Accelerated Memory and Reading Notes
January, 2009, Sandia Peak Hotel, Pueblo of Sandia, Albuquerque, New Mexico
Message from Note Taker
These are the free-hand course notes for “The Fundamentals of Reading” and
“Mastering Reading: Application to Technical and Research” presented by Advanced
Skills Group, Inc. The information presented is a combination of reading methods and
techniques practiced in other reading programs such as EyeQ, ThinkBuzan, Advanced
Reading Concepts, and 7 Speed Reading, as well as some new things. The training
courses are intensive technical reading and writing training, 4 hours a day, at Tech Boot
Camp Week in New Mexico. Other boot camp events covered project management,
enterprise technology and systems, and coding boot camp.
If you have taken a one hundred-level, college reading course, you should be familiar
with some methods for critical reading. Methods like the SQ3R, SQW3R, SR2QR, and
SOAR are lightly reviewed. These methods are considered simpler concepts for most
students to grasp, which is important to re-establish a foundation. The drill and
meditation exercises introduced should feel totally new and non-traditional.
Information from the training courses have been used at NASA Glenn Research Center,
The Air Force Research Laboratory at both Wright Patterson and Eglin Air Force Base,
NASIC at WPAFB, the US Army at Ft Bragg, Ft Monmouth, Raven Rock and Aberdeen
Proving Ground, the US Marine Corps at Camp LeJeune, Dam Neck, Pendleton and
Mirimar, Barclay’s Global Financial, IDG, Lucent Technologies, and The American Red
Cross.
You need to review the basics and re-master everything about the fundamentals of reading first.
Good luck.
DAY 1
"A daily issue of the New York Times contains more information than the average seventeenth-century
Englishman came across in a lifetime."
Basic Methods for Reading Comprehension
1. The SQ3R Method - Easiest of the methods to understand (basically memory through
repetition)
2. The SQW3R Method - Variance of the SQ3R method
3. The PQRST Method - Method prioritizes information the way it will be asked in a test
4. KWL - Very simple, but can confuse people due to lack of structure
5. SOAR - Abstract method for reading
3 Bad Reading Habits
1. Regression
2. Fixation
3. Auditory Reassurance or Sub-vocalization
Types of Eye Movements
1. Saccadic - Jerky eye movement
2. Smooth Pursuit - Smooth eye movement
Use of your finger to guide your eyes
From this point to the end of the week…
“Forget what have learned in other accelerated reading programs. This includes
vocabulary, page turning, eye movement guides, etc. Everything you learn, from here on
out, will be taught contrary to your belief, knowledge, or practice. Keep an open mind
and participate actively during the entire course. The key to your success will be your
attitude towards learning a new skill. It will be challenging to those who need to unlearn
how to read.” - Advanced Skills Group, Inc. Trainer
Components of Reading
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Speed
Comprehension
Retention
Multiple Reading Process (MRP)
1. Preview - This is not scanning. Forget what you know about reading and listen.
2. Overview - Introduction to various hand motions to guide the eyes.
3. Read - Different from the reading style you are currently using.
Reduced Fixations per Line Exercise
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2-Fixation Drill (average printed page sizes for manuals)
3-Fixation Drill (longer lines)
1-Fixation Drill (newspaper columns)
Your Meditative State of Mind
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Increase focus and attention while implementing the multiple reading process
Reading Groups of Words
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Use XceleRead as a guide (login and meditate prior to starting drills)
Increase you peripheral vision (get ready to pounce on your prey)
 Get both of your eyes wide open literally
 Be silent and aware, but be relaxed (takes practice)
 Observe and record with using all your senses
Green dot exercise (for the whole week; the last thing you do before you sleep tonight)
Goal from Exercises
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Increase the speed at which your neurons fire, the faster they fire, the faster you process
Focus on reading for ideas and understanding, speed will be a result of your practice
Meditation (daily – begin at 5 min, work up to 15 min)
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Posture is important, sit upright with the spine erect, yet be comfortable
If you are uncomfortable, or straining you, will not be able to relax completely
Use a CD or iTunes track to you on your journey to the garden, to back to the tower deck
Stretch and move around a bit
 Gradually become more active
 Take your time.
Journey Walk-Through
Tower study with observation deck, down the staircase, to the secret garden
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Listen to the leaves moving in the breeze
Listen to the water coming off the marble three-tier Corvallis fountain
Watch the dozens of gold fish wiggle and swim around the base of the fountain
[YOU ARE NOT MEDITATING IF YOU END UP SLEEPING]
DAY 2
MRP
1. Preview
2. Overview (hand movements useful)
Hand Motions to Improve Comprehension
3. Read
Encouraged to take a 30-minute walk before the course starts
Morning reading drills (8am-10am)
- Prepare for reading drill
- Short passages
- Comprehension test
- Short paragraphs
- Comprehension test
- Short page
- Comprehension test
- Calculate benchmark value
- 10 minute fruit and veggie snack break
- 5 minutes of meditation
- Meditation - Tower study with observation deck, down the staircase, to the secret garden
- Listen to the leaves moving in the breeze
- Listen to the water coming off the marble three-tier Corvallis fountain
- Watch the dozens of gold fish wiggle and swim around the base of the fountain
- Prepare for reading drill
- Short passages
- Comprehension test
- Short paragraphs
- Comprehension test
- Short page
- Comprehension test
- Calculate benchmark value
- 10 minute fruit and veggie snack break
- 5 minutes of meditation
- Meditation - Tower study with observation deck, down the staircase, to the secret garden
- Listen to the leaves moving in the breeze
- Listen to the water coming off the marble three-tier Corvallis fountain
- Watch the dozens of gold fish wiggle and swim around the base of the fountain
- Prepare for reading drill
- Short passages
- Comprehension test
- Short paragraphs
- Comprehension test
- Short page
- Comprehension test
- Calculate benchmark value
- 10 minute snack break
Hand Motions for Reading (identify the motion that results in your best drill score)
1. Diagonal Zig-Zag
-moving down the page
-begin in upper left page on the first line
-diagonally move down towards the end of the fourth line
-diagonally move down towards the beginning of the eighth line
-repeat
2. Slanging hand motion
-moving down the page
-begin in upper left page on the first line
-move towards end of first line
-diagonally move down towards the beginning of fourth line
-move towards end of fourth line
-repeat
3. Criss-Crossing Hand Motion
-moving down the page
-begin in upper left page on the first line
-diagonally move towards end of the fourth line
-move straight up to the end of the second line
-diagonally move towards the beginning of ninth line
-move straight up to the end of the seventh line
-repeat
4. Circle Hand Motion
-moving down the page
-begin in upper left page on the first line
-move towards the end of the first line
-trace a clockwise motion towards the end of the forth line
-tracing should feel similar to starting from 1 pm, moving towards 6pm, ending at 11pm
-after tracing clockwise, downward, to the fourth line
-continue to trace upward to the first line, ending the clockwise motion at 11pm
-continue the clockwise motion pattern moving towards the left
-continue until you reach the beginning of the fourth line
-the motion should resemble a spiral pattern moving towards the left
-an average of five to seven clockwise motions occur for an eight to ten word sentence
-repeat
5. Moving Down the Middle
-straight down the middle of the page
6. Moving Down the Margin
-either the page or the book binding
-the book binding movement is for people with very wide peripheral vision
7. The X Hand Motion
-exactly like it says, diagonally from one corner of the page to opposite
-flip and repeat
Reading is not about words. It is about Ideas.
Reduce Sub-vocalization - the faster you read, the harder it is to subvocalize
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Use your hand while reading to focus your eyes
Practice "Speed Drills"
Listen to music while reading (classical, not opera; instruments, not vocals)
Chew gum (no gum chewing in ball rooms)
Use XceleRead to train your eyes
DAY 3
Encouraged to take a 30-minute walk before the course starts
Morning reading drills (8am-10am)
The Three Laws of Reading Comprehension
1. First Law - Your mind understands concrete words and concepts than abstract ones
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It is harder to read quickly sentences with abstract words
You mind understands specific and direct sentences better than abstract sentences
2. Second Law - Your mind understands sentences that are not densely packed with ideas
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The less information that is in a sentence, the easier your mind can read it
Sentences vary as to how quickly ideas are presented
3. Third Law - Your mind reads sentences faster the more knowledge of the subject matter it has related
to the sentences
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Industry engineers are more familiar with the content within technical manuals than
engineering students
Do not let your ego cloud the fact you know less
The Multiple Reading Process
1. Preview
-Locate trigger words
-Generate effective questions (instantiate a purpose for reading)
Recognize the information structure of the contents in your book
Reading with better focus
-Results with better speed
-Results with better comprehension
Select a reading hand motion
-Use reading target markers (set timed goals)
-Select a tool of focus
-Start with your finger
-Use a pen or pencil
-Use a ruler
-Use an index card or sheet of paper
-Read without a tool to guide your focus (advanced)
Clearly define your purpose for reading and the plan to completing that purpose
-Set goals in your plan
-set timed goals in reaching target markers
-set deadline for reading
-read no longer than 45 minutes at a time
-Remove Distractions
-Avoid Multi-Tasking
Initiate your senses for reading
-Practice your meditative state
-Practice your breathing exercise
-Visualize your relaxed place
-Feel yourself being aware of your presence in two places
-Concepts from quantum mechanics [quantum duality], Taoism
Improve your reading focus (let’s get some fruit)
2. Overview
3. Read
Read and Recall
1. Read a paragraph
2. Describe what you read with one key word or, a 2-to-3 word phrase maximum
DAY 4
Encouraged to take a 30-minute walk before the course starts
Morning reading drills (8am-10am)
- Three 25-minute long reading drills
Identify Information Patterns – Knowing your book and its chapters
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How-To Format (importance followed by steps)
Editorial Format (evidence followed by opinion or vice-versa)
News (the five "W's")
Informational (topic followed by one or many aspects)
Problem Solution (problem, effects, causes, solution)
Chronological
Examples
Advantages Disadvantages
Process
Most Important Least Important
The action of taking notes assists with retention (form of repetition)
Memorization techniques that are most common - rehearsal and rote learning
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Cue based learning – example, flash cards
Begin building your own acronyms and mnemonics
Mind maps or spider diagrams [make them colorful and creative; use pictures]
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Creating mind maps assists with visually enhancing your memory
Heighten your focus and awareness with fruit (Use the tangerine technique)
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Your body is relaxed
Your mind is alert
Visualize the tangerine suspended 6 inches above and 1 inch behind your head
 See it with your mind's eye (pretend you have one if you do not think you do)
 Feel it slowly rolling on your energy aura
 Verbally talk about it to yourself (talk to the tangerine)
You need to practice moving through your reading material
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set a goal to either reach the end of the section or end of the chapter
pace yourself through the content, without going back and re-reading it
by re-reading the words or sentences again you end up doing the opposite of what you have
been told it will do
Example, examine a very popular sentence learned during your childhood, "See Spot run."
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You know it involves you using your sense of sight
You know it involves someone or something, such as a pet, named Spot
You know it involves the subject named Spot doing an action, specifically running
Three words communicate a lot when broken down
Example, this time we are hung up on one of the three words
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We DO NOT understand the meaning of the word, like Spot
We distract ourselves from completing the sentence
We distract ourselves from trusting that the word Spot may be clarified in a later passage
We distract ourselves from successfully processing the meaning of the group of words
We distract ourselves from the following the multiple reading process and gain nothing
Example, this time we are hung up on one of the three words
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We DO understand the meaning of the word Spot, yet we question "Who is Spot?"
We distract ourselves from completing the sentence
We distract ourselves from trusting that Spot will be clarified in a later passage
We distract ourselves from successfully processing the meaning of the group of words
We distract ourselves from the process and GAIN NOTHING
Bad habits keep us from moving forward. This is the exact problem we run into when learning anything
new or unfamiliar.
Trust that the author, or authors, will clarify everything in the text (the product is simply a medium to
transfer knowledge)
Just pace yourself through the material, GET THROUGH IT, following the multiple reading process moves
you closer to better comprehension
You will have other chances to answer questions in the multiple reading process
You will be uncomfortable moving forward at first, if it makes you feel better mark the questionable
area AFTER you have finished the paragraph or section
I bet you most of the time you will change your mind about making that mark, but it is OK if you do
Trust the process - think about it for a second, your company is allotting a good deal of time and money
to have their college educated employees relearn reading
Call your parents this week and tell them that the trainers told you to say, "[Jason] is doing a
phenomenal job learning how to read this week. You get gold stars."
If there are paragraphs or sections within the chapter you do not immediately understand, simply make
a mental note
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Finish the paragraph the new or unfamiliar term was introduced, then look it up
As you get better and faster, you will end up reading the whole page or section
Then looking up anything for clarification
Test your focus and attention by asking and answering questions (known also as critical reading)
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Find the question the author is trying to answer
Research and Academic Activities
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Reading numerous varieties of material
Discussion
Testing (actual tests or self-recitation)
You must first develop an understanding of the material before you can begin memorizing it.
[Comprehension comes before we can commit it to memory]
When reading academic textbooks
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Preview
Overview
Read
Final Review
Recite
The Purpose of Reading
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Bring information to life
Make it memorable
Enable you to use information
Interpret facts
Make comparisons
Draw conclusions
Make it meaningful and useful for you
DAY 5
Encouraged to take a 30-minute walk before the course starts
Morning reading drills (8am-10am)
-1 Set of 3 Short Drills
-One of Long Drills
Team Work – Collaboration exercise with your peers and presentation
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Assigned teams of 4, (5 teams)
Reading about a new technology and give a short presentation (material presented by vendor
sponsor)
Each member of the team chooses a section in the technical text handed to them
 All of you will be given subject matter that you did not specify in your registration profile
Read well and write faster (suggested you print with all caps)
Presentations will start in 30 minutes
Trainers will announce time every 5 minutes (when coach when needed)
Challenge: One speaker for each team
 talks about for five minutes, covering subject matter
 Team speaker to be selected at random
Tip: Spend 25 minutes "reading", 5 minutes preparing
Positive input by subject matter experts among peers
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5 minutes for each aggregated topic; guide main idea or concept
Identify the people that read about subject matter, order of information
Not all information in your professional careers will be lined up nicely in black and white
As professionals, you need to hunt and validate information, quickly and accurately
Training software, training products, and training services overview.
Additional Notes
These ideas were not presented during the course, but rather they came up from discussions with other
course students.
Apps to Help You Read Better [Updated list for 2015]
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Google Chrome
Google Keep
Evernote Clearly
AccelaReader.com
Readfa.st
Pocket
MindMeister.com
Flipboard
Forest: Stay Focused
DiggReader – RSS Reader
Excellent German Website for Memorization Techniques and Practice
www.memocamp.de/english/brain-training-with-memory-techniques/number-system-majorsystemsample-list