CRITICAL READING STRATEGIES Here are some ways to annotate a text:

Critical Reading Strategies 1.Write key words or phrases on the margins in bullet forms.
Reading academic texts requires focus and understanding. You have to 2.Write something on the page margin where important information is found.
interact with the texts by questioning its assumptions, responding to its arguments, 3.Write brief notes on the margin.
and connecting it to real-life experiences and applications. 4. Write questions on information that you find confusing.
5. Write what you already know about the ideas.
Critical or reflective reading helps you identify the key arguments presented 6. Write the limitations of the author’s arguments.
by the author and analyze concepts presented in the text. 7. Write notes on the reliability of the text.
8. Comment on the author’s biases
Before Reading 9. Underline or circle meanings or definitions.
1. Determine which type of academic text you are reading. 10. Mark or highlight relevant/ essential parts of the text.
11. Use context clues to define unfamiliar terms.
12. Determine the main idea of the text.

After Reading
1.Reflect on what you learn.
2.React on some parts of the text through writing.
3.Discuss some parts with your teacher or classmates.
4.Link the main idea of the text to what you already know.

Other Reading Strategies

2. Determine and establish your purpose for reading. 1.SQ3R METHOD OF READING – stands for Survey (Skim), Question, Read, Recite (or
3. Identify the author’s purpose for writing. Recall), Review.
4. Predict or infer the main idea or argument of the text based on its title.
5. Identify your attitude towards the author and the text. SURVEY
6. State what you already know and what you want to learn about the topic. -Skim the target text
7. Determine the target audience. -Check the headings and tables, diagrams or figures presented in the text.
8. Check the publication date for relevance. It should have been published at most five -Read the first few and last sentences of the text to determine information.
years earlier than the current year. -Get a feel of the text.
9. Check the reference list while making sure to consider the correctness of the
formatting style. QUESTION
10. Use a concept map or graphic organizer to note your existing ideas and knowledge -Annotate the headings with your questions.
on the topic. -Develop questions on the types of information you expect from the text.

During Reading READ

Annotate important parts of the text. Annotating a text can help you - Look for answers to your question as you read the text.
- Stop and slow down if the passage is not clear.
determine essential ideas or information, main ideas or arguments, and new
- Make sure to proceed reading only when you already understand the previous texts.
information or ideas.
RECITE
- Recount the main points of the text.
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- Recall by writing a summary or synthesis based on what you understand of the text.
- Highlight or underline the important points you read.

REVIEW
- After finishing the text, go back and re-read the questions you wrote and see if you
can answer them; if not refresh your memory.
- Evaluate what you learned to ensure that you are convinced and satisfied with the
information presented in the text.

KWL METHOD – it guides you in reading and understanding a text. To apply KWL,
simply make a table with three columns.
READING 2. ANTONYMS – the sentence uses a word with an opposite meaning of the unfamiliar
• A cognitive process of decoding symbols in order to derive meaning from a text. word.

EFFECTIVE READING STRATEGIES EXAMPLES

1. Emma had a lot of anxiety about the exam but I had no worries about it.
1. PREVIEWING AND PREDICTING 2.Marty is gregarious, not like his brother who is quiet and shy.
• One way to enter a text is to preview titles, subtitles, visuals and other text features.
• It will lead the students through a series of questions that will help them make an 3. EXAMPLES - this type of context clues use examples to help the reader infer the
accurate prediction. meaning of unfamiliar words.

2. SKIMMING AND SCANNING EXAMPLES

1. Some celestial bodies, such as the planets and stars, can be seen by the naked eye.
2. Entrepreneurs, including Steve Jobs, Mark Zukerberg and Bill Gates, initiate societal
SKIMMING
change through the technological advancements their companies create.
• A. Looking for the main point of the reading and identifying the ideas that develop it.
• B. Moving eyes rapidly along the page and tracing your finger along the lines of the
4. DEFINITIONS - giving the definition of the word itself.
text to speed up your reading.
• C. Quickly going through beginning and concluding sentences of paragraphs because
EXAMPLE
these usually talk about the topic of the text.
1. Capital is an asset that can be used to produce an income.
2. Etymology is the study of the origin of words and the way in which their meanings
SCANNING
have changed throughout history.
• A. Looking for specific information.
• B. You need to have the idea of the details you are looking for.
• C. You don’t have to read every word; just locate the details you are looking for.

3. USING CONTEXT CLUES

• CONTEXT CLUE – is a hint that an author gives to help define a difficult or unusual
word. The clue may appear within the same sentence as the word to which it refers or
it may follow in a preceding sentence.

COMMON TYPES OF CONTEXT CLUES

1. SYNONYMS – the sentence uses a similar word to help explain the meaning of the
unfamiliar word.

EXAMPLES
1. Though Jane’s test was partially done, she received a low grade because it was not
complete.
2. Bill felt remorse or shame, for his harsh words.
3. This situation is a conundrum – a puzzle.