Painless Reading Comprehension - Darolyn “Lyn” Jones Ed.D. 2021
Be a good reader
Your reading voices
Because reading is a very personal process, there is no one-size-fits-all formula. You have to find the best tools to help you. One thing you all can do is find out what good readers do when they don’t understand what they are reading. That makes sense, right? If you want to be a good basketball player, you study the pros like LeBron James with the Los Angeles Lakers. You need to learn what they do and try their techniques! Likewise, if you want to be a good reader, do what the avid readers do!
Good readers share similar mindsets:
✵ They can summarize and tell you about what they read when they finish.
✵ They have something like a video camera inside their heads as they read. When the camera shuts off and the reader can no longer get a visual image from the words, then they know that their reading has been interrupted or distracted.
✵ They don’t let their minds wander. When they notice their minds wandering, they stop and retell or write or tell some part of what they have read and get reconnected to the reading.
✵ They ask questions when they don’t understand something.
✵ They know the characters or people in the reading passage, can keep track of them, describe them, and tell about them.
✵ They pay attention to the voices in their head and keep the conversation voice going so they can understand what they read to keep what they read in their head!5
PAINLESS TIP
Research shows that note taking and summarizing are two of the very best ways to increase academic success in any content area.
What do good readers do before, during, and after they read to keep what they read in their head? Remember, when you are reading, you have to first determine your purpose, then decide what you will read to find out what you need to know, and finally deduce how much time you will need to do that. Good readers also know and use many different strategies for different types of reading.
So, how do you do that?
✵ Read the summary or conclusion at the end first so you know what the most important ideas are to read for when you read.
✵ Read and think aloud! Visualize the author sitting in front of you. Ask the author questions while you are reading.
✵ You don’t have to read and understand every single word to know what is being said.
✵ If you know what you are reading for, you can look for words or phrases that meet that purpose.
✵ Make notes while you read. Write down or type important facts, events, people, ideas, or dates.
✵ Make sure your video camera is turned on. Create images and interpret what you are reading. Remember, words by themselves are just black marks. Words only have meaning when you assign them meaning. You are the cameraperson; you are in control!
CAUTION—Major Mistake Territory!
When you are reading, don’t let the camera slow down too much because your brain forgets what you have read! When you read too slowly, your video camera doesn’t have enough power to focus on the whole idea because it is only focusing on the individual word.
Listen to the voices in your head! If you are reading and find yourself only mouthing the words or thinking about what you are going to watch on television or wear to school the next day, you need to stop and have a conversation with the words: Argue with the words, repeat what the words say, or make a personal connection to what the words are saying. The reading tools in this book will show you how to keep what you read in your head!