Think about how you find a name in a telephone book. You don’t
read any more than necessary to find the name. Maybe you use
your finger to guide your eyes. This type of reading is known as
scanning. Skimming uses the same type of skill mechanically but
a different skill mentally. In scanning, you know what you are
looking for; in skimming, you don’t. Since you don’t know
exactly what you are looking for while skimming, prepare
yourself by reading the title, source, author, and any pictures;
then question yourself,--who, what, when, where is this likely
to focus on? With a questioning mind direct your eyes down the
column of print, or in a zigzag, if the lines are quite long.
Look for exact names of people, places, things, ideas, numbers
and words like therefore, whenever, until, because, and instead,
to clue you to how and why. When you first start to learn to
skim you may see only the words in bold type, italics, digits,
or capitalized words. Soon you will note new or unusual
vocabulary. As you become an eff