5 Ways You Can Use to Improve Your IELTS Reading Skills

Reading is fun for most of the people out there, but for some people, it is “no- less than a nightmare”. However, if you lie- down into the second category and decide to prepare for the IELTS exam roll up your sleeves.
Start your sail by giving an IELTS reading mock test, to see where you stand. Your scores will tell you how much effort and time you need to put in to reach your goals. Let’s find out methods and tips to see how you can improve your IELTS reading skills. Even after practicing for a while, if you feel you are still making mistakes you can use the below tips to improve your reading skills.
How to Improve Your Score in the IELTS Reading Section?
Every test has a unique setup to examine its candidates. To start with, your first step is to familiarise yourself with the test format to get aware of any ifs and buts. However, search for everything you need to know about the reading section to improve your IELTS reading skills.
In addition, to make it easier for you there are some steps you can consider to shape your experience better.
Practice Speed Reading
Reading in any language can be an enjoyable experience for people who love to read. Besides, if you are not a huge fan of reading, it’s fine you can rely on yourself.! Apart from the sarcasm! let us get real and talk about the assets you are going to require by reading. For people who are aspiring to prepare for the IELTS test! Start reading with topics you would already like to know about. In general, engage yourself in blogs, articles, newspapers & books to leap at the opportunity to read. You see, only reading is not enough, reading with mindfulness is equally important to keep pushing your limits.
Develop Vocabulary
Strong vocabulary is very important for effective communication you can take a Free IELTS mock test to see where you stand.
You can read books and practice writing to make your vocabulary stronger. In addition, you can also add Newspapers to improve your vocabulary in your essential days of learning. If you want to prepare for the IELTS reading mock test you can use these tips listed by the experts as it will help you out. However, you can make a vocabulary journal for yourself or if possible join a book club where you can practice reading with other people. Also, many people even use flashcards and play word games to enhance their vocabulary.
Learn to Spot Keywords
When you start to scan or skim any passages, practice underlining keywords. First, choose long paragraphs that are complex to read which eventually helps you to get better. When you start to practice finding keywords, it will help you to read better and faster. However, the reason behind this practice is as you climb the ladder it will become easy for you to spot the references and keywords. Hence, most keywords are usually nouns, groups of nouns or it can be verbs. In addition, the most important thing you need to remember is to identify the focus of the paragraph to find out the correct keywords.
Practice to Read Tough Passages
The most common issue among new readers is that they face issues with timing and accuracy while reading.
Now, what students can do is follow certain steps so they do not lag while reading.
- Do not waste your time to find too much detail
- Take a pause and see the purpose behind this reading practice
- Do not try to skim much when you read tough passages.
- Practice reading without breaking the flow to enhance your IELTS reading skills.
Practice Skimming and Scanning
Skimming is reading the given text fast and only getting the general idea of the text. Now, are you thinking of how can you practice skimming?
So, To start with, read the given paragraph attentively to get an idea of the whole conversation which is going to be discussed. On the contrary part, scanning is searching for specific sentences or phrases to answer some particular questions. When you take your IELTS reading mock test pay attention to every part of the exam including skimming and scanning. The notable part of this practice is to underline important phrases and sentences or any other prominent information.
However, students still make some mistakes while preparing for their exams. Thus, to avoid those errors, there are some tips and common mistakes are listed below
3 Common Mistakes to Avoid in the Reading Test
In reading tests, it is crucial to avoid mistakes so that you can perform at your best. However, remember to not rush at passages and take your time to understand each section of the test. Make sure to read carefully, avoid only skimming and remind yourself to manage your time.
Skipping the Introduction Part
The common mistake made by students while reading is they either skip the introduction or else read without paying attention to it. However, the starting is very important because the beginning is about preparing the readers for what is coming in below the text. If you miss the first section you will face issues while reading the whole paragraph. So do not try to skip any detail while you are reading any paragraph or introduction in the first place.
Avoiding Key Words
Keywords are an essential part of reading by spotting these guiding labels you will save a lot of your time and energy. However, catchphrases will help you to remember where you left the passage and make it easier to find answers. To polish your IELTS reading skills stop avoiding these spot words and start practice to find key labels.
Spending Too Much Time on One Question
You know when you are in the exam hall time is the most important asset you need to work with. Therefore, wasting your time just to answer something you are not able to answer at that moment is a huge mistake
Do not spend too much time on single questions or on any query you are not understanding at that moment
Conclusion
Preparing for your IELTS reading skills as early as possible is very important. However, the sooner you begin it will buy you time to understand the format in a more refined mode. The free IELTS mock test can help you to get your desired score in your actual exam.
Take your time, go through the study material you have! and start to work on your skills once, you are prepared, book your trial session.
