Start by trying to look at a group of three or four words at once, then work up to looking at an entire line of words. Focus on words that give the sentence meaning, such as the nouns and verbs and pay less attention to the filler words, such as “A, the, and, etc. ” To see the biggest improvement in your speed reading skills, combine this technique with other speed reading techniques.
While it used to be claimed that this use of the hand or finger “guided” the eye, it now appears that the finger sets the pace of reading rather than guiding its path. This is because it is difficult to pace the movements of your eyes, but easy to pace the movements of your hands. You can also use a pen or other object to pace yourself.
Try scanning with your hands or a pen, preferably a blue or black pen. Experiment with shapes to see which gets you the quickest results.
To check for comprehension at the end of every speed reading session, write down keywords, or just summarize what you read in a few sentences or by explaining it to someone. This will help you keep improving your comprehension, and it will also help you to retain information better.
Check your comprehension. Say what you learned out loud—you don’t need to write it down, just check to see that you took in the information you were reading. The next day, set the alarm for 15 minutes again and try to read faster. Record your times again (“15 min/7 pages,” for instance), and check for comprehension. Do this every day or 5 days a week to improve your skills. Try to beat your last time every session. If you notice your comprehension is dropping, you may have reached your peak or need to aim for a more moderate improvement in speed.
If you are reading a text without these things, you might consider reading the first and last sentence of every paragraph or chapter to get an idea of the material the text is covering.
If you like, add further questions while you read.
Depending on the length of the text, you may choose to read it all, or you may choose to read it in sections. For maximum comprehension, pause at the end of every section and think about what you have read. Answer the question if you can. For maximum speed, answer the questions once you have read the entire text.
If you are pausing after each section, make sure you can recite the answer to that section before you move on to the next. If you cannot, go back and skim it again. If you feel you made an error in the framing of one of your questions, reframe it so that you can answer it.
If you cannot, skim the section again until you can.
If you are reading a certain genre of text, such as a medical textbook, it will help to study that genre’s jargon(special words typically only used in that field) before you start reading. Reading broadly in the fields that interest you will expand your vocabulary.
Avoid speed reading texts that you really need to know, such as material you will be tested on. Avoid speed reading texts that require you to subvocalize or analyze while you read, such as poetry or fiction. You will miss out on the most important information. [13] X Research source
Don’t make marks or highlight the text—this will interfere with your speed reading, and it may distract you from the information you are trying to absorb. Read every day because that will help you get reading faster. And make sure you are listening to the teacher in class.
