What have you been reading lately? In a gathering, you can soon see who the wide readers are, since wide readers often think and speak well too. They win the admiration, respect, and fellowship of others. After all, reading expands the mind and many people consider it one of the most satisfying pleasures known to mankind, combining, as it does, mental agility and physical relaxation way above the scale offered by television.
Reading is mostly a mental activity, as you read with your mind and use your imagination to depict the setting of the detective thriller you are reading. You use your mind to imagine the pleasure that the main characters in the story are experiencing as the plot unfolds; or you contemplate the various arguments and ideas introduced by the author of 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.
The act of reading makes you more alert and more interested in new words. Some readers even like to employ ‘the dictionary habit’, which means that every time they find a strange word, they try to figure out what it means by the context. If they are stumped, they refer to a 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 kinds 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!
Basically, reading teaches you to have an active and open mind. Only understanding the writers point of view is not really good enough, you must have a reply to what you have read. Be an active, not a passive, reader. Try to develop the habit of drawing your own conclusions, the habit of active thinking, of agreeing or disagreeing with the author. Always keep your mind open; understand and weigh the ideas that you have read. A practical part of active reading is the development of one’s own conclusions.
Now let me introduce you to the idea known as speed reading. All of the above applies three, four, eight, nine, even ten times over, because speed readers can read that much faster than the average reader! Consider that … being able to read, comprehend and remember all those books. You would certainly become well-read in your subject far more quickly than others. Just imagine how that could help you at work or in school or college …
Let me share four primary rules for effective reading and better comprehension:
1) Try to read more and more every month. Remember the saying that practice makes perfect. 2) Develop the habit of reading for main ideas, ie look for the subject and predicate - the main ideas 3) Learn to read with focus and concentration. Think of what you are reading. Good readers read with understanding. 4) Learn to budget your time. Experiment with your reading time. Try purposely to read faster. Give yourself a time limit on a specific text that you are reading.
Reading is a fantastically stimulating mental activity. It expands your reality and capability. You have so much to gain in discovering the joys of reading. So, go ahead and take down a book right now.
Are you interested in speed reading for yourself or a dear one? If so, please visit our web site called Speed Reading.
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