Reading Critically

Reading ►Pleasure

Reading  Passive  Relaxed  Comfortable  Done for personal interest

►Critical

Reading  Active  Academic  Done to get you thinking more about underlying

Critical Reading ►Take

notes as you read:  Ideas that seem important (importance may not be clear yet).  Images/ideas that keep coming up  Questions that you have (usually about the author’s

Ideas that seem important (importance may not be clear yet). ►How to know what ideas might be important?  Class handouts  Class discussions  Recurring ideas  Defining actions/situations

Images/ideas that keep coming up ►Recurring

images help reinforce an important idea in a book:  How a character/setting is described  Comparisons to unlike things (humans to animals, etc.)  Situations that seem to keep happening in different

Questions (and answers) that you have About the Author ►Why did the author _____________? ►What purpose does ________have on the story? ►Why did the author choose this setting?

Questions and answers to consider About the Audience ►What audience is the author trying to reach? ►What values are revealed about this audience? ►How does the language chosen help reach this audience?

Questions and answers to consider About the Text ►What impact

does the text style have on the story? ►What impact does the language have on the story? ►Why does the language change/remain the same throughout the story? ►Etc.