Skimming and Scanning

What is Skimming and Scanning?

Within English, which covers grammar, vocabulary, reading, writing, poetry, drama and the skills for clear communication, this topic explains Skimming and Scanning. English topics help you read closely and write with purpose, so each one here explains a skill and shows how it works in a model text.

Check that you can explain Skimming and Scanning in your own words and give one example from everyday life. If you can do that, you have understood the core idea.

Understanding Skimming and Scanning helps you read texts more closely and write with more control, which earns marks in both reading and writing papers.

Skimming and Scanning in detail

Skimming is reading quickly to get the general idea of a text, by looking at the title, headings, first and last sentences of paragraphs and any images or captions. It is useful for deciding whether a text is relevant or for a quick overview before reading in detail.

Scanning is searching quickly for specific information, such as a date, name or number, by moving your eyes over the page looking for keywords without reading everything. Both skills save time in exams, research and everyday reading, such as looking through a timetable or website. Choose the technique that matches your purpose.

How the interactive helps you understand Skimming and Scanning

Click a step, or use the Previous and Next buttons, to move through the sequence one stage at a time. Auto-play moves on for you.

Before you change anything, predict the result. Then change one value at a time and check whether your prediction was right. This is a quick way to build a correct mental model of Skimming and Scanning.

Real-life uses and examples

• Plan an essay paragraph by linking the technique to the reader’s response.
• Spot Skimming and Scanning when you read a poem, story or speech, then explain the effect it creates.
• Use Skimming and Scanning to make your own writing more precise and vivid.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Quoting a long passage instead of picking a short, precise phrase.
• Naming a technique without explaining its effect on the reader.
• Learning the definition without testing it. Use the quiz and the interactive to check that you can apply the idea.