Reading Skills

Styles of reading

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There are three styles of reading which we use in different situations:

Scanning: for a specific focus

The technique you use when you're looking up a name in the phone book: you move your eye quickly over the page to find particular words or phrases that are relevant to the task you're doing.

It's useful to scan parts of texts to see if they're going to be useful to you:

• the introduction or preface of a book

• the first or last paragraphs of chapters

• the concluding chapter of a book. 

Scanning is a technique you often use when looking up a word in the telephone book or dictionary. You search for key words or ideas. In most cases, you know what you're looking for, so you're concentrating on finding a particular answer. Scanning involves moving your eyes quickly down the page seeking specific words and phrases. Scanning is also used when you first find a resource to determine whether it will answer your questions. Once you've scanned the document, you might go back and skim it.      When scanning, look for the author's use of organizers such as numbers, letters, steps, or the words, first, second, or next. Look for words that are bold faced, italics, or in a different font size, style, or color. Sometimes the author will put key ideas in the margin.

Skimming: for getting the gist of something

The technique you use when you're going through a newspaper or magazine: you read quickly to get the main points, and skip over the detail. It's useful to skim:

• to preview a passage before you read it in detail

• to refresh your understand of a passage after you've read it in detail.

Use skimming when you're trying to decide if a book in the library or bookshop is right for you. 

 

Skimming is used to quickly identify the main ideas of a text. When you read the newspaper, you're probably not reading it word-by-word, instead you're scanning the text. Skimming is done at a speed three to four times faster than normal reading. People often skim when they have lots of material to read in a limited amount of time. Use skimming when you want to see if an article may be of interest in your research.

There are many strategies that can be used when skimming. Some people read the first and last paragraphs using headings, summarizes and other organizers as they move down the page or screen. You might read the title, subtitles, subheading, and illustrations. Consider reading the first sentence of each paragraph. This technique is useful when you're seeking specific information rather than reading for comprehension. Skimming works well to find dates, names, and places. It might be used to review graphs, tables, and charts.

Detailed reading: for extracting information accurately

Where you read every word, and work to learn from the text.

In this careful reading, you may find it helpful to skim first, to get a general idea, but then go back to read in detail. Use a dictionary to make sure you understand all the words used.

(From : http://www.studyskills.soton.ac.uk/studytips/reading_skills.htm)

Types of Writing

Types of Writing 

Imaginative / Personal
Genre	Purpose	Framework	Language Features
Recount ·         Personal retellings, Ex. Diary, autobiography, some letters. ·         Imaginative recounts.	To tell what happened, to retell events.	·         Orientation (Who, Where, When) ·         Series of events in time order ·         Personal comment	·         Use of nouns to identify people, animals and things ·         Linking words to do with time ex ‘later’, ‘after’, ‘before’ ·         Simple past tense ·         Action verbs
Descriptive ·         Description of a person, place or thing: character sketch, description of setting, object ·         Poem	To portray a person place, or thing in such a way that the reader can visualize the topic and enter into the writer’s experience.	·         Introduction ·         Supporting descriptive details ·         Summary	·         Elaborate use of sensory language ·         Rich, vivid, and lively detail ·         Figurative language such as simile, hyperbole, metaphor, symbolism and personification ·         Showing, rather than telling through the use of active verbs and precise modifiers ·         Adjectives and Stretched Sentences
Narrative ·         Ex. Fairytales, legends, plays, science fiction, myths, cartoons, adventure stories.	To entertain, create,   stimulate emotions, motivate, guide, teach	·         Orientation ( introduce main character in a setting of time and place) ·         Complications / problems (main characters find ways to solve the problem) ·         Resolution	·         Defined ·         Descriptive language ·         Dialogue ·         Usually past tense

Functional
Genre	Purpose	Framework	Language Features
Persuasive ·         Controversial topics	To choose a side of an argument and give reasons your choice is the correct one.	·         Open with a statement of the issue being addressed ·         State your position on the issue ·         Main body of text contains the arguments that are elaborated with reasons and evidence (facts). ·         End with a summary	·         Use mainly the present tense ·         Use logical and cause and effect connectives. ·         Use technical language ·         Dare the reader to disagree ·         Try to make opinions sounds like fact ·         Use powerful verbs and strong adj.
Expository ·         Low Research	To present, analyze, and interpret information.	·         This can be accomplished through: -          Compare – Contrast -          Problem – solution -          Cause –  effect

Argumentative ·         High level research

To investigate an idea, evaluate evidence, and give an argument concerning that idea in a clear and concise manner.

·         A statement of position at the beginning ·         A logical sequence ·         The argument is put forward in a series of points with back up evidence ·         A summing up or restating of position at the end

·         The argument is written in the present or it making predictions change to the future. ·         Strong effective adjectives are used ·         Use of emotive language ie. Words that will appeal to the reader’s feeling, Eg. Concern, unreasonable, should.

Note: Some confusion can occur between the argumentative paragraphs and expository paragraphs. These two genres are similar, but argumentative differs from expository in the amount of pre-writing and research involved. The argumentative essay is commonly assigned as a final project and involves lengthy, detailed research. Expository essays involve less research and are shorter in length. Expository essays involve less research and are shorter in length. Expository essays are often used for in-class writing exercises or tests.