VERBAL too many strategies?

[t1m0xa]

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Hey, so for verbal, I do:

-read the first sentence
-take a deep breath and close my eyes for 5 secs before diving into passage
-glance at the answer choices as a guide to what the passage will be about
-read the first paragraph slowly to get the main idea
-read consequent paragraphs quicker, but try to connect them to the first one
-take 10 seconds after to summarize

ISSUE: feel like wasting too much time. Suggestion will be greatly appreciated!

 

[Gauss44]

Hey, so for verbal, I do:

-read the first sentence
-take a deep breath and close my eyes for 5 secs before diving into passage
-glance at the answer choices as a guide to what the passage will be about
-read the first paragraph slowly to get the main idea
-read consequent paragraphs quicker, but try to connect them to the first one
-take 10 seconds after to summarize

ISSUE: feel like wasting too much time. Suggestion will be greatly appreciated!

No, no, no... You need to hop on one foot around a cactus, chant special words, sit in yoga pose, and then start your routine.

Actually, it sounds like the first part purpose of your strategy is to get a sense of what the passage is going to be about prior to reading it. Is this something you really need to do? If so, are you satisfied with this method? Honestly, to me, it sounds like a huge waste of limited time. Not trying to be mean, that's just my honest opinion, or why I wouldn't do that.

I would suggest that you don't preview anything except for the title of the passage, if they give you that (some passages do, others don't). I would make sure that I understood the main point of each paragraph before moving on to the next one. Some people jot down a word or two to keep track of what was discussed in each paragraph. The part in bold is also good advice as long as you limit yourself to a basic understanding and don't spend too long on it.

If you use this method, you can go back to the exact part of the passage that questions ask about. The main point of each paragraph is usually all that's needed for main idea questions as well.

If there's some other reason you use that technique, let us know. There's usually more than one way to remedy a VR problem. I think your method takes too much time. Just my honest opinion.

 

[t1m0xa]

Thanks for the advice. I changed it up a little bit and stopped reading questions in advance.

Outcome:
- makes me focus more on the main idea as opposed to specific words or phrases from the answer choices