A paired skills series uses a sustained content approach to teach skills necessary for taking academic courses in English. Academic Encounters Level 1 Student's Book Reading and Writing: The Natural World engages students through academic readings on stimulating topics from the fields of natural science and biology. Topics include the water cycle, plant and animal life, and the human body. Students develop important skills such as reading for the main idea, reading for speed, understanding vocabulary in context, and note-taking. By completing writing assignments, students build academic writing skills and incorporate what they have learned. The topics correspond with those in Academic Encounters Level 1 Listening and Speaking: The Natural World. The books may be used independently or together.