College Reading Expectations

I. Expectations of Reading
a. Prepare for lengthy amounts of reading
1) Organize what needs to be read and when to read it
2) Make an effort to read and itll be easier over time and have more incentive to read
3) Set times for reading, quiet reading locations, be in a particular mindset
4) Make a schedule for small assessments, not just large ones
II. Reading in the Disciplines
a. Strategies in Reading
1) Math: Read explanations and visual representations of problems and steps.
2) Literature: Begin early on, have checkpoints to reflect and note take, re-read
3) Languages: Focus on comprehension then on improving reading and speaking speed
4) Sciences: Time and effort for concepts and processes, visual representations for help
5) Social Sciences: Begin early on, key ideas, learning who, what, when, and where are
essential
III. Active and Critical Reading
a. What are they and the differences between them?
b. 1) Active reading is focusing all attention on what your reading
2) Help comprehend what you are reading and understanding it

c. 1) Critical Reading is a series of steps to react and respond to reading

2) To question and evaluate the material, to dig deeper and really understand

IV. Skimming and Scanning

a. What are they and the differences between them?
b. 1) Skimming is going over the reading matieral for the main idea and key ones
2) First and last paragraphs, main headings, and first and last sentences of paragraphs

c. 1) Scanning is trying to zone in on for a specific topic or item.

2) Knowing where and what to find, table of contents and indexes are helpful

V. Questioning
a. What to question?
1) Clarification, disagreements, agreements
2) Credibility, signs of bias, purpose or aim?
VI. Evaluating
a. How and what to evaluate
1) Does the author have a background in what they are they writing?
2) Able to detect bias

Developing Your Reading Skills

I. Building Your Vocabulary
 a. The need to expand my vocabulary set
1) Look for context clues to understand unfamiliar words
2) Look up words regularly and look for common word roots
II. Checking Your Comprehension
a. The need to comprehend and remember what I read
1) Answer questions concerning what I just read
2) Create short, small summaries
III. Improving Your Reading Attention Span
a. Try to increase reading length span
1) Find the right number of pages to read in a length of time
2) Keep a log of how much I read per work and the amount of time read

SQ3R Reading Strategy

I. SQR1R2R3 (SQ3R)
a. What does It mean?
1) Survey: Examine the headings, subheadings, graphics, charts, and references
2) Question: Write down questions that I might have
3) (R1) Read: Read each section, clear my mind and focus on the reading material
4) (R2) Recite: Go over what Ive read, question it to reinforce what Ive gone over
5) (R3) Review: Go over again in either 24 hours to a few days to remember

The Art of Listening

I. Preparing to Listen and Listening Actively
a. How to be ready to listen
1) Passive Listening: Lack of engage attention
2) Active Listening: Concentrating on what is said and remembering the information
b. Effective Listening
1) Prepare to listen! Be awake, clear head of distractions, and focus on the speaker
2) Only have what you need to read and write down with, clear everything else
3) Avoid chatty classmates
4) Have a positive attitude

II. Listening Carefully

a. Active Listening essentially
1) Focusing on what is at hand and what is being conveyed.
2) Listening is a skill! Practice to improve it!
b. SMESL
1) Speaker: Credible? Bias? Experience or background?
2) Message: Speakers purpose? Details and ways to convey message?
3) Details: Using facts or opinions? Check to see.
 4) Self-Knowledge: How much do I do know already? Agree or disagree with my own
beliefs and opinions?
5) Larger Picture: How does it fit in the large scheme of things? Any relation to myself
and my experiences?
III. Reducing Listening Barriers
a. Disabling listening barriers
1) Dont be afraid to ask the instructor questions, to slow down, go over, or repeat
themselves. Theyre there to help and teach me.
IV. Remembering What Ive Heard
a. Note taking and other methods
1) Particaption in discussion and activities
2) Being personally involved will help
3) Ask questions or personally speak to the instructor afterword for tutoring hours

Note Taking Strategies

I. Tips for note taking
1) Main ideas
2) Leave room for white space
3) Review notes after class or once home
II. How Information is presented
1) Listening Effectively is the first step
2) Be aware of teachers method of teaching
3) Adjust to their style for easy of learning
III. Developing A Shorthand
1) Use abbreviations for words that are frequently used over and over.
IV. Outlining
1) Good for orginazing information and highlighting key concepts and/or ideas
2) Do provide white space if the need to expand on it
V. Annotating
1) Basically a summarization of a topic or subject
2) Write down critical questions to prepare for further listening and note taking
3) Will help reinforce the main point and make the material more relevant and memorable
VI. The Cornell System
1) Refer to picture below
 Note Taking Strategies in the Disciplines
I. Art
1) Ability to identify eras, movements, and artists and their characteristics
2) Sketching the works and listing characteristic details will help recording information
3) Look for times of intense changes and artists who imitate or modify to a new style.
II. Music
1) Descriptions of what I hear and the sounds
2) Making notes of music notes (no pun intended)
3) Reviewing music clips
III. Literature
1) Annotating and highlighting text
2) More on discussion than lecture, be prepared for a different approach
IV. Languages
1) Daily Preparation
2) Prepare for what Ill hear and note it down
3) Review afterward such as new words or phrases and practice what Ive learned
V. Science
1) Concepts and processes
2) Study diagrams and figures
VI. History
1) Themes, ideas, and movements
2) Cause/effect organization
VII. Math
1) Build up my skills over time
2) Need to memorize steps

Reviewing Your Notes

I. Dont just read the notes, STUDY them
II. Give reasons for why Im taking notes, helps be motivated for taking notes and studying.