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STRATEGYREADING
Lesson #2•5 Practice Exercises Included
Skimming & Scanning: 350+ WPM Dual Reading Speeds
How to read 3 lengthy academic passages in 60 minutes using selective visual scanning.
## The Skim-Scan Protocol
Managing 60 minutes across 3 academic passages (approx. 2,750 words) requires switching between two distinct reading gears:
```
┌─────────────────────────┐ ┌─────────────────────────┐
│ GEAR 1: SKIMMING │ │ GEAR 2: SCANNING │
│ • Speed: 350-450 WPM │ │ • Speed: Visual Search│
│ • Goal: Main Idea Map │ │ • Goal: Locate Anchor │
│ • Read: First/Last 2 │ │ • Eyes dart for: Dates│
│ sentences per para │ │ Names, Numbers, Caps│
└─────────────────────────┘ └─────────────────────────┘
```
### Skimming Steps:
1. Read the **Title and Subtitle** carefully.
2. Read the **first two sentences** of each paragraph to build a mental map.
3. Read the **final sentence** of each paragraph to catch any transitional conclusions.
### Scanning Anchors:
- Capitalized Proper Nouns (*London, Professor Jensen*)
- Numbers, Percentages, and Dates (*1862, 70%, 15 meters*)
- Technical terms in italics or quotation marks (*zooxanthellae, 'cut-and-cover'*).
Interactive 5-Question Strategy Quiz
0 / 5 Answered
1
When skimming an academic passage, your primary objective is to:
2
Which of the following makes the BEST scanning anchor in a question?
3
Where is the topic sentence most commonly located in an academic paragraph?
4
How much time should you spend on initial skimming of a passage?
5
If you cannot find an answer within 90 seconds, you should:
Apply This Grammar in Writing / Speaking
Apply Skimming on Full Tests