Study Smart:School Tool Box

Getting the Point of What You Read

Dear Teronda:
There are some tricks to effective reading. Here's what I do when I have to read something and figure out what the writer was trying to say.

Supplies

• pencil or pen
  
  
• paper or notebook
  
  
• a quiet place
  
  
• an open mind
  
  

Step One: Scan and Report

• Scan. Glance over the whole article.
  
  
• Read it, but read it fast.
  
  
• Ask yourself: why did the writer write this?
  
  
• Don't worry about little facts. Get the big idea first.
  
  
• Is the writer for something? Against it? What's their complaint?
  
  
• If you see something you don't get, like a new word, put a pencil check in the margin next to it.
  
  
• Don't stop reading.
  
  
• Whatever you do, keep reading all the way to the end.
  
  
• Now, pretend you're answering this question - what's the point?
  
  
• All writing starts with a main idea. What's the writer trying to say?
  
  
• Write down the writer's main point on your paper.
  
  
• Don't go on until you get what they were trying to say.
  
  
• Still don't get it? Look at the first sentence of every paragraph for clues.
  
  
• Hint: A writer often makes a statement, then uses the rest of the article to prove the point.
  
  
• Still lost? Look at the headline or title of the article. That may help.
  
  
• If you can't find it, ask for help.
  
  
• Ask how that person knew what the subject of the article was.
  
  
• Make them show you by pointing out the clues.
  
  

Step Two: Catch What You Missed

• Go back to your check marks.
  
• Look up any words you didn't know in a dictionary.
  
  
• Write down what they mean.
  
  
• Now go back and re-read those sentences.
  
  
• Do they make more sense?
  
  

Step Three: Be a Detective

• Now, read through the article slowly.
  
  
• Can you spot the introduction? That's the place where the writer first makes the point.
  
  
• Circle the introduction with a pencil.
  
  
• Check the next couple of paragraphs.
  
  
• Look for what facts the writer gives out to prove the point.
  
  
• Circle those facts.
  
  
• Next, look at the last paragraph.
  
  
• Lots of times, writers make their point again and sum it all up at the end.
  
  
• Check to see if this is the same point you wrote down on your paper?
  
  
• If you got the point the first time, that's great!
  
  
• If you wrote down something very different...
  
  
• Make changes to what you wrote if you have to.
  
  
• Or, rethink your idea of what it's about.
  
  

Step Four: Your Turn to Decide

• Now ask yourself: why did the writer write this article?
  
  
• Writers write because they have a point to make. Did you find it?
  
  
• Do you agree with what the writer said?
  
  
• Or do you disagree?
  
  
• Writing is a lot like an argument. The writer is trying to prove something with facts.
  
  
• Did they prove anything to you?
  
  
• What facts made you agree or disagree with the writer's point?