1. Annotating a Text

2. Preview the text • Look for: • Titles • Captions • Headings • Graphics

3. Read Through Once • Read through the text quickly to get a sense for the content and structure

4. Read for Understanding • Mark anything you think is: • confusing • interesting • surprising • important

5. Circle or Underline • Circle or underline what seems like an important idea.

6. Circle Unknown Words • If you do not know what a word means, circle it and find the meaning.

7. Mark Confusing Passages • If something is confusing or you are losing comprehension, mark it. • Re-read the previous section of text and write your questions in the margin.

8. Note: Emotions • Record places in the text that have strong positive or negative connotations

9. Write Questions • Write questions where you made annotations. These questions can be used later to: • ask the teacher or a peer about your question • for the class discussion • to use in future writing assignments • or for you to keep as a reminder of what you were thinking.

10. Make Connections • Think about the connections between this text and other texts you have read, information from other classes, and personal experiences.