Reading for thinking

by Laraine Flemming

Designed for high-level reading courses, the primary focus of Reading for Thinking remains developing students' critical-thinking and reading skills. Flemming provides a thorough review of comprehension strategies before concentrating on critical-reading skills. This clear, logical sequence of instruction allows students to approach critical reading as a natural extension of essential comprehension skills rather than a discrete set of new strategies.

The Fourth Edition reflects Flemming's ongoing commitment to stimulating, informative selections that motivate students to read. The text also provides a closer look at textbook excerpts and a more extensive discussion of arguments. Plus, end-of-chapter readings enable students to practice applying their critical-reading skills on long passages.

At the end of every chapter, 3–7 tests enable students to assess their progress. Flemming introduces students to rhetorical questions, a subtle literary device often used in persuasive writing. She also covers imagery, the blend of fact and opinion, charged language, tone, and other key literary devices.

452 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

Reviews

[Michael Goodine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not entirely sure who this book has been written for, but I think it a good title to give to a recent high school student who feels they might not be totally prepared for academic readings in their upcoming freshman year at college.

The book starts by describing general methods that can be used to increase one’s comprehension of academic texts that can be applied to a variety of reading types. The third chapter of the book includes strategies for identifying “paragraph elements” which should help students pick out the important details and connections from the texts they are reading.

I also like the section of the book on building an academic vocabulary.

What makes this book a great "summer before college" book is that it contains a couple of dozen really wonderful academic articles, close to the level of what students will be expected to read in their first few months at school. These are accompanied by ample skill-building exercises.

It is also worth mentioning that this is a great book for students studying at higher levels who use English as a second language and need some practice dealing with academic texts written in English.