The Wrong Way to Read: Extensive vs. Intensive Reading
You bought a Harry Potter book in your target language. You sat down, dictionary in hand. You read the first sentence. Looked up a word. Read the second sentence. Looked up two words. An hour later, you are on page 2 and you have a headache. You quit.
This is Intensive Reading. It is useful, but it is not how you learn to read. You need Extensive Reading.
The Difference
Intensive Reading: High focus. 100% comprehension. Short texts. Goal: Learn accurate grammar/vocab. (This is "Studying")
Extensive Reading: Relaxed focus. 70-80% comprehension. Long books. Goal: Enjoyment and flow. (This is "Reading")
Why Extensive Reading Wins
Research shows that to learn a word, you need to see it in 10-20 different contexts. Intensive reading gives you deep understanding of one context. Extensive reading gives you shallow understanding of 20 contexts. For fluency, you need the latter.
The Rules of Extensive Reading
- No Dictionaries: Do not break the flow. If you can guess the meaning, move on. If you can't, skip it. If the word is important, it will come back.
- Choose Easy Books: You should know 98% of the words on the page. If there are more than 5 unknown words per page, it is too hard. Put it down.
- Quit Boring Books: If you aren't enjoying it, you won't learn. Read trashy romance novels, comic books, or children's mysteries. Whatever keeps you turning the page.