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Effective Reading Skills

It’s easier to understand what you read if you have a sense of the context. Try to find out who the writer is/was, why they wrote the text and think about what you know about the subject they were writing about.

It’s easier to understand what you read if you have prepared some questions before you read, so you have specific objectives for reading. If you know what you’re looking for, it’s easier to find it.

A good way to improve your reading and to read faster is to practise everyday by reading texts of the same length and consciously trying to read faster each time. Make sure you test your comprehension too. It’s no use reading faster if you don’t understand what you read!

A good way to improve your reading and to read faster is to move your finger down the page from top to bottom (not along the lines) and to train your eyes to move down the page with your finger.

The way you read will differ according to what you are reading. If you are reading a difficult academic text, you may need to read more slowly and carefully than you would read a magazine.

A good way to improve your reading is to consciously choose to read more difficult texts than you usually do. In this way you get used to meeting new vocabulary and understanding difficult sentences. If you always read easy texts, you won’t improve your reading skills.

It’s easier to understand what you read if you read actively and have a dialogue with the writer. As you read, check what the writer is saying with what you know about the subject and with your own experience. Don’t believe everything a writer says.

While you are reading you should note down the main points and any supporting details such as examples. You should also note your reactions to what you read. You should use these notes to recall what you have read and check that you understand the text.

When you have finished reading, you should use your notes to make a new set of notes in which you...