Skimming and scanning - 1
If you’re taken an English exam you’re going to encounter different reading tasks that will require either Skimming, Scanning or reading the whole text. It’s important that you know what this mean in order to do the task correctly.
You probably regularly read newspapers, magazines, adverts, letters, emails, instructions and blogs. Without realizing it, you use strategies when you do that. You might have got in the habit of using some strategies that don’t really work well for you.
Practice these steps.
Step 1: Think about it.
- What kind of text is it? What's the subject?
- What do I know about the subject?
- What is the purpose of the text?
- What do I want or have to find out?
- What do I have to do with the text?
Step 2: Decide what to do.
- I'll skim (glance over it).
- I'll scan (look for specific information).
- I'll read the whole text..
Skimming and scanning - 2
Step 3: Do what you decided to do.
- Skimming: Read heading, pictures, captions. Read introduction and conclusion. Read first and last sentences of paragraphs.
Reading rapidly in order to get a general overview.
- Scanning: Find numbers, names, places, etc. Answer questions. Look for key words in questions and scan the passage for the same key words. Answers are usually found around the key words.
Look for answers to only one question at a time. Scan separately for each question.
Reading rapidly in order to find specific facts.
- Read: Highlight topic sentences (sentences opening paragraphs).
Underline key words. Circle linking words. Make notes. Answer questions.
Remember; this is going to be far more time consuming than scanning or skimming!
Step 4: Think about it again.
- Were my predictions correct?
- Have I missed anything?
- Go back to previous steps if you need to.
- Look words up in a dictionary.
Skimming and scanning - 3
Tip!
Read as much as possible
Reading is a skill, like swimming or playing football.
Something you get better at by practising.
The more you read, the better you’ll get at it!
Speed read
Speed up. In exam situations you will often need to read a text more quickly than before.
Practise reading texts quickly: you can time yourself.
For example, give yourself 3 minutes to read 300 words, then give yourself 2 minutes to read 300 words,
then try in 1 minute.
You can repeat this idea with the same text at first, but then try it with different texts as you get better at it.
Don't freeze
Remember, in an exam you aren’t allowed to ask someone or look up a new word.
If you don’t know a word, and you can’t guess a general meaning from the other words around it, then skip it, don’t waste time!
