​How to Practice Speed Reading Strategies

Getting the most out of speed reading likewise requires discovering specific strategies to coordinate your eyes and brain. Which methods you make use of depends on how well you check out now, and exactly what you anticipate to get from undertaking the procedure.


Avoid Hazardous Diversions

Checking out quicker has to do with maximizing concentration, so select an environment that supports both those objectives. Keep the designated area devoid of loud electronic devices like TV sets or video games that break concentration and slow reading speeds, which makes it difficult to process the product you're reading. Just shop appropriate materials there if the area operates as a study space. Getting into these habits now will make it easier to exercise speed reading techniques.

Remove Regression

Avoid regression, or continuously rereading the exact same passages. Instead, Glendale Neighborhood College reading trainer Dennis Doyle recommends spending 30 to 60 seconds on previewing the product. Read the first and last paragraphs in an area. Skim chapter titles, graphics and headings to assess the author's primary concept. Read the whole passage. Attempt reading in 3- and four-word groups, or thought clusters. Both approaches require paying closer interest on a very first reading, which makes regression less necessary.

Increase Eye Movements

Special workouts can boost your eye motions. Check out a paragraph normally for 60 seconds. Then read it 3 more times, using your forefinger to move your eyes quickly throughout the page. Triple and double reading speeds on the second and 3rd times, while concentrating on keywords to aid your comprehension. According to Iowa State University's Academic Success Center, such workouts boost reading rates by getting your eyes moving at the speed of idea, which averages 500 words per minute.

Minimize Subvocalizing

Stopping this practice of subvocalizing, as it's typically called, is tough since the majority of individuals check out at the very same speed as they talk, discusses Paul Nowak, founder of Iris Reading. According to Nowak, these methods increase reading speeds by lowering the amount of words that you repeat to yourself.

Differ Reading Speeds

Consider the numerous intellectual demands of the product that you check out, and change your speed to match it. As Doyle notes in his short article "Reading Better and Faster," great readers know when a passage's general complexity and writing design determines whether to invest more time on its contents or skim over it. By contrast, poor readers stick with the very same rate, no matter what kind of product they're reading.