READING TECHNIQUES

As you already know here at TheQuotePeople, we are CRAZY about #TheReadingCulture, so this April we bring to you the reading techniques to assist you in playing your part in keeping the reading culture ALIVE!  

Without much of a definition, reading techniques refer to different methods in which one can read. The main types of reading techniques are Skimming, Scanning, Intensive and Extensive. Let’s find out more about these reading techniques down below.  

SKIMMING 

• Verb:/ “the action of reading something quickly so as to note only the important points.” 

The emphasis on skimming is the point of the material you are reading, which is why the term is also referred to as “gist reading.” One skims in order to capture the essence of a text at the most basic level. 

Materials for skimming 

• Short story novels 
• Brochures 
• Booklets 

SCANNING

• Verb:/ “look at all parts of (something) carefully in order to detect some feature.” 

The emphasis is on the visual senses – making use of the eyes to sweep past the provided text. With scanning, often individuals are drawn especially to objects that stand out for example illustrations or bold typography. In doing so, scanning allows the reader to drift towards what they find most interesting. 

Materials for scanning 

• Comic Books 
• Menus

INTENSIVE READING 

• The term refers to “learners reading in detail with specific learning aims and tasks.” Intensive alone is defined as being “concentrated on a single subject or into a short time; very thorough or vigorous.” This means that intensive reading is more time consuming than both skimming and scanning as it requires precision and a sound understanding of the text. As such, intensive reading assists with retention of information which is why students especially use this technique when studying. 

Materials for intensive reading 

• Textbooks 
• PDFs 
• Articles 

EXTENSIVE READING 

• This kind of reading “involves learners reading texts for enjoyment and to develop general reading skills.” The term “extensive” means “wide in range and including much detailed information.” As such, this term applies largely with most of us READERS, as we read widely whether by genre or by author. We gain numerous knowledge and enjoy large amounts of text through the enjoyment of novels especially. 

Materials for extensive reading 

• Novels 
• Comic Books 
• eBooks 

Now that we know the different techniques of reading, you are able to realize the kind of reading that you mostly engage with. If you are a student or a parent, you can see which technique is more suitable when in need of information retention. Here at TheQuotePeople, we are all about the reading culture, so we will ALWAYS have something new for you. Join us on our journey, help us KEEP #TheReadingCulture ALIVE!