Active Reading: Using the SQ3R Technique (Survey, Question, Read, Recite, Review)
click here for "Active Reading: Using theSQ3R Technique" handout
click here for "The Double-entry Reading Log" handout
The SQ3R technique, taught
in many study skills books and classes, provides an effective way to learn
information. With lengthy articles or textbook chapters, using SQ3R will
help you to save time and retain more material.
Step 1 - SURVEY
To read for long-term understanding, survey (preview) the material first. For a textbook, surveying will mean reading through the first paragraph or two and all major headings, glancing at pictures and diagrams, and looking through any summary material at the end of the chapter.Next, write down the main ideas of the article in three or four sentences or phrases.
Step 2 - QUESTION
Next, write down any questions you have about the reading (at least three specific questions) and what you expect to learn from the material (write down two or three expectations).You should ask big questions that you hope to answer after the Step 3's close reading. A typical question might be "What does the author mean by X?" Or "Is the author saying that such and such will really work?" Or "Why is the author's using so many examples?"
STEP 3 - READ
Your first close reading will be active as you move between reading and annotating (taking notes). Don't get bogged down in details, but do read with real concentration for 10 minutes at a time. Most people learn best with short bursts of intense study, so don't try to slog straight through long chapters from beginning to end. (See Writing Center Handout, "How To Read A Textbook Chapter In One Hour.")After each 10 minute reading, write the main idea of each paragraph in its margin. If you have questions (for example, "Doesn't this contradict what the author stated in the opening paragraph?"), write them in the margins. Or, if you see an important idea, underline or circle it, making a note in the margin. However, avoid the common tendency to underline sentence after sentence with a colorful highlighter. Highlighting does little to help you understand what you have read.
Step 4 - RECITE
After close reading and active note-taking, recite the important points. Repeat to yourself or any willing study partner the main ideas, important examples, connections that seem noteworthy, and, especially, the answers to your questions from Step 2. Believe it or not, reciting helps you understand and remember new material.
Step 5 - REVIEW
Did you know that reviewing material shortly after reading is the best way to retain it?In the SQ3R method, review means simply to go over what you have read, annotated, and recited. Organize what you have learned, making new notes in the margins of your reading or on an index card. You can also return to those questions you wrote down in Step 1. As you review your reading notes, you ought to be able to answer those questions in some detail. When you have your answers, try talking to yourself about them (reciting) or writing them down (annotating).
THE DOUBLE-ENTRY READING LOG:
UNDERSTANDING AND RESPONDING TO READINGCreating a double-entry reading log is an activity which will help you understand and remember what you have read. Begin by reading quickly for overall meaning, preferably in one sitting. Then read again more closely as you make the entries in your log. You may choose to focus the log on just one part of the text.
First, draw a line roughly down the middle of a piece of notebook paper. The two sides of the double-entry reading log represent a dialogue between you and the essay you read. The line between the sides is not absolute: you are free to move back and forth from notes to reflection. Also feel free to continue the log onto other pages.You need not fill out all the numbers below for each part of the reading; however, the more you note and reflect, the deeper your understanding will be.
READING NOTES REFLECTION NOTES1. Quote directly from the 1. Comment on a direct quote.
essay: words, phrases or Explain why you found it
sentences that for you clearly significant or enjoyable.
suggest meaning or that you Paraphrase it.
simply like.2. Write down anything you 2. Explain why you found
find interesting or different something interesting or
that seems to contribute to different. Analyze it.
the essay: any image or idea,
the narrator's voice, tone,
format, organization of ideas,
punctuation, rhetorical
devices, etc.3. Write down questions or 3. Try to explore anything
problems you have while that confuses you or gives you
reading. trouble. Challenge the point
being made: argue.4. List words whose meanings 4. Consult a dictionary and
you don't know for sure. write down definitions of
words you don't know. Pay
attention to etymology.
Comment on anything you find
interesting.5. If you need to, draw visual 5. Discuss your
pictures or diagrams to help drawing/diagram.
you understand the essay.6. Make any closing comments
about why you liked or
disliked the essay you read.http://odin.english.udel.edu/dbaer/110_2000.html
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