Learning Speed Reading | Schools and Learning

September 15th, 2011 by Owen Jones

What have you been reading lately? In a gathering, you can soon see who the frequent readers are, since wide readers are often quick thinkers and good public speakers too. They quickly win the adulation, respect, and fellowship of others. After all, reading expands the mind and many people think of it as one of the most satisfying pleasures known to mankind, being a combination, as it is, of mental agility and physical relaxation well above the level offered by television or the cinema.

Reading is primarily a mental activity, since you read with your mind and use your imagination to paint the setting of the action thriller you are reading. You use your mind to imagine the pain that the main characters in the story are experiencing as the plot unfolds; or you contemplate the various arguments and ideas theorized by the author in that self-help book you are holding.

Being able to read effectively helps you to develop a wide vocabulary through reading different styles of books. A skillful reader recognizes a wide range of vocabulary. The reader may not know exactly what every word means, but he/she will have a good idea of what the sentence means.

Reading makes you more alert and more curious about new words. Some readers develop ?the dictionary habit?, which means that every time they come across a strange word, they try to figure out what it possibly means in the context. If they cannot do this, they refer to the dictionary.

Similarly, reading develops intellectual curiosity by exposing the reader to a variety of subjects. He/she learns to read by reading books of increasing difficulty and variety. Just as in other types of education, he/she is learning by actually doing and while he/she is reading he/she is automatically learning about the subject matter of the book too ? a free by-product!

Reading trains you to have an active and open mind. Merely grasping the writers idea is not enough, you must make a positive response to what you read. Be an active, not a passive, reader. Develop the habit of drawing your own conclusions, the habit of active thinking, of agreeing or disagreeing with the writer. Always keep your mind open; understand and consider the ideas that you read. A practical part of active reading is the drawing of conclusions.

Now let me tell you to the concept called speed reading. All of the above applies between three and ten times over, because speed readers can read that much faster than the average reader! Imagine that! ? Being able to read, comprehend and remember all those books. You would certainly become well-read in your field much more quickly than others. Just think how that would help you at work or in school or college ?

Now, let me tell you the four primary rules for better reading and better comprehension:

1) Try to read more and more every month. Remember that practice makes perfect. 2) Learn the habit of reading the main ideas, ie look for the subject and predicate ? the principal ideas 3) Learn to read with focus and concentration. Good readers read with understanding. 4) Learn to budget your time. Experiment with your reading time. Try to read faster. Give yourself a time limit for the specific book that you are reading.

Reading is a fantastically stimulating mental activity. It expands your understanding and ability. You really have so much to gain by learning the joy of reading. So, go ahead and get down a book right today.

Owen Jones, the author of this article writes on numerous topics but is currently involved with Free Home Schools. If you would like to read more, please visit our website entitled How To Stay At Home From School.. This article, Learning Speed Reading has free reprint rights.

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