Just like listening and taking notes in class, learning to understand what we read in print is a complex skill. It, too, takes time and plenty of practice. This guide doesn't offer quick fixes but it does offer up strategies and tips that really work - if you use them regularly.

What is Reading, Anyway?

A lot of students - even college students - think that if they've passed their eyes over the words on the page, they've read them. But if you can't recall what you've read or answer questions about it or make connections between what you read and what you know,  have you really accomplished anything?

Reading, at its highest and most exciting level, is the ability to find meaning on the page, mix it up with what you already know, and emerge a more informed and curious person.

Sure - you can read - but If you want to take your reading abilities beyond the sixth-grade level, you need to take the time to become a strategic thinker. It's a worthwhile investment in your future. To rise to the top in school, in college and in any career, you have to be able to understand and question what you read in print and online.

Reading Strategies that Work

Take this quiz to identify the reading strategies you already use. As you answer, think about how you read informational texts, not novels, comic books or "fun stuff."

Examples of informational texts include magazine articles assigned in science class, a chapter in your history textbook or a page in your math textbook.

Answer YES or NO.

  1. Before I start reading the body of the text, I read the title and subheadings so I know what to expect.
  2. Before I start reading the body of the text, I ask myself what I expect this text to be about.
  3. Before I start reading the body of the text, I look at pictures on the page. The pictures help me predict what the text will be about.
  4. As I read, I take notes.
  5. As I read, I ask myself what I learned at the end of each page.
  6. As I read, I ask myself what the next page will probably be about.
  7. As I read, I use a pencil or highlighter to identify words or ideas that are important.
  8. As I read, I take notes in the margin about things that jump out at me as odd or questions that come to mind.
  9. I change my reading speed, depending on how easily I understand the text.
  10. After I've finished reading, I review my notes and check back to the text if I can't remember something.

Give yourself one point for every YES. If you scored below 7, it's time to take your reading to the next level! Your gradepoint average will thank you, we promise.

How to Be a Smarter Reader

These nine strategies will help you process what you read more efficiently and more deeply.

  1. Get to know how the book is put together. You wouldn't start driving a new car without first knowing how to put it in gear, find the brake and turn on the lights, would you? Well, if you're going to get the most from your reading, you have to prepare yourself by getting oriented. First, read the table of contents. How is the book organized? Are there chapters? Themes? Is there a glossary of terms? Is there an index?
  2. Next, look at your assigned chapter. Leaf through it. How do the writers try to boost reading comprehension. Are there titles and subtitles that introduce main ideas? Are there key questions in the margins? Are there examples in graphic boxes off to one side of the page? Are there comprehension questions at the end? Are there graphs, pictures or tables? What can you learn from these graphic elements? Using these graphic clues, predict what you're going to learn from this chapter.
  3. What are you supposed to learn? Did your teacher give you an assignment sheet? Comprehension questions? A graph to fill out? Before  you begin reading, be sure you know exactly what you're supposed to learn from the text. Keep these questions in mind as you read and your thinking will be more focused. If the assignment was simply to read the chapter, you can be sure you'll need to learn the main idea of the text. Try to focus on the main argument and supporting evidence.
  4. Underline, highlight and write in the margins. Make your reading process more active by underlining important ideas, highlighting them and writing comments in the margins. Did something make you laugh? Write "Ha!" in the margin. Does one paragraph raise a question in your mind? Write it in the margin so you can come back to it later.
  5. Take paraphrase notes. For some students, re-writing the main ideas from a text helps them process information. It's not very efficient to re-write everything, but making special notes on key concepts can help you organize your thinking and transfer more information to your long-term memory.
  6. Draw a picture. Sometimes, the best way to summarize an idea is by drawing a picture. Learning about photosynthesis in biology? Draw a picture of the sun and its rays hitting the leaf of a plant. Add as much detail as you can to show the process the plant uses to turn light energy into glucose, oxygen and water. You can also draw diagrams to:
    • show cause and effect
    • compare and contrast information
    • show a scale or a continuum
    • show a series of events
    • show complex systems
    • show a cycle

Check out this link to the North Central Regional Educational Library page on graphic organizers for ideas on how to use pictures to organize your thoughts.

  1. Stop if you don't get it. Good readers have a keen sense of what they've understood as they skim along the words. When they don't exactly understand something, they stop and back up.  They re-read the part they didn't understand and try to make sense of it by using the context of the paragraph, and by comparing the difficult idea to the ideas they've already understood. They might make special note in the margin and ask the teacher about it in class if they haven't figured it out by the end of the text.
  2. As you read and after you've finished, ask yourself questions. What questions would help you understand more of what you read? Try these:
    • What point is the author trying to make?
    • Did this fact back up the author's argument or contradict it?
    • Why is this fact important to the author's overall message?
    • What did I like about this? What didn't I like?
    • What did I learn that I didn't know before?
    • If somebody asked me to tell them what I just read, what would I say?
  1. Slow down. Take the time you need to actually process what you read. If you try to read too fast, you'll miss important information. Speed up if the material is familiar and easy to understand but slow down if the language is difficult or if the concepts are new.

EduGuide Reading Resources

 Learn More Study Skills

 

Source:

Gall, M.D., Gall, J.P., Jacobsen, D.R. & Bullock, T.L. (1990) "Tools for learning: A guide to teaching study skills." Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.