, and conclusion. In a
standard short essay, five paragraphs can provide the reader with enough
information in a short amount of space.

• Letter Writing

A letter is a written message that can be handwritten or printed on paper. It is

usually sent to the recipient via mail or post in an envelope, although this is not
a requirement as such. Any such message that is transferred via post is a letter, a
written conversation between two parties.

Letter writing is the exchange of written or printed messages. Distinctions are

commonly drawn between personal letters (sent between family members,
friends, or acquaintances) and business letters (formal exchanges with
businesses or government organizations).

• Importance of Writing Letter

Writing letters can be extremely therapeutic and can help to relieve anxiety. The
motion of putting pen on paper provides clarity and peace. Research also
suggests writing letters to your nearest and dearest to share your love and show
your appreciation can help you to feel happier and more satisfied.

https://www.fshc.co.uk/our-news/life-in-our-care-homes/the-importance-of-
writing-letters/

• Elements of Structure and Layout of Letter

1. The Heading : The heading contains the return address with the date on
the last line. Sometimes it is necessary to include a line before the date
with a phone number, fax number, or e-mail address. Often there is a line
skipped between the address and the date. It is not necessary to type a
return address if you are using stationery with the return address already
imprinted, but you should always use a date. Make sure the heading is on
the left margin.

Example:

Ms. Jane Doe

543 Washington St
Marquette, MI 49855

Tel:

Fax:

Email:

June 28, 2011

2. Recipient’s Address : This is the address you are sending your letter to.
Be sure to make it as complete as possible so it gets to its destination.
Always include title names (such as Dr.) if you know them. This is, like
the other address, on the left margin. If a standard 8 ½” x 11” paper is
folded in thirds to fit in a standard 9” business envelope, the inside
address should appear through the window in the envelope (if there is
one). Be sure to skip a line after the heading and before the recipient’s
address, then skip another line after the inside address before the greeting.
For an example, see the end of this sheet for a sample letter.

3. The Salutation : The salutation (or greeting) in a business letter is always

formal. It often begins with “Dear {Person’s name}.” Once again, be sure
to include the person’s title if you know it (such as Ms., Mrs., Mr., or Dr).
If you’re unsure about the person’s title or gender then just use their first
name. For example, you would use only the person’s first name if the
person you are writing to is “Jordan” and you do not know whether they
identify as male, female, or non-binary. The salutation always ends with a
colon.

4. The Body : The body is the meat of your letter. For block and modified
block letter formats, single space and left justify each paragraph. Be sure
to leave a blank line between each paragraph, however, no matter the
format. Be sure to also skip a line between the salutation and the body, as
well as the body and the close.

5. The Complimentary Close : The complimentary close is a short and polite

remark that ends your letter. The close begins at the same justification as
your date and one line after the last body paragraph. Capitalize the first
word of your closing (Thank you) and leave four lines for a signature
 between the close and the sender’s name. A comma should follow the
closing.

6. The Signature Line : Skip at least four lines after the close for your
signature, and then type out the name to be signed. If you are printing this
letter out and sending it by mail, you will sign your name in pen. This
line will include your first and last name, and often includes a middle
initial, although it is not required. You may put your title beforehand to
show how you wish to be addressed (Ms., Mrs., Dr.). The signature
should be in blue or black ink.

7. Enclosures : If you have any enclosed documents, such as a resume, you

can indicate this by typing “Enclosures” one line below the listing. You
also may include the name of each document.

• E-Mail Etiquettes : Email etiquette is the use of appropriate language,

conventions and formality in an email. Business emails usually demand formal
language and strict adherence to proper grammar and spelling. Email etiquette is
the observance and communication of generally accepted standards of sense,
grammar and politeness when sending email messages.

Unit II
Reading Skill
Define Reading Skills with its Types :
Reading skills are abilities that pertain to a person’s capacity to read,
comprehend, interpret and decode written language and texts. Phonological and
phonemic awareness, phonics and decoding, fluency, and print concepts are
widely recognized as foundational reading skills. (Or) phonics, phonemic
awareness, vocabulary, reading comprehension and fluency are the five basic
reading Skill.
When you read, you exercise your comprehension abilities and your analytical
abilities. It fires up your imagination and stimulates the memory centres of your
mind. It helps recall information as well as stabilize your emotions. The
importance of a reading habit is that it strengthens mental muscles.
There are four types of reading skills that every reader should know: skimming,
scanning, intensive reading, and speed reading.
4 basic steps for an effective reading:
SQ3R is a reading comprehension method named for its five steps: survey,
question, read, recite, and review.
 SURVEY: Gather the information necessary to focus and formulate goals
Read the title – Help your mind prepare to receive the subject at hand. Read the
introduction and/or summary – Orient yourself to how each chapter fits the
author’s purposes, and focus on the author’s statement of most important points.
Notice each boldface heading and subheading – Organize your mind before you
begin to read and build a structure for the thoughts and details to come.
Notice any graphics – Charts, maps, diagrams, etc. Are there to make a point.
Don’t overlook them.
Notice reading aids – Italics, bold face print, chapter objective, and end-of -
chapter questions are all included to help you sort, comprehend, and remember.
 QUESTION : Help your mind engage and concentrate
Turn the boldface heading for each section into as many questions as you think
will be answered in that section. The better the questions, the better your
comprehension is likely to be. You may always add further questions as you
proceed. When your mind is actively searching for answers to questions it
becomes engaged in learning.
 READ : Fill in the information around the mental structures you’ve been
building
Read one section at a time with your questions in mind and look for the
answers. Recognize when you need to make up some new questions.
 RECITE : Retrain your mind to concentrate and learn as it reads
After each section, stop and recall your questions and see if you can answer
them from memory. If not, look back at the text again (as often as necessary),
but don’t move to the next section until you can recite the answers from the
previous one.
 REVIEW: Refine your mental organization and begin building memory
Once you’ve finished the entire chapter using the preceding steps, go back over
the questions you create for every heading. See if you can still answer them. If
not, look back and refresh your memory and then continue.
List the needs for developing effective reading:
Reading effectively means reading in a way that helps you understand, evaluate,
and reflect on a written text. As you might guess, these skills are very important
to college students, no matter what field you’re going into: you’ll be doing a lot
of reading.
By reading effectively you will learn to question and survey the text you are
reading to gain a better understanding of your subject. By improving your
reading skills you can reduce unnecessary reading time and this will enable you
to read in a more focused manner.
Reading is Essential and serves as a basic building block for learning, regardless
of the school subject, be it language arts or even math.
Decoding, fluency, and vocabulary skills are key to reading comprehension.
Being able to connect ideas within and between sentences helps kids understand
the whole text. Reading aloud and talking about experiences can help kids build
reading skills.
To improve students’ reading comprehension, teachers should introduce the
seven cognitive strategies of effective readers: activating, inferring, monitoring-
clarifying, questioning, searching-selecting, summarizing, and visualizing-
organizing.
Reading is good for you because it improves your focus, memory, empathy, and
communication skills. It can reduce stress, improve your mental health, and help
you live longer. Reading also allows you to learn new things to help you
succeed in your work and relationships.

Types of Reading Skills in detail:

 Skimming
Skimming, sometimes referred to as gist reading, means going through the text
to grasp the main idea. Here, the reader doesn’t pronounce each and every word
of the text but focuses their attention on the main theme or the core of the text.
Examples of skimming are reading magazines or newspapers and searching for
a name in a telephone directory.
 Scanning
Here, the reader quickly scuttles across sentences to get to a particular piece of
information. Scanning involves the technique of rejecting or ignoring irrelevant
information from the text to locate a specific piece of information.
 Intensive Reading
Intensive reading is far more time-consuming than skimming and scanning as it
needs the reader’s attention to detail. It involves close reading that aims at the
accuracy of comprehension. Here, the reader has to understand the meaning of
each and every word.
 Extensive reading:
Extensive Reading (ER) is the process of reading longer easier texts for an
extended period of time without a breakdown of comprehension, feeling
overwhelmed, or the need to take breaks. Extensive reading involves learners
reading texts for enjoyment and to develop general reading skills.
Extensive reading lays more emphasis on fluency and less on accuracy. It
usually involves reading for pleasure and is more of an out-of-classroom
activity. It is highly unlikely for readers to take up the extensive reading of text
they do not like.
What is reading? It’s types – what is effective reading & it’s benefits :
 Reading Exercises the Brain
 Reading is a Form of (free) Entertainment
 Reading Improves Concentration and the Ability to Focus
 Reading Improves Literacy
 Reading Improves Sleep
 Reading Increases General Knowledge
 Reading is Motivational
 Reading Reduces Stress
 Reading Sets a Positive Example
 Reading Teaches Empathy

(OR)
 It's a Workout for your Brain
 It improves your Critical Thinking
 It improves your Focus and Concentration
 It boosts Mental Stimulation
 You can gain Knowledge
 It improves your Memory
 You gain more English Vocabulary
 You improve your English Writing Skills
 You improve your English Reading Skills
 You get better English Speaking Skills
 It prevents Premature Ageing
 It reduces Stress
 It promotes Healthy Sleep
 It reduces Depression
 It reduces Anxiety
 It increases Empathy
 It increases your General Well-Being
 You gain more Self-Confidence
 You gain more Self-Esteem
 Reading makes you Happy!

Writing skills

What is E-mail Etiquette?

Email etiquette is the observance and communication of generally accepted

standards of sense, grammar and politeness when sending email messages.
Having good email etiquette makes it more likely that people will respond
positively to your emails. It shows people that you are professional and
polite, and makes it less likely to cause misunderstandings.

Write the Importance of Writing Skill.

Improving your writing helps you to become a better communicator

overall and it also improves your reading, which is another essential job
skill. It also fosters our ability to explain and refine our ideas to others
and ourselves. Good writing skills allow you to communicate your
message with clarity and ease to a far larger audience than through
face-to-face or telephone conversations.

What is PrecisWiting ?

Precis Writing is a summary. It is an exercise of compression. A precis

writing is a gist of any passage in as few words as possible. A precis should
mention all important details of the original paragraph so that anyone who is
reading it is able to understand the idea of the original passage.
Rules of Precis Writing:

 Read the comprehension carefully.

 Note down the important points.
 Make a rough draft of the precis.
 Make use of simple and precise language, as much as possible.
 Draft the final precis once all the points have been included.

Explain Paragraph Writing with it’s Principles.

A paragraph is a series of sentences that are organized and coherent, and

are all related to a single topic. Almost every piece of writing you do that
is longer than a few sentences should be organized into paragraphs.

There are four essential elements that an effective paragraph should

consistently contain: unity, coherence, a topic sentence, and sufficient
development.

What are the steps to be followed in Paragraph Writing ?

The basic paragraph consists of three parts: a topic sentence, supporting

details, and a concluding sentence. This basic paragraph format will help you
to write and organize one paragraph and transition to the next. Topic
Sentence: Often, the Topic sentence is the first sentence of a paragraph.

In order for a paragraph to maintain a sense of unity, the paragraph must

focus solely on a single idea, point, or argument that is being discussed.

Explain the Characteristics and Objective of an Essay.

An essay should have a single clear central idea. Each paragraph should have
a clear main point or topic sentence. Each paragraph should support or
expand the central idea of the paper. The idea of each paragraph should be
explained and illustrated through examples, details, and descriptions.

The purpose of an essay is to present a coherent argument in response to a

stimulus or question, and to persuade the reader that your position is credible
(i.e. believable and reasonable).

What are the Checklist to be followed before sending an important

email ?
 Make sure you use the right salutation and greeting in the email. Adopt the
right style and tone for the email — formal, informal, or somewhere in
between. Get to the point quickly, don’t waste time. State the details of why
you are writing in the first couple of lines.

Review the “from” field and “reply to” address. Examine the subject line of
the email — your recipient should be able to read the full subject line in his
email client. Confirm that all images complement your text and are rendering
correctly. Verify that all links work correctly and lead to the right sites.

If there’s no other alternative, you should encrypt and password-protect your

images and documents before sending them as email attachments. Again,
you must send the password separately, either via a different messaging
service or in the post.

What are the five parts of letter ? And write the tips for writing a letter.
1. The heading : This includes the address, line by line, with the last line being
the date. Skip a line after the heading. The heading is indented to the middle of
the page. If using pre-addressed stationery, add just the date.

2. The greeting : The greeting always ends with a comma. The greeting may be
formal, beginning with the word “dear” and using the person’s given name or
relationship, or it may be informal if appropriate. (Occasionally very personal
greetings may end with an exclamation point for emphasis.)

Formal: Dear Uncle Mike, Dear Ms. Jillian

Informal: Hi Darryl, Greetings!

3. The body : Also known as the main text. This includes the message you want
to write. Normally in a friendly letter, the beginning of paragraphs is indented.
If not indented, be sure to skip a space between paragraphs. Skip a line after the
greeting and before the close.

4. The complimentary close : This short expression is always a few words on a

single line. It ends in a comma. It should be indented to the same column as the
heading. Skip one to three spaces (two is usual) for the signature line.

Formal: Sincerely, Best

Informal: All my love, Eagerly awaiting your response

5. The signature line : Type or print your name. The handwritten signature goes
above this line and below the close. The signature line and the handwritten
signature are indented to the same column as the close. The signature should be
written in blue or black ink. If the letter is quite informal, you may omit the
signature line as long as you sign the letter.

Optional is a postscript. If your letter contains a postscript, begin it with P.S.

and end it with your initials. Skip a line after the signature line to begin the
postscript.