KristenS Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 Okay, so I only just got around to reading the SWB article about not cleaning the kitchen, and reading instead. And I have to say, it was cool to be told to do something I'm already doing. Yay! :lol: But the speed reading thing struck me. What do y'all consider speed reading? What does SWB consider speed reading? I'm a naturally fast reader, a talent developed by spending way too much time reading books growing up, and a lot of time being bored to tears in school. I don't consider it speed reading because I don't skim or use any fancy techniques. I just absorb a lot of text in a faster time than the average reader. It doesn't slow my comprehension in any way, nor my recall on story details. (Just ask my husband. He's a slower reader and we've had this argument many a time, only for me to be proved right when we both read a book for the first time and my recall matches or surpasses his.) Anyway, that part of the article just made me want a little clarification ... because I don't want there to be a misunderstanding that naturally fast readers are always skimming or something. My dh is always wanting to pick up speed reading so he can catch up on my ever-growing stack of recommended reading. :) I tell him, the best way is just to start with all the kids' books I keep recommending, and build speed from there ... that truly fast and worthwhile reading comes from practice, not special tricks. (Though he's found a few tricks that have helped him, he says.) So ... curious what others have to say about this. Any other naturally fast readers out here? What's it like for you? For me, it's perceiving large chunks of text at once ... even whole paragraphs or pages (depending on the book). Dh picked up an easy reader for the kids the other night when we were talking this over, and for the first time he saw what I meant, because he grasped the entire page in one glance, rather than reading out each word in his head. He finally 'got' the concept that you really can read chunks at a time. I think now he's gonna take my suggestion seriously and work his way through my levelled reading list. LOL. (FWIW dh is a good reader ... don't mean to give the impression he's not. Just moves slower than I do. He does math computation like I read, though ... scary!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardening momma Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 So ... curious what others have to say about this. Any other naturally fast readers out here? What's it like for you? For me, it's perceiving large chunks of text at once ... even whole paragraphs or pages (depending on the book). Dh picked up an easy reader for the kids the other night when we were talking this over, and for the first time he saw what I meant, because he grasped the entire page in one glance, rather than reading out each word in his head. He finally 'got' the concept that you really can read chunks at a time. I think now he's gonna take my suggestion seriously and work his way through my levelled reading list. I'm a fast reader, but I don't do whole paragraphs at once. I did take a speed reading elective class in college, and probably sped up a little bit from that. It didn't teach skipping parts, as far as I can recall. I just recall putting more effort into reading faster and still remembering the info for the questions at the end of each section. I think with practice and effort it would turn into a habit. I'm not sure what the difference between the two terms might be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgiana Daniels Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 Ah, a topic dear to my heart. A while back I blogged on Speed Reading 101, complete with tips to increase your speed and a link to a test to find out what your rate of speed AND comprehension. HERE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgiana Daniels Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 PS. For the record, I'm pretty slow :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardening momma Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 A while back I blogged on Speed Reading 101, complete with tips to increase your speed and a link to a test to find out what your rate of speed AND comprehension. HERE. I got 197 wpm with 100% comprehension. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4kiddies Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 Can someone please link to the article by SWB? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 Ah, a topic dear to my heart. A while back I blogged on Speed Reading 101, complete with tips to increase your speed and a link to a test to find out what your rate of speed AND comprehension. HERE. This is something I've struggled with for some time. I just took your test and got 320 WPM but only 73% accuracy. I somehow became a speed reader and I absolutely hate it. I was surprised my accuracy was that high. I skip lines like nobody's business. I am constantly re-reading sentences. I hate it and I've tried to stop but to no avail. I've tried reading with a bookmark to force me to read one line at a time, but my comprehension really goes out the window then. I'd love any advice anyone has on increasing comprehension. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 Can someone please link to the article by SWB? Thanks! It was in the Memoria Press Catalog that came out this week. I just checked their website and didn't see it up there yet. (But read my last post - I very well could have missed it! :lol:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4kiddies Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 It was in the Memoria Press Catalog that came out this week. I just checked their website and didn't see it up there yet. (But read my last post - I very well could have missed it! :lol:) lol! thanks. I didn't see it either so I requested a catalog. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 I got 540 wpm but also only 73% comprehension. That actually was because I am rather poor at remembering numbers. The word only questions I had no problems with. Getting back to the original question- I am not a speed reader, I am a fast reader. I don't do any tricks, I just read much faster than ordinary. I also speak faster and think faster. One problem I have with many sermons or lectures is that the points are made too slowly. I end up doing other work in the meantime normally which is better than my dh who often dozes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgiana Daniels Posted July 29, 2009 Share Posted July 29, 2009 It's fun to check the speed/comprehension:001_smile: I agree, sometimes when listening to a slow speaker I tend to get less out of a message than if it's faster and my brain is fully engaged. I think I've increased my speed over time, and as for my comprehension--well....it probably has more to do with if I'm engrossed in the subject matter:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KristenS Posted July 29, 2009 Author Share Posted July 29, 2009 I'll agree, part of the fast reading for me also ties to fast talking and fast thinking. LOL. I scored lower on the comprehension than I thought I would, but then I do have more trouble with number stuff and nonfiction anyway. But I scored something like 740wpm which they say is like 1000 on paper. Not sure where they get the calculation from? I used to get into all sorts of trouble in classroom situations where we'd all have to take turns reading a paragraph ... I absolutely could NOT go at that pace. I'd be several pages ahead, so of course I'd be lost when it was my turn. I was also the kid who took the reading book home the first night to read the whole thing through. (Sad but true.) Well, glad I'm not the only one out there. Now I guess I need to work on speed-cleaning my kitchen. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KristenS Posted July 29, 2009 Author Share Posted July 29, 2009 Oh, somebody asked about improving comprehension ... my favorite way is re-reading. :) One thing about reading fast, it does buy you more time to get to read things twice, or more, and get deeper and deeper into the story. Trying to slow down doesn't work for me too well. I do try to slow down when reading harder texts (non-fiction mostly) or foreign language materials ... reading fast works against me pretty badly there. It hurts to go slower, and yet it's what I need to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizabethB Posted July 29, 2009 Share Posted July 29, 2009 540 WPM, 91%. I usually read faster, all the numbers slowed me down, I had to think about them. I read phonetically and hear every word in my head, but for some reason the words don't sound like a "chipmunks" album, but that is how fast they words are going, it's interesting to me that the words sound like regular speed even when I read closer to 800 or 900 WPM. I tried a speed reading book and it just made my head hurt to read any faster than 900 WPM. If I'm reading a science or math book, I read much slower than when I'm reading a fiction novel for pleasure. Given my sight word and guessing phobia, I'm a bit dubious about any type of speed reading that advocates skipping words or sentences. My remedial reading students who have been taught too many sight words almost always improve their reading speed after learning phonics for a few months. There is an initial slowdown as they get used to sounding words out, then their reading speed improves as their decoding process becomes more and more automated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardening momma Posted July 30, 2009 Share Posted July 30, 2009 I guess I'm much slower than I thought (197 wpm, as I posted earlier). Maybe I slowed down as I read the passage, knowing there was a comprehension quiz at the end? I did well on that. I do think I'm a fast thinker (then someone will link to a quiz that will prove that otherwise :tongue_smilie: ). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LoriM Posted July 30, 2009 Share Posted July 30, 2009 You sound like me...a naturally fast reader, but no speed reading techniques employed. I don't think I *need* to speed read. I enjoy reading too much to make it go much faster! I am already disappointed when a good book ends all too soon. But I am glad I can burn through easy reading fast---I read those Twilight books one Sunday afternoon, and it was nice to read the story that quickly. I enjoyed the story, but wouldn't have wanted to waste much more of my life on it, KWIM? LOL! As it is, I reread books frequently (and also rewatch movies or TV shows). I don't mind reading again, especially if I like the story. I see reading as natural an extension of living as breathing and eating...so I spend about the same amount of time doing it every day--4-5 hours. Early morning, late evening, books for pleasure, and reading for education. For me, fast reading is not only about whole chunks of material at once, but viewing it almost like a movie. I don't think I actually use words to read words, if that makes sense. I know I *never* maintain character names with "words" but instead the name of the person evokes an image that is shaped like their name. Wow, that sounds goofy...goofier than it is in my head when I am reading, anyway. LOL. I am very thankful for my fast reading ability. I have had it since I was a young child, racing my mom to the end of Nancy Drew books. I always won. She is the world's slowest reader...I told her that she diagrammed each sentence as she read it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fivetails Posted July 30, 2009 Share Posted July 30, 2009 Any other naturally fast readers out here? What's it like for you? For me, it's perceiving large chunks of text at once ... even whole paragraphs or pages (depending on the book). Dh picked up an easy reader for the kids the other night when we were talking this over, and for the first time he saw what I meant, because he grasped the entire page in one glance, rather than reading out each word in his head. He finally 'got' the concept that you really can read chunks at a time. Yes! Yes yes yes. Nobody ever knows what I'm talking about when I try describing it that way! :lol: I've had people argue with me numerous times about whether I'd actually read something - "really read it", as they'd put it. *grumble* (Including teachers way back - ugh.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caitilin Posted July 30, 2009 Share Posted July 30, 2009 Ok, so I have always read really, REALLY fast, but I would never have guessed that the totals would be like that test says. Apparently I read 961 wpm, with 82% comprehension. Like a previous poster, I felt that all the numeric stuff messed me up; I could have read straight text a lot faster! :tongue_smilie:I guess I won't be in the market for their software! It's good to know that other people have a similar experience, though. I have also frequently gotten the "well, you can't really be reading it if you go that fast" line. Thanks for the link, OP! Caitilin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KristenS Posted July 30, 2009 Author Share Posted July 30, 2009 I reread a lot too. :) I love reading old favorites over and over and over ... I love the C.S. Lewis quote (I'd have to hunt the proper source) about a book not worth re-reading wasn't worth reading in the first place. :-D I watch favorite shows over and over too. It's an area where dh and I really differ ... once through a book or show is enough for him. I tell him re-reading is also a good way to work on speed practice... I'll get through to him one of these days. (But his math abilities have me in awe. He sees himself as perfectly normal, and can't understand all the fuss ... I finally had to point out to him that he does math like I do reading, which I think I mentioned in an above post, and then he finally got it. His fast-processing mind works best with numbers, I guess.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardening momma Posted July 31, 2009 Share Posted July 31, 2009 I watch favorite shows over and over too. It's an area where dh and I really differ ... once through a book or show is enough for him. I have to wait years to reread a book. I don't like remembering what is going to happen. I keep the books that I really like and know I will want to reread, but don't revisit them for years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.