Reading Strategies*
1.
Look it over. Skim.
Before you begin to read, run your eyes quickly over the written
material and look at the general layout and design of the page, to
get clues about the content and purpose. Look at titles, subtitles,
captions, illustrations, photos, and make guesses about what you
expect the reading to be about.
2.
Use what you already
know.
Think about what you already know about the topic. This is called
your “background knowledge.” Using your knowledge, make
predictions or guesses about what you expect to find out as you
read. Use cognates in the titles or captions, as well as familiar
vocabulary to guide you as you look over the format and graphics.
3.
Make predictions.
After skimming, make predictions about what you think the
reading is about. What information do you expect to find? What
do you expect to happen? You will make changes to your
predictions as you read, but this step will help guide your reading.
4.
Determine the purpose
of the text.
At this point, try to identify why the text was written. This will
help you interpret the author's message. Is it to analyze, to advise,
to announce, to inform, to critique, to review, to entertain, to
evoke emotion, to inspire, to persuade? The title often gives the
best clue. As you read, confirm your hypothesis by observing
vocabulary, style and tone.
5.
Scan for specific info.
“Scanning” is the opposite of “skimming.” Run your eyes over
the reading again, this time to pick out specific information or
words. You may want to look for the dates of events, or the names
of important characters. In some cases, you may only need to find
out what time various movies start, for example. You may also
“scan” to identify cognates (see below); make a list of them, and
then make further predictions about the content. You may want to
scan to identify words you think are important to the content but
which you are not familiar with. List them, but don’t look them up
at this point; you may be able to guess meaning by the context as
you read.
6.
Recognize cognates.
English and Spanish share many words that are derived from the
same origins. They look alike and their meaning is the same.
Sometimes you may have to change a few letters around or
remove a prefix or suffix to see the connection. Examples:
pirámide, actividad, estadio. Scanning for cognates can help in
pinpointing the topic you will be reading about, and can help you
begin to know what information you will find.
7.
Identify the main idea
Look for the topic sentence in each paragraph. It may be located
anywhere in the text, so read carefully to see if there is a sentence
that summarizes the rest of the paragraph. If you can’t identify
one sentence that gives you a summary of a paragraph, generate a
summary of the main idea yourself.
8.
Read for detail
Take the title and turn it into a question. Now you can search the
text for answers. Once you have identified the topic, keep asking
related questions that will lead you to details. Ask Who? What?
When? Where? Why? How? Only use a dictionary for the few
words that actually block your understanding (see below).
9.
Use your background
knowledge to infer
meaning ("read between
the lines")
Use your background knowledge again (what you already know
about the type of information you are reading and about the
cultural context). As you read, use your background knowledge to
make guesses, inferences and predictions based on the context and
on your knowledge of the topic.
10. Identify the author’s
tone.
While reading, try to get a feel for the tone of the reading. Is it
sad, joyful, persuasive, critical, matter-of-fact, deceitful, honest,
sly, hopeful, or other? This will help you identify the author’s
purpose.
11. Monitor your
comprehension as you
read
Stop occasionally when you are reading to consider what you have
just understood. Do you agree or disagree with the author's
opinion? Can you simply restate the author's point of view or a
sequence of events? Does it make sense? Make changes to your
earlier predictions as you read.
12. Don’t look up words.
After applying all of the previous strategies, including guessing at
meaning based upon the context and on your own knowledge,
there may still be one or two words that seem to block your
understanding. At this point, if you think it necessary to achieve a
full understanding, use a dictionary to look up a word or two. Do
not rely on the dictionary for every word you do not recognize.
This will actually impede your comprehension. Rather, apply the
strategies listed above to attain an understanding of the text, even
if you do not understand every word. Always use the dictionary as
a last resort and very sparingly.
13. Develop cultural
understanding
Examine visuals again carefully and look for explanations of them
in the text. Note words and phrases that seem to be used in an
unfamiliar context. Go to an outside source to learn more about the
topic if it interests you, and expand your background knowledge.
Adapted from: “Reading Strategies.” Long & Macián, De Paseo. 4 ed. Boston: Heinle Cengage,
2005. “PowerLecture:Instructor’s Resource CD-ROM.