Tips For Reading Difficult Material

TIPS FOR READING DIFFICULT MATERIAL

Read the title and the first paragraph

 If there is a summary at the end of the chapter, read it.  Get a grasp of how the material is organized.  If you need more background, seek another source.  If you have enough background, begin reading.

Look for main ideas

 Look for titles, headings, and subheadings.  Pick out topic sentences.  Examine graphs, charts, and diagrams.  Take notes while or just after you read.  Look up words whose meaning you cannot discern from the context.

Monitor your comprehension

 Stop and ask, “What have I just read and learned?”  Connect new information with what you already know.

Reread

 If you are not comprehending an idea, go back and reread.  Restate difficult ideas in your own words.

Read to the end

 Do not get discouraged and stop reading.  Review to see what you have learned.  Reread those ideas that are still not clear.