1.2. Scanning and Skimming (Reading)

Learning Objectives

At the end of the lesson, students will:

Use skimming to quickly find the topic and main idea of a text.
Use scanning to locate specific information, such as dates, names, or key words, in a text.
Practice skimming and scanning strategies to read faster and understand important information quickly.

Definition

This image is a pointing finger showing the place where the student needs to click

Example 1: When looking for a phone number in a contact list, you move your eyes quickly to find the name and number.

Example 2: When answering a multiple-choice question in a textbook, you scan the text to find the part with the answer.

This image is a pointing finger showing the place where the student needs to click.

Example 1: When reading a restaurant menu, you skim to see what kinds of food they serve.

Example 2: When looking at a magazine article, you skim the headings and first sentences to decide if you want to read more.

Quiz

Read the ‘User’s Guide’ part of the students book and answer the questions below.

Your textbook

Open to table of contents (page xxiii) and find answers to the following questions as quickly as possible:

- What page do you need to turn to ‘List of procedures’.
- What is page 273 about?
- What page do I need to turn if I want to learn about ‘Phlebotomy’?
- What is appendix A about?

Compare your answers with a partner and discuss any differences.

Open your textbook to Part 1 Chapter 7 pages 159 to 161 on preparing the patient for minor office surgery..

Skim the headings, subheadings, bold words, and the first and last sentences of each section.
In 2-3 sentences, summarize the main idea of the topic.
Discuss: Why is this topic important for a medical assistant?

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