Speed Reading By Skimming

Skimming refers to reading quickly to gain a general impression as to whether the text is of use to you. You are not necessarily searching for a specific item because it only provides an 'overview' of the text.

Skimming is somewhat like reading the morning newspaper. You don’t actually start at the top left corner and read every article on every page. You read the headlines, reject many of the articles that you don’t find relevant, and read only those that interests you, sometimes in a hit and miss fashion – reading the headline, the first paragraph, skipping down to check out the names of the people.

Why Should I Skim?

Contents of most reading materials are not all important and relevant. Some of them are simple supporting details in which absence of them still makes the text complete. In other words, they are only trash.  You wouldn’t waste your time reading the trash at all, would you?

The important items may be skimmed and ear-marked for later reading. The critical may be skimmed to confirm that they are really critical. What is left in the “really critical” stack will demand intensity.  Even then, you may want to skim each one before you read in detail.

Skimming on a regular basis develops your ability to learn with this strategy. It also improves other reading rates such as for studying and for average reading (that will be discussed later on this chapter). It builds your knowledge and vocabulary base so you have the background to rapidly absorb these ideas as they appear in other context.

How to Skim Read

1. Read the title. This focuses your attention on the topic. 
2. Read the introduction. This may be the first paragraph or two. It usually describes, in general, the entire selection will be about.
3. Read the first sentence in each paragraph. Often as many as 80% of the paragraphs start with a summary or topic sentence.  The rest of the sentences in the paragraph simply elaborate. You may skip the elaboration unless it is obviously necessary such as the definition of a very important term.  When you skim, you really are only looking for general ideas.
4. Read the conclusion. This may be the last paragraph or two. It usually summarizes the article, specifies an opinion, or makes some recommendations based on the general content.
5. Test your comprehension. Look away from the article and tell yourself in a sentence or two what the entire article was about.

Next Page Reading By Scanning