[hylogenesis]

To the best of my knowledge, I take in the gist of the paragraph as a block, picking out key words and using their order to derive meaning, and then supplementing that--filling in the holes--by skimming through in the typical manner of a first grader...but, you know, with a hell of a lot more speed.

Wasn't ever much fun in school, nor was it useful.

[Ras1983]

I used to skim like many other posters and selectively read different parts of a written piece (in fact I still catch myself skimming when reading things on the internet, in textbooks or during lectures - even at work!) . However, that's a very destructive habit and I've spent a lot of time trying to break it over the last 5 years. At work, no one can afford to read by skimming because the results are missing the details, being ill-prepared, and generally under-performing. So I now try my best to read everything, from start to finish, in order to avoid having to re-read a document many times before getting all of the relevant information. Depending on the density of the document, I will read it in its entirety once to let the informatin start to sink into my brain, then I will selectively read different parts while recalling the general points from the first read through.

[chittychitty LightNING]

Everyone learns differently.. I am huge on visual learning so actually seeing and reading (words) is important to me. That, and I'm also an info-whore. I have to read everything, cover to cover (except for indexes and biblios). For class readings I usually write notes, outline or annotate. Problem is that my method is totally antiquated and slow-paced in this time and space. If anything is even remotely boring I will be distracted.

I've tried speed-reading but doing that never made sense to me. There is almost no point inreading because I never retain the information or have to reread what I read.

SAME dude. I am visual learner as well, well, visual/verbal. I have to read every paragraph and have this compulsive thing where I am unable to skip things. I don't get the skimming either - how does one retain any of the meaning, or don't they?

I theorize this is why I easily get tired when reading - like mentally exhausted and have to take a long break. Perhaps this skimming would be the better alternative - seems lighter. You know gliding your eyes across things and letting your intuition fill in the gaps?

[AbioticPrime]

Reading isn't a skill that's come easily to me. I've had troubles with comprehension and overall speed. I've learned the key to reading is focus, which requires a clear mind.

Surprisingly enough, I'm a person who likes to read every last line, in proper sequential order. The fact that I'm a science major has influenced this, but it's also that in order to remain engaged and focused on the reading I need to feel that the knowledge is fully mine, if that makes any sense at all.

When I read, what's happening in my mind is comparable to filling in a puzzle. I'm constantly searching for that bigger picture view and the more information I get the clearer it becomes. Problem is, this causes me to overlook many details. But fuck it, I'm not a history major ;p