readng skills.doc

When you are reading, you are required to:1. Grasp the main idea of the reading and the corresponding facts and details.2. Understand both the specific details and the abstract concepts.3. Understand not only the meaning of the words and expressions, but also the deep meaning including the writers purpose and feeling.4. Reason and judge by understanding the whole passage as well as each paragraph, even each sentence.5. Guess the meaning of new words and expressions according to the context, the background knowledge and your experienceWhile you are doing reading comprehension, dont fail to remember the following rules: Keep the questions on your mind, mark where necessary.（针对性原则） Before you read a passage, you should look through the questions first of all. Keep the questions in your mind. Make sure what you are wanted to find, and then read it. Its important to mark where you find it useful and necessary, so that you can find the answers to the questions quickly and easily.Get better understanding of the whole passage, not some certain parts of it. (整体性阅读原则) Sometimes you cannot find out the main idea of the passage in the first several sentences or paragraphs. But dont worry about it, just go on with it until you finish reading the whole. Then you can get the right information to the questions. Try to find out the key (most important ) sentences. (把握主题句原则)Usually, there is a key sentence in each paragraph, thats the most important one. Sometimes it lies at the beginning, it also can go to the end of the paragraph. It is one of the most important ways to improve your reading skill. If you are able to find out thekey sentences, you will get a better understanding of the whole passage. Guess the meaning of the new words in a right way. （词义猜测的原则）Its very common that you will meet with some new words and expressions while reading. But dont be afraid of them, try to guess the meaning of them according to the context, the background knowledge and with the help of word building. Especially, you must pay attention to the words which have quite different meanings. Such as “fire”. It has two meanings. AS we know, we cant learn all the Chinese words, but we still can read the story in Chinese. Try to read fast on the basis of well understanding. (在理解的前提下，快速阅读的原则)Its right to try to read fast. But if you cant understand what you are reading, Its no use to read fast. The most important thing about reading fast is to remember the most important information. When you are reading youd better use your eyes instead of your hands. Its good for you to read at a right speed you think possible. Step VI. Discuss while doing comprehension, what kinds of questions they often meet and what they usually do with them.What kinds of questions you often meet with while you are reading. And what do you usually do with them? There are 6 kinds of questions the students often meet. They are questions about the main idea, the details, the messages and the numbers. They are also questions about reasoning and guessing the meaning of the words and expressions.Step VII. Reading skills for different kinds of questions. How can we do well in the reading? What should we do with each kind of the questions?1. Questions about the main idea. （主旨大意题）When you meet with this kind of question, you should find out the main idea of a paragraph or the whole passage. We can do with it in different ways. You can find out the main idea at the beginning or you can go to the end of a paragraph or a passage and find it. Make sure what the writer most likely to tell you., trying to find out the corresponding facts and details.【Model 1】(2000 Anhui)Most people have flown a kite or have seen one ride and dip (下降) in a strong spring wind . Not so many people know that kites were first made in China thousands of years ago. The ancient（古代） Chinese were making and flying kites even before they were writing.A long time ago, the Chinese made kites to use in wars（战争）. They would fly these war kites in the dark. The kites were fixed(固定) so that they made strange sounds. Men who were at war with them would hear these sounds and run away. They thought those strange sounds were made by gods (神) in the sky.The ancient Chinese also flew kites to bring good luck and to make their crops grow rich and tall. Sometimes they tied long strings （细绳）and hooks (钩子) to their kites. Then they would fly the kites over water, letting the hooks hang down to catch fish.The Chinese use sticks, strings and paper for their kites. Some of these kites look like animals or trees. Others look like birds or houses.1.The main idea of the first paragraph(段落) is that .A. kites were first made in China B. most of us have flown or seen a kiteC. the ancient Chinese were making kites before they were writing D. the ancient Chinese were good at making kites2.What is the best title （标题）of the passage?A. Lucky KitesB. Strange KitesC. Beautiful KitesD. Chinese KitesThis passage tells us something about Chinese kites. It answered when kites started, how useful the kites were in the old times, how they were made and what they were like. No.1. There are three sentences in the first paragraph. The first sentence tells that kites are not strange to us. The second tells that kites were first made in China. The third tells that kites were made by Chinese even before they could write. So we can find out the main idea of the first paragraph is “A. Kites were first made in China.”No.2 After reading the whole passage, its easy to find “D Chinese Kites” the best title of the passage. A B C cant show all that the writer has written.【Exercise 1】 Everyone needs friends. We all like to feel close to someone. It is nice to have a friend to talk. laugh, and do things with. Surely, there are times when we need to be alone. We dont always want people around. But we would feel lonely if we never had a friend. No two people are just the same. Sometimes friends dont get along well. That doesnt mean that they no longer like each other. Most of the time they will make up and go on being friends.Sometimes friends move away. Then we feel very sad. We miss them very much. But we can call them and write to them. It could be that we would even see them again. And we can make new friends. It is surprising to know them.The first paragraph(段)tells us .A. none need friendsB. we always need friends around usC. making friends is the need in peoples lifeD. we need to be alone Here are three paragraphs. Its no need for you to read all the three paragraphs. You can only read through the first one, because the question is only about the first paragraph. It tells that everyone needs friends. “A. none need friends” is wrong. Sometimes we need to be alone, so “B. we always need friends around us.” is not right. But we would feel lonely if we never had a friend. “D. we need to be alone” is wrong, too. “C. making friends is the need in peoples life.”2. Questions about details（细节理解题）.To tell the readers the main idea, the writer certainly will give us a lot of facts and examples., so that it becomes an essay. For a narration(记叙文), its very important to find 5 ws and 1 h. They are “what, who, when, where, why and how”.【Model 2】(1999 Nangjing )I have always been interested in making things. When I was a child, I enjoyed painting(绘画), but I also liked making things out of clay(粘土). I won a prize (奖) for one of my paintings when I was fourteen. That may be why I went to art school four years later. But I studied painting at first, not pottery(制陶). I like being a potter because I like to work with my hands and feel the clay. Im happy working by myself and being near my home. I dont like mass-produced things, for they are made by machines and are all the same. I think crafts (手工艺) are very important and craftspeople make things cleverly with hands. They make our lives colorful. When I left school, I got some money. I hope to become a full-time craftswoman. This workplace is small. But I wish to move to a larger one next year.1. From the passage we are sure that the writer is a .A. studentB. teacherC. manD. woman2. The writer got into art school because of .A. liking to make thingsB. enjoying working nearby C. a prize won when youngD. a wish to be a potterNo. 1 The passage tells that the writer has left school, so the writer cant be a student. It tells that the writer likes being a potter, it doesnt tell us the writer will be a teacher. Here is a sentence “I hope to become a full-time craftswoman”. We know the writer isnt a man but a woman. D is right.No. 2 Why did the writer go to art school. In the passage the writer has already told us “I won a prize (奖) for one of my paintings when I was fourteen. That may be why I went to art school four years later.” Thats why she chose to go to art school. C is right.【Exercise 2】 In a history class, the teacher asked Sam some questions, but he couldnt answer any of them. Then the teacher decided to ask him a few very easy ones. “What is California（加利福尼亚）?” she asked. Sam thought for a moment and answered, “A city.” “No, a state（州）,” the teacher became a little angry and said. But she tried not to show it. “Who was the first president（总统）of the U.S.A?” she asked again. Sam thought for a long time, but said nothing. The teacher got very angry and said in a loud voice, “George Washington!” (the name of the first president of America) Sam then walked to his seat. “Come back!” the teacher said. “I didnt tell you to go.” “Oh, Im sorry,” Sam said. “I thought you had called the next student.” The history teacher got very angry because_.A. Sam gave a wrong answer to her second questionB. the question was too hard to answerC. the student didnt know the answer to the first questionD. Sam couldnt answer her second easy questionThis story happened between a history teacher and a student Sam. The teacher asked two questions for Sam to answer. One is “What is California?”, the other is “Who was the first president of the USA?” Sam answered the first question, but the answer was wrong, the teacher got only a little angry, not very angry. So “C. the student didnt know the answer to the first question” is wrong. The teacher decided to ask Sam another easy question. But “Sam thought for a long time, but said nothing.” “A. Sam gave a wrong answer to her second question” is not right. The two questions are both easy, so “B. the question was too hard to answer.” is wrong. “D. Sam couldnt answer her second easy question” is right. 3. Questions about reasoning and judgement. （推理判断题）Usually we cant find out the answer in the reading in a straight way. We must make conclusion according to the facts and information in the passage. We cant make a conclusion with our own experience, or we will make a mistake in doing so.【Model 3】A man would be away for some time. He said to his son, “ If anyone asks for me, tell him that your father has been out for doing something, and will be back in a week, then be sure to ask him to sit down for a cup of tea.” But he was still afraid that his foolish son might forget his words, so he wrote them down on a piece of paper and gave it to his son. The boy put it into his pocket and read it every day.Four days passed , but no one came. The boy thought the paper would be no more use for him, so he burnt it. The next afternoon, however , a visitor came to see his father and asked, “Where is your father?” The boy quickly looked for the paper in his pockets. He couldnt find it. He suddenly remembered he had burnt it and said, “No more.” “No more? When did it happen?” “Burnt last night.” was the boys answer. A man came to visit the boys father on .A. the second day B. the third day C. the fourth dayD. the fifth dayThis is a very funny story. It tells us that how foolish the boy is. But how can we get the right answer. The writer has told us that “Four days has passed, but nobody came to visit the boys father. The next afternoon, a visitor came.” When did the visitor came? We must know “The next afternoon” is the next afternoon after 4days, that is on the fifth day. D is right.Improve your language knowledgeThe language knowledge here mainly refers to vocabulary and grammar. Your language knowledge can help you read both fast and with high comprehension. Firstly, learn about word formation. You can enlarge your vocabulary by using the rules of word formation, Many words in the English language are made up of word parts called roots, prefixes, and suffixes, like“ sad ”, “sadly”, “sadness”, and so on. Therefore, this method is used to help readers get the meaning of an unknown word by analyzing the word structure, which is by dividing words into usable parts such as roots, prefixes and suffixes. If you know a number of commonly used prefixes, roots and suffixes, they will be of use in unlocking the meanings of unknown words that you find in your reading. For example, when you know the word “courage”, “ encourage，discourage，courageous” will not be new to you. Secondly, collect the new words you often meet in reading. That doesnt mean encouraging you to consult the dictionary whenever you meet a new word in reading. The appropriate way is to try to guess the word meanings from context clues, from the words around it, and then you will gradually know the clear meaning of the word after meeting it often. And now, if you look it up in the dictionary, you will have a good memory of it. Thirdly, learn a certain number of new words by heart every day. Young students have good memories. It is possible for you to memorize some words every day without much difficulty. You can choose some words for yourself, which is very helpfu1. When you meet these words in your reading，you will feel easy, “Aha, Ive known their meanings. ” You will feel confident and more interested in reading. (1) If the sentence is long, try to break it up into small parts:The general then added, “The only reasonable solution to the sort of problems caused by the current unstable political situation is one of diplomacy and economic measures and not the use of military force.”You should read the sentence like this:” The only reasonable solution to the sort of problems/caused by the current unstable political situation/is one of the diplomacy and economic measures/and not the use of military force.”(2) Look for key words that tell you the relationship within a sentence.“The West had sent armies to capture and hold Jerusalem; instead they themselves fell victim to new ideas and subtle influences,”“ Instead ”indicates that something happened contrary to expectations. Enlarge your schema about various topics and things“The importance of readers knowledge of the world has been long emphasized in the reading processes. The role of this previously acquired knowledge in language comprehension has been formalized as schema theory.” According to schema theory, comprehending a text is an interactive process between the readers background knowledge and the text. The more you already know, the less you need to find out. A good reader does not read passively only for the prepositional meaning of each sentence, but more importantly, he reads for the meaning at the pragmatic level. He can understand not only its surface meaning decided by vocabulary and grammar, but also the real purpose of the writer in using a particular piece of language. He does this by creating an effective discourse between himself and the writer to negotiate meaning. 4. Form a good habit of readingIf you are reading for meaning，try to read fast. Some people read very slowly. They think that reading slowly helps them understand better. That is not right. As a mater of fact, the faster you read, the better you understand. The expression“haste makes waste” does not apply to reading. Remember, nothing hurts concentration more than reading too slowly. Your mind will keep up with your reading speed if you ask it to. By always reading at your top speed, you challenge your understanding and make it easier for your mind to concentrate on the materia1. To improve your reading speed, you must get rid of the following bad habits:aPoint at words or hold a pen or a pencil or ruler under the line while reading;bMumble the words to yourself or say the words in your mind，though other people cannot hear you reading;cRead back from time to time;dStop reading at occurrence of the unknown words to look them up in the dictionary.A good reader should develop a correct method of reading. That is to train himself to read attentively ( not to read back) and silently (not to read aloud), sentence by sentence, not word by word. Whenever meeting a new word, try to guess the meaning from the context. Consulting the dictionary from time to time not only affects ones reading speed and the comprehension of the reading material, but also gets the reader frustrated. 5. Apply various reading skills5.1 Prediction Prediction refers to thinking in advance about what to be read. It is a major factor in reading. An efficient reader usually predicts what he or she is going to read. Why is prediction so important? Predicting is very crucial in the reading process in two aspects: Firstly, by predicting the topic, readers existing schemata, which is referred to as content schemata, can be activated and thereby facilitate reading comprehension in the reading phase. As Nuttall says: “Prediction is important because it activates schemata: that is, it calls into mind any experiences and associated knowledge that we already have about the topic of the test.”Secondly, Learners predicting before reading not only serves as a purpose for