How Do I Understand What I’m Reading?

Very often, we hold ourselves back from success because we want things done quickly and with the least amount of effort. However, a ‘quick and easy’ attitude makes things even more difficult later on, and can even hurt our chances of being successful in the long run. Doing something properly from the beginning may take a lot longer, but the effort usually results in a higher level of quality and continued success later on. Learning how to read effectively in any language takes much practice and effort, but results in a higher degree of lifetime success.

Understanding what you are reading in a second language is difficult, but with time and effort, you can learn to read effectively. At the beginning, it will take more time and effort, but the more you practice, the more each step will become internalized until you reach a point where you are just naturally following the process and it takes no time at all. This is the stage you want to reach before starting college and university, because it will save you time and help you succeed. Right now, it does take a lot of time and effort, but the end resultwill make your life so much easier (and faster!) later on, when it really counts.

When you first start learning how to read anything in a different language, keep a notebook and write down your thoughts and questions as you move through the reading process. As you become a better reader, you will be able to stop writing about what you are reading and the process will internalize. Reading will become quicker and easier, and so organic you will become a sponge for information.

Steps to learning how to read successfully:

  1. Before reading, think about the text you are about to read.
  • What do you already know about the subject?
  • What do you already know about the author?
  • What does the title mean? How do you think it will connect to the body of the text?
  • What do you think this text will be about, based on what you already know?
  1. As you read, there are several things you can do to help understand:
  • Keep a list of all new vocabulary. Use a dictionary and a thesaurus for new vocabulary. If you can write on the text itself, put a synonym above the word to help yourself remember.
  • Reread the text again, substituting the synonyms
  • If you can write on the text, highlight important information. Put a personal note in the margin explaining to yourself why you highlighted the information.
  • If you can’t write on the text, keep a reading log. Stop at the end of each paragraph, or each page of text, and list the important information. Summarize the paragraph or the main idea(s) of the page.
  • At first, keep very detailed notes from each page to help you understand the important information. Once you get better at reading, you will not have to be as detailed and much of the process will start to internalize.
  • If you are reading a story, keep track of the characters and their relationships to one another, and add short notes about character traits and actions. If you are reading a novel, you can dedicate a page to each of the main characters to track their actions and interactions throughout the novel.

Example of pages in a reading log:

  • Ask questions. As you read, ask yourself questions about the text. Write your questions down and try to answer them as you read further.
  • Visualize. Try to visualize details as you read the text. It helps you understand details.
  • If you are guessing about something such as a word or an event, verify your understanding before moving on. Make sure you are not guessing, but take the time to go back, reread, look up definitions, etc… to make sure you understand.

Step 3: After you read, you are not done reading! If you really want to understand the text, finishing the last word of it is not finishing the reading. Take the time to make sure you’ve understood the text:

  • Discuss the text with other people who have read it. Add to your log when new ideas or information come up from somebody else
  • Write a journal entry. Link the text to your personal experience in some way. This is also a way to critique the text and understand if it was well-written or garbage.
  • Does the subject affect you on a personal level? How?
  • Why is the subject important to your life?
  • Do the characters remind you of people?
  • Have you or someone you know reacted in the same way?
  • What would you do if you had been in the situation described?

All of these steps are important parts of the reading process, especially if you are a beginner reader or if you are reading a different language. Take the time now to complete all the steps of a reading process and soon enough, it will take you no time at all to read a text and understand it completely. This will make you more efficient and more successful in the future. The payoff is worth the time and effort you make now!