1. Based on D.J. Henry, The Effective Reader
SQ3R: A Reading System
Based on D.J. Henry,
The Effective Reader

2. OVERVIEW
Effective, active reading simply consists of ASKING YOURSELF QUESTIONS before you read, while you read, and after you read, and coming up with TENTATIVE ANSWERS to those questions, then REVISING your answers as you figure out more.
Active reading requires WRITING. Write down your questions and answers as you go.

3. OVERVIEW
As you read and think about what you read, your answers will become more accurate and interesting and you will be able to tie more of your reading in with your prior knowledge.

4. OVERVIEW Survey Question Read Recite Review
The SQ3R system gives you a number of ways of asking useful questions about your reading, answering them and remembering the answers. The acronym “SQ3R” stands for:
Survey
Question
Read
Recite
Review

5. S: Survey BEFORE reading:
Skim the text, looking for titles, headings, italicized and bold-print terms
Read the first sentences of paragraphs
In longer texts, read the introduction

6. Q: Question AFTER Surveying but BEFORE Reading, ASK YOURSELF:
What is this passage about? What possible main point (thesis) might somebody want to argue about this topic?

7. Q: Question (Part II)
AFTER Surveying but BEFORE Reading, ASK YOURSELF:
What do I already know about this topic?
What is my goal for reading? Am I looking for an overall idea about the topic, or for detailed knowledge? What do I need to do with the information I will get from this reading?

8. R: Read As you read, ASK YOURSELF:
How does this new information fit in with what I already know?
Do I need to change what I know?
Why might this information be important to the point the writer is trying to make? How is the writer using this information rhetorically (to persuade me of something)?

9. R: Read (Part II) As you read, ASK YOURSELF:
Where are points where I don’t quite understand what I’m reading? What questions do I have about these points? WRITE the questions down.
Also write questions based on headings, subheadings, bolded and italicized words. One standard question that often works: What is an example of this idea or phenomenon?

10. R: Recite
As you read:
ANSWER the questions you’re asking, and WRITE THE ANSWERS DOWN.
Try to visualize the reading; turn on the camera in your head.
Try to restate the ideas in the reading in your own words.

11. R: Review
AFTER reading, go back and look at your questions and answers. Compare them with the writing you’ve just finished. ASK YOURSELF:
Are there important parts of the writing which aren’t covered by my questions and answers? What are they?

12. R: Review AFTER reading, ASK YOURSELF:
If there was a test on this material, what might some of the test questions be?
What have I learned? What do I know about the topic that I didn’t know before?
How can I extend what I’ve learned? What other situations can I apply my new knowledge to?