1.Try extensive reading if you’re looking for understanding.

Extensive reading works when you’re trying to determine the meaning of what you’re reading. This technique focuses on the overall picture. It’s best for things like studying a textbook, reading a newspaper article for information, or reading a book for school.

2.Take notes on your reading.

If you want to read to understand something on a deeper level, like studying a textbook, it helps to read more actively. Keep a notebook out and make notes on important things you notice as you read.^[9]

• For instance, you can make bullet points to summarize every time you come to a major idea.
• If there are key terms or dates in whatever you’re reading, make a note of those as well.
• If there are parts you don’t understand, write down the questions you have and come back to them later.

3.Annotate your reading.

If you’re able to write in or mark up whatever it is you’re reading, this can also help increase your understanding. For instance, you can underline or highlight important passages. You could also try things like circling key terms and writing notes in the margins.

4.Review what you’re reading by summarizing it

Every so often, stop and write a few sentences in your notes to summarize what you’ve read so far. Putting the main ideas into your own words and writing them out is a way of checking that you understand what you’re reading. Going back over the material also helps you remember what you’ve read.

• If you have trouble summarizing or remembering any part of what you’ve read, go back over it again.
• You can also try writing out a summary in an outline form, rather than full sentences.

5.Identify key words and concepts

When you encounter a word or concept that seems essential to a text’s meaning, make a note of it. If you are reading a textbook, these might even be set apart in bold print, or in a separate vocabulary section. You can write the words or concepts down to study them later, or even make a set of flash cards.^[12]

• If you come across a word or concept that seems important but is not clearly defined in the text, look up its meaning in a dictionary or encyclopedia (either online or print).
• If you see certain words being used over and over again, that’s another sign that they’re important for what you’re reading and worth looking up.