Lesþraut: read an Icelandic text one paragraph at a time
Lesþraut means "reading puzzle". A short Icelandic text arrives one paragraph at a time, and at every break it stops and asks you something about what you just read.
How to play
- Read the first paragraph.
- Answer the move that appears under it.
- The next paragraph opens, with a new move.
- At the end you get six statements that are all true, and you keep the two that carry the point of the text.
The four moves
- Predict. What comes next? One option is backed by a clue in the text, the others are merely plausible. Then it asks which clue you were going on.
- Question. Which question did this paragraph answer? One option is answered here, one is answered elsewhere in the text, and two are answered nowhere.
- Clarify. A word that means something different here, or a sentence that pulls against the rest. Searching for keywords will not find it.
- Main points. Six true statements, and two of them carry the point. This is the part reading tests measure.
Who is this for
Icelandic teenagers first of all. The texts are written for ages 13 to 16 and follow the reading strand of the Icelandic national curriculum. Learners of Icelandic can use it as reading practice at native pace, with an explanation attached to every answer. There is no account, no ads and no payment.
How do you practise reading comprehension without taking a test?
By stopping while you read rather than afterwards. In Lesþraut an Icelandic text arrives one paragraph at a time, and between paragraphs the text stops and asks for something. Sometimes you predict what comes next, sometimes you name the question the paragraph just answered, and sometimes you pin down a word that means something else here than it usually does. The moves come from reciprocal teaching, which teachers have used for decades.
A prediction is never marked right or wrong. The game names the clue in the text that supported each option instead, because if predictions were scored readers would stop predicting and start playing safe. At the end you get six statements, all of them true, and only two carry the point of the text. Telling a main idea from a correct detail is what reading tests measure. The texts are written for Kokomo, run 150 to 250 words, and are aimed at Icelandic readers aged 13 to 16.
Frequently asked questions
- How does Lesþraut work?
- A short Icelandic text arrives one paragraph at a time. At each break you do one thing: predict what the next paragraph will be about, name the question the paragraph just answered, or work out what an unclear word means here. At the end you get six statements, all of them true, and keep the two that carry the point.
- Is Lesþraut suitable for learners of Icelandic?
- It is written for Icelandic teenagers, so the words are ordinary ones but nothing is slowed down for learners. Intermediate and advanced learners get a lot out of it, because the feedback explains why one answer works and the others do not. Beginners will have an easier time starting with Icelandic Wordle or the word train.
- Why is a prediction never marked wrong?
- Because what matters is the evidence, not the outcome. If predictions were scored, readers would stop predicting and start playing safe, and that is the habit the game exists to build. The feedback names the clue in the text instead.