15 Read with a Purpose: The SQ4R Strategy

Reading textbooks is not the same as reading a novel, magazine, or a website for fun. To achieve your course goals, you’ll want to read with an effective strategy. One helpful and popular strategy is called SQ4R. The S stands for Survey, the Q is Question, and the 4Rs are: Read, Recite, Record, and Review.

SQ4R is a form of active reading which encourages you to also make study notes as you read your textbook, so get a pen and notebook ready when you are reading your textbook – the notes you take will help you study better!

SQ4R

Survey

• Survey means scanning the entire assigned chapter or section of a textbook. Take notice of the headings of the section, and briefly read the introductory paragraphs and section summaries.
• Look over important graphics (pictures, charts and diagrams) and captions as well. Pick out things that are interesting or informative.
• Survey the summary and questions at the end. This will give you the key points in the chapter.
• List a few (less than 10) main ideas and concepts on what the chapter focuses on.

Question

• Take each section heading and make it into a question.
• The best questions will call on knowledge you may already have, or puts the heading into dialogue with the other headings or main ideas that you found while “surveying.”
• Example: A heading in a Business Course on “Managerial Accounting,” might generate the following questions: “What is Managerial Accounting?” “How does Managerial Accounting compare to Accounting in general?”  “What has the instructor mentioned about Managerial Accounting?”

Read

• Read the section or chapter while attempting to answer your original question(s).
• Review pictures and captions.
• Take note of words/phrases that are underlined, in bold, or highlighted.
• Try to answer any review questions at the end of the chapter or section.
• Don’t skim through; if something is unclear, slow down and re-read it.

Recite

• After each section, stop reading and review it out loud.
• Answer your original questions and re-read important parts or definitions out loud.
• Try to summarize the main point of each heading.
• Try to provide definitions to key words.
• Continue to self-test until you feel confident that you can understand and remember the information on your own.

Record

• Translate the book’s words into your own words and remember the key definitions and main ideas, write your notes out.
• Use the structure of the text to create an outline for yourself. Be sure to note definitions, main ideas, and important details in the order of the text.

Review

• Use your notes to review for your tests.
• Read them  out loud, rewrite them, or quiz yourself as tests approach.
• The more you review, the more the information will stick with you.

Chapter Attribution

This chapter is adapted from Chapter 15 in University 101: Study, Strategize and Succeed CC BY-SA and content used under fair dealing from the University of Cincinnati. (n.d.). SQ4R: Getting the most from your textbooks. Learning Commons. https://www.uc.edu/campus-life/learning-commons/learning-resources/notetaking-resources/sq4r.html