Definition of Expository Writing

Expository writing is writing that seeks to explain, illuminate or 'expose' (which is where the
word 'expository' comes from). This type of writing can include essays, newspaper and magazine
articles, instruction manuals, textbooks, encyclopedia articles and other forms of writing, so long
as they seek to explain. Expository writing differs from other forms of writing, such as fiction
and poetry. In fact, this lesson itself is an example of expository writing.
The expository essay is a tool that is often used in the academic world. If you've attended school,
it's highly likely you've written one. Most expository essays have an introductory paragraph in
which a thesis or objective is stated, several main body paragraphs that prove or explain what is
in the introduction, and a concluding paragraph in which everything is summed up.
When writing an expository essay, it's important to write with the assumption that your audience
has little to no background knowledge about the main topic. Your duty as the writer is to provide
the reader with as much information as you can. The reader should feel as if he or she has
learned something after reading your essay.

What is Reading?
"Reading" is the process of looking at a series of written symbols and getting
meaning from them. When we read, we use our eyes to receive written
symbols (letters, punctuation marks and spaces) and we use our brain to
convert them into words, sentences and paragraphs that communicate
something to us.

Reading can be silent (in our head) or aloud (so that other people can hear).

Reading is a receptive skill - through it we receive information. But the

complex process of reading also requires the skill of speaking, so that we can
pronounce the words that we read. In this sense, reading is also a productive
skill in that we are both receiving information and transmitting it (even if only to
ourselves).

Types of Reading
In this handy guide, you can learn about the different types of reading and why they're useful.

What are the Different Types of Reading?

When we read texts, we don't read the same way every time. The type of reading
approach we take often depends on what we want to get from what we're reading. Is it
for pleasure or are we looking to learn something new?

The types of reading can be placed into two main categories: extensive and intensive.

Extensive vs. Intensive

Extensive reading is reading that's for pleasure and relaxation. As a reader, we can dive
into a book and get lost in a topic that interests us or explore a fictional world with
exciting plot points and characters. With extensive reading, there's no aim to achieve or
objective to reach. It's simply for the fun of reading.

Intensive reading takes a more active approach. As the name suggests, it's more of an
in-depth technique where the text is analysed on a deeper level. This type of reading
requires a careful and critical eye. There are a few different kinds of intensive reading,
including scanning, skimming and critical reading.

Types of Reading Examples

Scanning

Scanning texts helps the reader to find the particular information that they're looking for.

For example, if you're baking a cake, you might scan the recipe to remind yourself of the
amount of flour you need to weigh out.

In school, children may use this type of reading when answering the questions of who,
what, where, when and why while reading a text.

So, scanning is the process of seeking out specific information from a text. It's also
called rapid reading because we seek out information by reading quickly.

Skimming

Another form of rapid reading, skimming is a type of reading that allows us to

understand the main message of a piece of text without reading the entire thing.

You can skim read titles, headings, subheadings, charts and diagrams to get an idea of
what it's about. This will give a broad but shallow understanding of the text.

This type of reading can save time and tells you if it's worth reading the full text in detail.

For example, children might skim-read the chapter titles of a book to find out if it's
something that they'd be interested in reading.

You may have also skim-read the headings of this Teaching Wiki to see if it's going to
provide the information you're looking for!
Critical
Critical reading is the most in-depth and intensive type of reading. As the name
suggests, it involves having a critical eye and essentially holding up a metaphorical
magnifying glass to the text you're reading.

It's not about looking for faults and flaws in the text but instead holding the author and
their ideas to account. Can they back up what they're saying? Is there sufficient
evidence to prove their point?

To read a text critically, you have to analyse what the text is saying and how it's saying
it (such as by taking a look at the literary devices it uses). From this, you
make inferences and use your own judgement to reach a conclusion - do you agree or
disagree with what the text is saying or trying to say?

Critical reading is used to analyse various texts including novels, poems, articles and
even what we see on social media or the television.

SQ3R is a reading comprehension method named for its five steps: survey, question,
read, recite, and review. Follow the steps below to learn how to glean as much
information as possible from the text requirements from any class.

Remember: The information you gain from reading is important. If you just “do it,”
without learning something, you’re wasting a lot of your time. Train your mind to learn
while reading with SQ3R.

SURVEY
Gather the information necessary to focus and formulate goals
  Read the title – Help your mind prepare to receive the

subject at hand.

 Read the introduction and/or summary – Orient yourself

to how each chapter fits the author's purposes, and

focus on the author's statement of most important

points.

 Notice each boldface heading and subheading –

Organize your mind before you begin to read and build

a structure for the thoughts and details to come.

 Notice any graphics – Charts, maps, diagrams, etc. are

there to make a point. Don't overlook them.

 Notice reading aids – Italics, bold face print, chapter

objective, and end-of -chapter questions are all

included to help you sort, comprehend, and remember.

QUESTION
Help your mind engage and concentrate

Turn the boldface heading for each section into as many questions as you think will be
answered in that section. The better the questions, the better your comprehension is
likely to be. You may always add further questions as you proceed. When your mind is
actively searching for answers to questions it becomes engaged in learning.

READ
Fill in the information around the mental structures you've been building
Read one section at a time with your questions in mind and look for the answers.
Recognize when you need to make up some new questions.

RECITE
Retrain your mind to concentrate and learn as it reads

After each section, stop and recall your questions and see if you can answer them from
memory. If not, look back at the text again (as often as necessary), but don't move to
the next section until you can recite the answers from the previous one.

REVIEW
Refine your mental organization and begin building memory

Once you've finished the entire chapter using the preceding steps, go back over the
questions you create for every heading. See if you can still answer them. If not, look
back and refresh your memory and then continue.

Resources from Intelligent.com

Create a Study Plan

Study Smart Before Exams

Take Effective Notes

Manage Your Stress

Use Test-taking Strategies on Exam Day

Need help determining a timeline for working on an assignment, paper or project?

Check out the Assignment Calculator from VT Libraries and SSD:

Assignment Calculator
GET D IR ECT IO N S

S EE ALL LOC A T ION S

CONT AC T VIRG IN IA T EC H

Active vs. Passive Reading

Have you ever read a page from a textbook and at the end of the page realized you
have no idea what you just read?

Successful readers develop active reading habits that improve their reading
comprehension, speed, and enjoyment. Active reading involves deeper engagement
with the text before, during, and after reading. The Reading Lab promotes active
reading by modeling strategies and techniques to support it.

A good way to understand active reading is by comparing it to what it is not, what’s

sometimes called passive reading.

Active Reading Passive Reading

Adjust how you read depending on the type

of text and context within which you're
reading.
Examine the purpose of the assignment
before reading.
Alter your reading speed as you read based
Read each text the same way.
Read without examining the
purpose of the assignment.
Read everything at the same
on the significance and difficulty of each
passage.
Preview a text before reading by skimming
headings, topic sentences, and key words.
Read with questions in mind.
Stop to monitor your understanding of the
text as you read.
Annotate while you read: read with a pencil
or highlighter in hand to mark important
passages and jot down notes.
Make time to reflect upon and evaluate what
you have read.
speed.
Don't preview; just jump right into
reading.
Read without questions in mind.
Don't stop to think about whether
you are understanding what you
are reading.
Don't annotate. Don't have
anything in hand. Just read.
Don't make time to reflect upon
and evaluate what you have read.

Techniques that will help you to become a better student

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Reading techniques

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Scanning[edit]
 2. Skimming[edit]
3. Active Reading[edit]
4. Detailed Reading[edit]
5. Speed Reading[edit]
6. Structure-Proposition-Evaluation[edit]
7. Reading Techniques: Survey-Question-Read-Recite-Review[edit]
This might be interesting for you if you have to read a lot. Here, we introduce you to
reading techniques. Please note, that not every technique is useful for everybody or every
type of text.

Scanning[edit]

This technique is automatically being used by everyone who has tried to find a person in a
telephone book. You simply browse through the book, looking for a specific piece of
information. It's helpful to have several signal words written down, e.g. snow, sledge, Coca-
Cola.

Skimming[edit]

Have you ever read an article in a newspaper or magazine? Well, if you didn't notice, you are
just skimming the text. Smaller details are being disregarded and you simply focus on the
main words, which is enough to get the meaning of the article. This technique is great for
obtaining a first impression of an article to see if it is actually relevant to you or not.

Active Reading[edit]

When you truly want to understand the text, then you have to actively read it. There is
simply no way around it. Scanning and Skimming can only do so much but to obtain an in-
depth perception you have to read actively.

Detailed Reading[edit]
This technique is actually a combination of Skimming and Active Reading. You skim a text
first and then you go through it in detail. Paying attention to every single word and
extracting important information from the text.

Speed Reading[edit]

Here, you simply try to improve your reading speed without losing any understanding of the
text. It's quite difficult and requires a lot of practice. The main aspects of Speed Reading are:

 Identifying words without focusing on each letter

 Not to sounding-out all words
 Not sub-vocalizing some phrases
 Spending less time on some phrases than others
 Skimming small sections

Structure-Proposition-Evaluation[edit]

This technique is only applicable to non-fiction writing. You simply have to stick to those
three steps:

 Review the table of contents, paragraphs of the article or layout of the text
 Study the statements of the text and put them in logical order or relation to each
other
 Evaluate the final arguments and conclusions of the text

Reading Techniques: Survey-Question-Read-Recite-Review[edit]

This is the most detailed approach to read a text. Afterwards, the reader should be able to
teach the content of the text.

 Survey: Getting a quick idea of the text, e.g. reading the abstract and the summary.
 Question: The reader should note down questions before he starts reading. While
reading he should find the answer to those questions.
 Read: Attentive reading.
 Recite: The previously developed questions should be answered by the reader in his
own words and only using keywords of the text.
  Review: Once the reader is done with answering the questions, he should review the
whole product.

◄ Preparation and Follow-Up as part of the learning process

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