You are on page 1of 4

Slippery Rock University

Active Reading Strategies


Getting Ready for Active Reading
There are many things that can get in the way of active reading. It is very important that you get mentally prepared before settling down to do a task. 1) Attitude: This is the most essential, if you have a positive attitude you are going to get positive results. This could lead to making more time for the things that you enjoy. Examine your goals and take a realistic approach to what you have to do, this will help you maintain that positive attitude. 2) Concentration: the need to focus your total attention. This can be hard but here are a few suggestions that could help you: Personal problems: try to solve as many as possible or at least come up with a plan that could help solve the problem. Physically ready: It is very difficult to concentrate on problems when you are not feeling well, so take care of your body. Study times: Study at times that are appropriate to your lifestyle and personal feelings. When you are the most relaxed, alert, and free from tension is the best time for you to take the time to study. Complete tasks: It is hard to study and maintain other responsibilities, so try to complete many of those other tasks before sitting down and studying. Use good judgment: When you are starting to not remember what you have read, use your judgment and take a short break. Just make sure you break, not stop.

Skills for Success: Academic Services Department

A capacity and taste for reading gives access to whatever has already been discovered by others. ~Abraham Lincoln

Be prepared to study: Make sure you have all your supplies (pencils, pens, paper, etc.) because every time you stop, it breaks your concentration. 3) Memory: If you dont understand the material that you are reading, you cant expect to remember the information. Try not to pay attention to minute details, try to look at the lesson as a whole. There is a difference between learning and memorizing. In order to truly understand the material, you have to learn it. By memorizing you are only learning for a specific time and you will forget right after afterwards.

SPECIAL POINTS OF INTEREST:

Study Environment
Find a place to study that is comfortable to you. Make sure it is not too comfortable to sleep and too distracting that you are admiring the surroundings around you so that you get nothing accomplished. A place where there is a desk (never a bed that acts as a desk, because then you are more prone to sleep than study), comfortable chair, and good lightening. The library or a vacant room is always a good place to study. Distractions can be very detrimental to your studying. People cannot concentrate on two things at one time, so when the television or radio is on, you will not be able to concentrate.

Study Environments Strategies Reading Systems Different Learning Styles Active Reading Techniques

Reading Systems that Enhance Reading for Learning


Surveying a chapter provides an overview. There are three purposes: It gets you going It gives you some familiarity with the material It gives you advance organizers to help you organize information in your mind Questioning helps you to become personally involved with your reading and it assists you with identifying the main ideas of the chapter. Converting headings and sub-heading into questions helps you to direct and focus your reading. Read with a purpose. Actively search to answer the questions you posed. Take 5 minute study breaks every 40 minutes to refresh your mind. Recite to answer the questions you created at the beginning by paraphrasing the passage using your own words. If you are unable to recall the information, look over the information again. Try writing down an outline and dont make any notes until you have read the entire section. Reviewing, like any form of practice, is what makes you better. By looking over the notes, it could help you familiarize yourself with the important information in the reading. Covering the notes and reciting the main points is a great way to check your memory. Recite and reflect on what you read on a weekly basis. Survey the chapter, helps collect background and interest. Look at the pictures and charts, the title, introduction, headings, and summary. This should only take a few minutes. Read: Copy the heading down on your paper, this will help you pay more attention and focus more on the reading. Read the section and think critically about the material. Underline: After reading each paragraph, look for the important information. Highlight or underline that information, especially if you think you will need to review for an exam. Take Notes on key information that you highlighted or underlined in the reading. Summarize the information, dont copy the information from the reading. Taking notes will help you understand the information better. Review: Once you have completed the entire chapter, review the information to help reinforce it. Creating questions could help you remember the information and prepare you for future tests.

Why Should you Attend Class??


Being in class helps you learn what the instructor expects-and to anticipate exams. Going to class goes along with a successful attitude about college in general. Be an active participant...prepare for class. Use the course syllabus as a basic roadmap. Do reading assignments before the class lecture. Anticipate the lecture through the previous lectures notes and the text reading. Helpful Hints Schedule study sessions that actually work. Create a schedule for studying and stick with it. Avoid scheduling overly long study sessions. Make sure to study during your best time of day. You need to build into your work 2-3 or more hours of study time for every hour of class time.

Active Reading Techniques


Know your purpose Preview the material Connect new material to your prior knowledge Pose questions and then read to find the answers Visualize what you read Use graphics to aid understanding Reread Talk it out Underline and highlight Take notes Review and recall

Page 2

A C T I V E R E A DI N G S T R A T E G I E S

S K I L L S F O R S U C C E S S:

Page 3

Different Learning Styles


Auditory: Auditory learners use their voices and their ears as the primary means of learning. Auditory has to do with listening and also speaking. If youre this type of person, its important to know that such learners are easily distracted by sounds. Thus, its a good idea that they not listen to the radio while studying. An effective study technique, is to repeat something aloud several times because that strategy helps them to memorize the material. Visual: Visual learners like to see pictures of things described or words written down. Of course, visual refers to the sense of sight. These types of learners seek out illustrations, diagrams, and charts to help them understand and remember information. Visual learners appreciate overhead transparencies and hand-outs. An effect study technique for reviewing and studying material is to read over their notes and recopy and reorganize information into an outline form. Kinesthetic: Kinesthetic learners learn best when they touch and are physically involved in what they are studying. Kinesthetic has to do with the sense of touch. These types of learners enjoy acting out a situation, making a product, and doing a project. They often find that when they physically do something, they understand it and they remember it. Mixed-Modality: Mixed Modality learners are able to function in any three of these learning styles. These people have an advantage because they can handle information in whatever form it is presented to them.

Improve your Memory Strategies


Relax and be attentive Practice frequently especially over material you already know Study a little at a time, frequently Avoid interference Make material meaningful to you Use verbal memory aids: Write out your information Organize your information Use phrases whose first letters represent ideas you want to remember Use a word whose first letter represents ideas you want to remember

To understand is to perceive patterns ~Isaiah Berlin

Choose your Strategy


Everyone is different when it comes to working on assignments. What works for someone else might not work for you. A few suggestions to help figure out what your strategy should be Analyze the assignment: Figure out what you are expected to know and in how much detail. For instance, do you need to know the facts, dates, formulas or just the main concept of the lesion? Identify your options: Look at the different strategies that you can use to approach the task. Try to match the strategy to the material: Try to find the best match with your best learning strategy and the material. Ask yourself questions like: What type of thinking and learning are required? What level of recall is required? Am I expected to make applications?

Monitor your Techniques


Sometimes the technique that you have been using does not always work out, so it is always good to monitor your techniques to see if you really understand what you read. Establish check points: While reading, stop at different points to evaluate what you have read. Use guide questions: Use questions that can help you figure out if you are understanding the material. These questions are to help you pay attention to detail and demand more thought. Ask connection questions: Ask yourself questions to make sure that you are thinking about the content of the information. For instance, How does this reading assignment fit with the topics of this weeks class lectures? Use internal dialogue: Rephrasing the message internally can help check if you are learning something while reading. If you are unable to do this, then perhaps look at other techniques that can help you out.

Strengthening your Comprehension

Academic Services Department


106 Bailey Library Slippery Rock University of PA Hours: 8:00am-4:30pm 724-738-2012 Phone: 724-738-2012 Fax: 724-738-4497

Analyze the time and place in which you are reading Reading for several hours can cause mental fatigue, take a break Reading where there are tons of distractions can cause lack of concentration Rephrase each paragraph in your own words Stating the information in your own words might help you grasp it better Read a loud sentences or sections that are particularly difficult

SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY

Listening to yourself could help understand the information better Do not hesitate to reread difficult or complicated sections Slow down your reading rate Write guide questions next to headings

Active Reading Techniques

Refer to your questions often, write down or underline the answers Write a brief outline of major points This might help see the organization of the major ideas of the reading Underline key ideas This forces you to find the important information and helps with recalling the information Write notes in the margins Determine if you lack background information Sometimes you may not know the background information about the text you are reading...this will be a time where you can consult other sections of the text, look at the reference material, ask your professor for any other additional sources you can look at.

Resources
Van Blerkom, D.L. (2007). Orientation to College Learning, Thomson Higher Education: Boston, MA. McWhorter, K.T. (1989). College Reading and Study Skills, Scott, Foresman and Company: Glenview, IL. Hancoc, O.H. (1998). Reading Skills for College Students, Prentice Hall: Upper Saddle River: NJ.

You might also like