Dr. Matthew R. Pettus
Email drmatthewpettus@gmail.com Phone +52 33 2256 3182
Introduction
Dr. Matthew R. Pettus is an educator with extensive experience in both secondary and higher education. He is currently the academic director for the Instituto Internacional Octavio Paz in Chapala, Mexico. His research interests include second language learning, vocabulary acquisition, and best practices in educational leadership.
Academic Publications
M.S. Biology Thesis - A Novel Detection Method for Ranavirus in Pine Mountain Wildlife Management Area
Ed.D. Dissertation - Comparing the Effects of Modified and Unmodified Texts in Extensive Reading
Presentations
Pettus, M. R. (October 2017) Reading programs: Are they at student vocabulary level? Poster session at the 45th International MEXTESOL Convention, Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico.
Reading and Vocabulary Resources
Free Graded Readers
The following graded readers are out of copyright. They can be distributed freely, but can not be sold.
Fire on the Mountain by Gerry Meister and Paul Nation (vocabulary of 700 words)
Indonesian Love Story by Paul Nation and Gerry Meister (vocabulary of 1200 words)
Mid Frequency Readers
The mid frequency readers offered here are based on vocabulary size in headwords. The test to determine a student's vocabulary size in headwords can be found here. These mid frequency readers can be distributed freely, but can not be sold. Mid frequency readers will be offered in three levels, 4000, 6000, and 8000 headwords.
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
When a tornado rips through Kansas, Dorothy and her dog, Toto, are whisked away in their house to the magical land of Oz. They follow the Yellow Brick Road toward the Emerald City to meet the Wizard, and en route they meet a Scarecrow that needs a brain, a Tin Man missing a heart, and a Cowardly Lion who wants courage. The wizard asks the group to bring him the broom of the Wicked Witch of the West to earn his help.
The Land that Time Forgot
4000 6000 8000
Edgar Rice Burroughs's fabulous adventure begins with a terror-haunted trip as a captive in an enemy submarine-only to end on the rocky shores of a monster-ridden lost world where Time had stopped.
For other Mid Frequency readers see Paul Nation's website here.
Leveled Texts
These texts are not mid frequency readers however, they have been leveled using a similar technique. These books have been found to have been written at particular vocabulary levels so that an intermediate/advanced English language learner could use them for extensive reading or reading practice. To determine a person's reading level complete this test.
All books are in the public domain.
5000 Headwords
The Bobbsey Twins are the principal characters of what was, for many years, the Stratemeyer Syndicate's longest-running series of American children's novels, penned under the pseudonym Laura Lee Hope. The first of 72 books was published in 1904, the last in 1979, with a separate series of 30 books published from 1987 through 1992. The books related the adventures of the children of the upper-middle-class Bobbsey family, which included two sets of fraternal twins: Nan and Bert, who were 12 years old, and Flossie and Freddie, who were six.
6000 Headwords
The novel traces the life and adventures of Black Beauty, a horse in 19th-century England. It opens with Beauty's descriptions of his life as a colt (young horse) in the home of a kind master named Farmer Grey. He runs and plays in the meadow and receives lectures from his mother, Duchess, about the importance of being kind and gentle and never biting or kicking - basically the horse equivalent of an English gentleman.
Grimm's fairy tales were the Grimms’ contribution to that flowering of German cultural renaissance. However, they remain one of the largest, and certainly the most famous, of national folklore collections. Among the best-known stories are “Hansel and Gretel,” “Snow White,” “The Golden Goose,” “The Goose Girl,” “Rumplestiltskin,” “The Frog Prince,” “The Juniper Tree,” and “Snow White and Rose Red,” and these and many others have become the unquestioned property of childhood in the Western world.
Little Wizard Stories of Oz is a set of six short stories written for young children by L. Frank Baum, the creator of the Oz books. The six tales were published in separate small booklets, "Oz books in miniature," in 1913, and then in a collected edition in 1914.
The Story of Doctor Dolittle is the first of his Doctor Dolittle books, a series of children's novels about a man who learns to talk to animals and becomes their champion around the world.
Uncle Tom's Cabin, Young Folks Edition
Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly, is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in 1852, the novel had a profound effect on attitudes toward African Americans and slavery in the U.S. and is said to have "helped lay the groundwork for the Civil War"
When a tornado rips through Kansas, Dorothy and her dog, Toto, are whisked away in their house to the magical land of Oz. They follow the Yellow Brick Road toward the Emerald City to meet the Wizard, and en route they meet a Scarecrow that needs a brain, a Tin Man missing a heart, and a Cowardly Lion who wants courage. The wizard asks the group to bring him the broom of the Wicked Witch of the West to earn his help.
7000 Headwords
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Alice is sitting with her sister outdoors when she spies a White Rabbit with a pocket watch. Fascinated by the sight, she follows the rabbit down the hole. She falls for a long time, and finds herself in a long hallway full of doors.
Dr. Abner Perry is an English scientist who has invented a massive drill that can dig deep into the earth. Joined by his adventure-seeking American backer, David Innes, Perry accidentally discovers an underground civilization of primitive humans who live in fear of telepathic flying monsters. David becomes intrigued by the beautiful native Dia, and must rescue her when she is chosen as a human sacrifice.
Count Dracula, a 15th-century prince, is condemned to live off the blood of the living for eternity. Young lawyer Jonathan Harker is sent to Dracula's castle to finalise a land deal, but when the Count sees a photo of Harker's fiancée, Mina, the spitting image of his dead wife, he imprisons him and sets off for London to track her down.
Peter Pan is the story of a mischievous little boy who can fly, and his adventures on the island of Neverland with Wendy Darling and her brothers, the fairy Tinker Bell, the Lost Boys, the Indian princess Tiger Lily, and the pirate Captain Hook.
The Life and Adventures of Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe, as a young and impulsive wanderer, defied his parents and went to sea. He was involved in a series of violent storms at sea and was warned by the captain that he should not be a seafaring man. Ashamed to go home, Crusoe boarded another ship and returned from a successful trip to Africa.
The Boxcar Children tells the story of four orphaned children, Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny. They create a home for themselves in an abandoned boxcar in the forest. They eventually meet their grandfather, who is a wealthy and kind man.
John Carter, a Confederate veteran of the American Civil War, goes prospecting in Arizona immediately after the war's end. Having struck a rich vein of gold, he runs afoul of the Apaches. While attempting to evade pursuit by hiding in a sacred cave, he is mysteriously transported to Mars, called "Barsoom" by its inhabitants. Carter finds that he has great strength and superhuman agility in this new environment as a result of its lesser gravity and lower atmospheric pressure.
The novel centres on Mary Lennox, who is living in India with her wealthy British family. She is a selfish and disagreeable 10-year-old girl who has been spoiled by her servants and neglected by her unloving parents. When a cholera epidemic kills her parents and the servants, Mary is orphaned.
A stuffed rabbit sewn from velveteen is given as a Christmas present to a small boy. The boy plays with his other new presents and forgets the velveteen rabbit for a time. These presents are modern and mechanical, and they snub the old-fashioned velveteen rabbit. The wisest and oldest toy in the nursery, the Skin Horse, who was owned by the boy's uncle, tells the rabbit about toys magically becoming real due to love from children. The rabbit is awed by this idea; however, his chances of achieving this wish are slight.
8000 Headwords
Anne Shirley is a young orphan from Boling Broke, Nova Scotia, Canada. Anne is sent to live with Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert, a brother and sister in their fifties and sixties. Up until this point, Anne has lived in a series of foster homes and orphanages. However, Anne is being sent to the Cuthberts by mistake: their intention was to bring a boy to live with them, to help Matthew on the farm at Green Gables.
David had a difficult life from the beginning. His father died before he was born. When David’s mother remarries, his stepfather is abusive and sends him off to a boarding school overseen by a cruel and abusive headmaster. One positive outcome of the school is that David makes two close friends. David’s mother dies when he is twelve, and his stepfather sends him off to live with the Micawber family in London and work in his stepfather’s warehouse. David is unhappy working at the warehouse and runs away to his Aunt Betsy. His aunt sends him to live with the Wickfield family and attend a school in Canterbury. Although he loves Agnes Wickfield, David ends up falling in love with Dora Spenlow, the daughter of an attorney who tutors David. The Wickfields’ law clerk, Uriah Heep, is revealed by David’s friends to be stealing from Mr. Wickfield. The Micawbers end up moving to Australia, while David becomes a writer. When Dora dies, David marries Agnes Wickfield.
A young Swiss student discovers the secret of animating lifeless matter and, by assembling body parts, creates a monster who vows revenge on his creator after being rejected from society.
Allan Quatermain, an adventurer and white hunter based in Durban, in what is now South Africa, is approached by aristocrat Sir Henry Curtis and his friend Captain Good, seeking his help finding Sir Henry's brother, who was last seen travelling north into the unexplored interior on a quest for the fabled King Solomon's Mines. Quatermain has a mysterious map purporting to lead to the mines, but had never taken it seriously. However, he agrees to lead an expedition in return for a share of the treasure, or a stipend for his son if he is killed along the way. He has little hope they will return alive, but reasons that he has already outlived most people in his profession, so dying in this manner at least ensures that his son will be provided for. They also take along a mysterious native, Umbopa, who seems more regal, handsome and well-spoken than most porters of his class, but who is very anxious to join the party.
The Tale of Peter Rabbit is a British book written and illustrated by Beatrix Potter that follows mischievous and disobedient young Peter Rabbit as he is chased about the garden of Mr. McGregor. He escapes and returns home to his mother, who puts him to bed after dosing him with tea.
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times," Charles Dickens writes in the opening lines of A Tale of Two Cities as he paints a picture of life in England and France. The year is late 1775, and Jarvis Lorry travels from London to Paris on a secret mission for his employer, Tellson's Bank. Joining him on his journey is Lucie Manette, a 17-year-old woman who is stunned to learn that her father, Doctor Alexandre Manette, is alive and has recently been released after having been secretly imprisoned in Paris for 18 years.
The Flying Girl is a novel written by L. Frank Baum, author of the Oz books. It was first published in 1911. In the book, Baum pursued an innovative blending of genres to create a feminist adventure melodrama. The book was followed by a sequel, The Flying Girl and Her Chum, published the next year, 1912. Both books were illustrated by Joseph Pierre Nuyttens, the artist who also illustrated Baum's Annabel and Phoebe Daring in 1912.
As with Baum's other books for girls, these two novels were published under the pseudonym "Edith Van Dyne."
Many literary critics regard The Land That Time Forgot as Burroughs's best work. The book's three novellas—"The Land That Time Forgot," "The People That Time Forgot," and "Out of Time's Abyss"—tell the stories of three different men who become trapped in the strange land of Caspak, which is filled with voracious carnivores and hostile primitive tribesmen. Each novella is a tale of high adventure and suspense played out against the backdrop of an intricately developed fantasy world.
The Wind and the Willows follows several animals throughout their adventures in the English countryside.
9000 Headwords
The story follows Buck, a mix of St. Bernard and Scotch collie, throughout his journey as a sled dog. Buck’s story begins at the house of Judge Miller in Santa Clara, California. Here, Buck is a beloved domesticated pet, living comfortably. However, after gold is discovered in the Yukon territory of Canada, Buck is stolen by one of Miller’s gardeners as the demand for sled dogs increases. The gardener sells Buck to dog traders and makes a profit, and Buck is soon shipped north, abused and beaten as he goes.
Jo, Meg, Beth, and Amy March are four sisters living with their mother in New England. Their father is away serving as a chaplain in the Civil War, and the sisters struggle to support themselves and keep their household running despite the fact that the family recently lost its fortune.
The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling is an adventure story about a man-cub named Mowgli. Mowgli is hunted by an evil tiger named Shere Khan. Mowgli tries to live a peaceful life with other humans, but is too wild for them and too human for the wolves. Eventually Mowgli finds a home in the jungle with a pack of his own.
Useful Links
Anki - Spaced Repetition
Tom Cobb's Website - A large selection of web based resources for linguistic work
Free Rice Game - Feed the hungry and learn English vocabulary at the same time.
Take the Word Test and find out your vocabulary size and help the researchers at the University of Ghent. It's fun and is an interesting activity to do in an English class.
Study Skills and Academic Coaching - +52 33 2256 3182