Easy to Implement Methods for Improving Comprehension
- Continued practice- If you are a frequent and voluminous reader, you will improve your reading comprehension and fluency. It sounds basic and simple, but one of the best ways to improve your abilities as a reader is to read more. For a deep examination of this, I recommend reading The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child by Donalyn Miller and The Reading Zone by Nancie Atwell. Don’t worry too much about being a fast reader. Many brilliant people such as Bill Gates and Ryan Holiday have said that they read at an average clip.
2) Preview texts- Nowadays when I read a book, I often preview it by using Amazon, Goodreads, Wikipedia, and book blogs to get a sense of what the story is about, the cultural context of when the book was released, the major themes and big pictures ideas, and the author’s background. Though I am wary of spoilers, I have found that previewing a book often improves my understanding of the book and my experience reading it.
That said, I still enjoy taking a chance on a random book I know nothing about. A recent book that I read with no background knowledge was Butterfly Revolution by William Butler, which I loved.
3) Talk about it- I’ve found if I can have a conversation about the book or tell people about something I learned from reading it, the ideas in the book stay with me and I am able to better recall important details in the future. This is also discussed in the James Altucher podcast mentioned below.
4) Pair audiobooks with books- I know some readers despise audiobooks, but if you find the right one, I guarantee it will change your opinion of them. Much of the research on reading and many reading intervention programs such as Orton-Gillingham emphasize the benefits of a multi-sensory approach. This means there is a benefit in listening to books as well as reading them. Listening while reading is also beneficial.
5) Make a list of ten things you learned- I am going to give James Altucher full credit here, as he talked about this on his Ask Altucher podcast during the How to Remember Everything You Read episode. I don’t do this for many of the books I read, but I think it is a great idea and you can always use notes like this as a future reference.
This is a modified version of an answer to a Quora question about improving reading ability.
Bookshelf Beats is a website run by Gino Sorcinelli. I interview people about books that change their lives, inspire them, and/or make them think differently. If you enjoyed this article consider subscribing to my Medium publication.
