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Do you have to LEARN how to speed read or does it just happen?

thespeakerbox

thespeakerbox

Platinum Member
I read a lot but I sometimes feel that I have too much to read and not enough time.

If I want to read faster, should I just keep reading more and more or actually look into speed reading techniques. Do they work? I search google and wow is there a lot of crap on the net.
 
Originally posted by: thespeakerbox
I read a lot but I sometimes feel that I have too much to read and not enough time.

If I want to read faster, should I just keep reading more and more or actually look into speed reading techniques. Do they work? I search google and wow is there a lot of crap on the net.
Click to expand...

I doubt your brain will guess correctly how to read faster. 😉 I learned speed reading techniques in mid-grammar school and I still use them today.

Do not pay for anything. All kinds of techniques are available for free online. Also, not every technique will work for everyone, so try many different ones.

Also, like with all new skills, you have to practice the techniques to get better at it.

MotionMan
 
Originally posted by: MotionMan
Originally posted by: thespeakerbox
I read a lot but I sometimes feel that I have too much to read and not enough time.

If I want to read faster, should I just keep reading more and more or actually look into speed reading techniques. Do they work? I search google and wow is there a lot of crap on the net.
Click to expand...

I doubt your brain will guess correctly how to read faster. 😉 I learned speed reading techniques in mid-grammar school and I still use them today.

Do not pay for anything. All kinds of techniques are available for free online. Also, not every technique will work for everyone, so try many different ones.

Also, like with all new skills, you have to practice the techniques to get better at it.

MotionMan
Click to expand...

I think the "don't subvocalize" hurts my reading comprehension. I can force myself not to vocalize what I'm reading but I start getting worried that I skipped something or didn't really absorb what I was reading and so I end up rereading the whole thing again.
 
Originally posted by: TuxDave
Originally posted by: MotionMan
Originally posted by: thespeakerbox
I read a lot but I sometimes feel that I have too much to read and not enough time.

If I want to read faster, should I just keep reading more and more or actually look into speed reading techniques. Do they work? I search google and wow is there a lot of crap on the net.
Click to expand...

I doubt your brain will guess correctly how to read faster. 😉 I learned speed reading techniques in mid-grammar school and I still use them today.

Do not pay for anything. All kinds of techniques are available for free online. Also, not every technique will work for everyone, so try many different ones.

Also, like with all new skills, you have to practice the techniques to get better at it.

MotionMan
Click to expand...

I think the "don't subvocalize" hurts my reading comprehension. I can force myself not to vocalize what I'm reading but I start getting worried that I skipped something or didn't really absorb what I was reading and so I end up rereading the whole thing again.
Click to expand...

If you are vocalizing, then your speed is limited by how fast your mind can take in what you read and translate it into vocalizations (which is damn slow in most people).

Also, part of practicing includes testing your reading comprehension. The way I learned, you wanted to increase your speed by x words per minute, then increase your comprehension to over 95%, then increase your speed again, then work on your comprehension again. Speed, then comprehension.

MotionMan
 
Originally posted by: funkymatt
it's learnable, i read a book on it in like 6th grade.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I learned how at a very early age. I read how to do it, it involves familiarizing yourself with the written word, and practicing "skimming" over each word, sort of.

I do it all the time, unless it's a legal document or other such important information.

Disclaimer: Speed Reading likely will not give you the full extent of the writers purpose, so use it carefully.
 
I can do it (and yes, I did actually teach myself 😛) but when I do it, I feel like I loose all intent and meaning in the text. When you speed read you don't seem to get the same amount of enjoyment out of something as opposed to regular reading.

If your purpose is simply to collect as much data as possible then go ahead and learn how to speed read.
 
Originally posted by: MotionMan
Originally posted by: thespeakerbox
I read a lot but I sometimes feel that I have too much to read and not enough time.

If I want to read faster, should I just keep reading more and more or actually look into speed reading techniques. Do they work? I search google and wow is there a lot of crap on the net.
Click to expand...

I doubt your brain will guess correctly how to read faster. 😉 I learned speed reading techniques in mid-grammar school and I still use them today.

Do not pay for anything. All kinds of techniques are available for free online. Also, not every technique will work for everyone, so try many different ones.

Also, like with all new skills, you have to practice the techniques to get better at it.

MotionMan
Click to expand...

:thumbsup:

i typically read at ~400 wpm
if im really interested ill go slower as i think over things, if its full of jargon or foreign words ill go slower.
i can read faster, but i have to do it regularly to make it happen, and most things i read i like to think about, so its been a while since ive bothered. if im going fast its to skim (because ctrl+f doesnt work on dead-tree stuff 🙁 )
 
I can read pretty fast (not sure if it's 'speed-reading' level), but I will definitely slow down considerably if I'm reading a good book/etc and want to fully comprehend what the writer is trying to convey..I can get the general idea by skimming through, but it's much more enjoyable to thoroughly read it. 🙂
 
Do you guys use a finger as a pointer? Is it just reading as fast as possible but still reading all the words, and not subvocalizing? Do you just keep doing that over and over until you've read so much books and gone through so much words that you don't really 'think' when you look at simple words like 'the' or 'as' or 'is' etc?

How do you improve your reading comprehension? By reading a dictionary or what?
 
Originally posted by: Woosta
Do you guys use a finger as a pointer? Is it just reading as fast as possible but still reading all the words, and not subvocalizing? Do you just keep doing that over and over until you've read so much books and gone through so much words that you don't really 'think' when you look at simple words like 'the' or 'as' or 'is' etc?
Click to expand...

I can't even remember the last time I've subvocalized unless I wanted to take something really slowly (e.g. a descriptive sentence from a Robert Jordan novel).

Use a finger as a pointer...? 😕

If you're ESL, maybe- but I hardly need to think to type, let alone read.. 😛
 
Originally posted by: Woosta
How do you improve your reading comprehension? By reading a dictionary or what?
Click to expand...

Reading a dictionary may help you with your vocabulary, if you don't fall asleep first...it's not going to aid in comprehension, though.
 
Originally posted by: JLee
Originally posted by: Woosta
Do you guys use a finger as a pointer? Is it just reading as fast as possible but still reading all the words, and not subvocalizing? Do you just keep doing that over and over until you've read so much books and gone through so much words that you don't really 'think' when you look at simple words like 'the' or 'as' or 'is' etc?
Click to expand...

I can't even remember the last time I've subvocalized unless I wanted to take something really slowly (e.g. a descriptive sentence from a Robert Jordan novel).

Use a finger as a pointer...? 😕

If you're ESL, maybe- but I hardly need to think to type, let alone read.. 😛
Click to expand...

Yes - using your finger as a pointer so you're not distracted and are concentrating on one word at a time. Usually I have a tendency to look beneath the line I'm reading for whatever reason, using the pointer kinda forces you to read that word that your finger is on.

I don't get it - how do you improve your comprehension then?
 
Originally posted by: Woosta
Originally posted by: JLee
Originally posted by: Woosta
Do you guys use a finger as a pointer? Is it just reading as fast as possible but still reading all the words, and not subvocalizing? Do you just keep doing that over and over until you've read so much books and gone through so much words that you don't really 'think' when you look at simple words like 'the' or 'as' or 'is' etc?
Click to expand...

I can't even remember the last time I've subvocalized unless I wanted to take something really slowly (e.g. a descriptive sentence from a Robert Jordan novel).

Use a finger as a pointer...? 😕

If you're ESL, maybe- but I hardly need to think to type, let alone read.. 😛
Click to expand...

Yes - using your finger as a pointer so you're not distracted and are concentrating on one word at a time. Usually I have a tendency to look beneath the line I'm reading for whatever reason, using the pointer kinda forces you to read that word that your finger is on.

I don't get it - how do you improve your comprehension then?
Click to expand...

I don't know (aside from practice). I'd try Google and see what you can come up with.

I've noticed that I can't really ingest anything if I'm overly tired or distracted..maybe that's a start?
 
Huh, people take classes in this stuff?

I must have read too many books as a kid, because I definitely read up to seven lines at once...
 
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