market reopened on the second weekend of May. Amid the asparagus and flowers, shoppers chatted about the return of temperatures in the 70s. Across the street, children (and their dogs) played Frisbee in the park. Finally, spring has come to town.
Suppose you’re asked the following question about this paragraph:
(A) Frisbee playing in the park doesn’t happen in winter.
(B) the warm weather is unusual for this time of year.
(C) the shoppers were disappointed in the farmers’ market produce.
(D) rain is imminent.
If the point of the passage is that spring has come to town and the author uses Frisbee playing as evidence of the arrival of spring, then it’s likely that Frisbee playing doesn’t occur in the winter but does begin again in spring. The answer is Choice (A).
Faster than a Speeding Turtle: Tips for Slow Readers
For many people, 13 to 27 minutes is enough time to read all the passages, understand the questions, and choose the correct answers. But slow readers may have more difficulty answering all the questions before time is up. Don’t despair: Take the suggestions in this section to help build your reading speed. Of course, they require work, but you knew the mission came with its challenges, right?
Read more, watch less
If you’re a slow reader, chances are you don’t do a lot of reading. If you have plenty of time before you’re due to take the ASVAB, start reading more — right now. It’s in your best interest.
Become a lean, mean word machine
People sometimes read slowly because they don’t have a large vocabulary and don’t understand everything they read. If you can identify with this situation, improving your vocabulary is your first step toward increasing your reading comprehension and your reading speed. (Chapter 4 gives you info on building your word knowledge. Check it out.)
www.dictionary.com, www.yourdictionary.com, or www.m-w.com) so you can quickly find the definition of words you find confusing. Your reading will become more enjoyable, and you’ll be adding to your vocabulary knowledge to boot.
Build your confidence
Another reason people read slowly is that they don’t have confidence in themselves. They’re not convinced that they understand what they’re reading, so they read a passage several times, trying to make sure they haven’t missed anything. But just like people who check that the front door is locked 15 times before leaving for vacation and still lie awake at night wondering whether they locked the door, you’ll find that reading and rereading a passage doesn’t give you confidence that you understand the text. You get confidence from proving that you understand it.
Get out a textbook or reference book (preferably one that contains some subject matter that interests you) and read one or two paragraphs straight through without going back and rereading anything. Then set the book aside (keeping your place marked) and write, in your own words, a brief description of what you’ve read. Finally, turn back to the passage and compare your description to the information on the page.
Play the 20-questions game. Read an article from a magazine, reference book, or textbook. Then ask someone to pick out facts from the article and ask you questions.
Create motivation and interest by reading the daily newspaper or news magazines. Discuss the news events with your classmates, friends, or co-workers. Stronger interest equals greater comprehension.
Is your written version of the article close in meaning to the original? Are you getting most of the 20 questions correct? Do you feel comfortable discussing current events with others? If so, you understand what you’re reading, and that should build your confidence. If not, don’t toss the book or magazine aside in frustration or go ballistic on your mom for asking you tough questions. Keep working on it, and your comprehension will improve. Do the preceding confidence-building drills a few times a day until you feel like you can read any paragraph or two and understand the content without having to reread the information.
Test-Taking Tips for Reading and Gleaning
Although no shortcuts exist for improving your reading comprehension skills (besides practice), you can do a few things on test day to
