Everyday English 2
◄Previous: 1.2 Highlighting

1.3 Extracting information

You will now explore different techniques for extracting information and reading with a time limit. This skill is particularly important for situations such as exams when time is short. Staying calm and being able to read under pressure can be the difference between a pass or a fail!

Activity 3 Reading with a time limit (1)

Allow about 5 minutes

This activity involves reading something in a limited time. Click anywhere on the image below and read as much of the advert as you can in 15 seconds. After this time, the advert will disappear. Then have a go at answering the questions.

  1. What is the job?

(A text entry box would appear here, but your browser does not support it.)

  1. What are the duties of the post?

(A text entry box would appear here, but your browser does not support it.)

  1. Who should applicants contact?

(A text entry box would appear here, but your browser does not support it.)

  1. When is the closing date?

(A text entry box would appear here, but your browser does not support it.)

  1. What is the rate of pay per hour?

(A text entry box would appear here, but your browser does not support it.)

Discussion

Check your answers against these:

  1. Lunchtime supervisor team leader.

  2. To coordinate and supervise the school’s team of lunchtime supervisors.

  3. Michael White.

  4. Two weeks from the date of the advert.

  5. £8.21.

It can be quite difficult to take in a lot of text in a short time. The layout can help you to identify what the text is about. If the text is important, spending more time reading will help you to digest the information.

Activity 4 Reading with a time limit (2)

Allow about 5 minutes

Complete the same activity again with a different text.

  1. Click anywhere on the text below and read as much as you can in 15 seconds. After this time, the text will disappear. Then have a go at answering the questions.

a. Name one of the places in North Yorkshire with a hostel.

(A text entry box would appear here, but your browser does not support it.)

b. From where are excursions available?

(A text entry box would appear here, but your browser does not support it.)

c. Which area is recommended if you like peace and quiet?

(A text entry box would appear here, but your browser does not support it.)

d. Is payment refundable?

(A text entry box would appear here, but your browser does not support it.)

e. When do you pay the full costs of the holiday?

(A text entry box would appear here, but your browser does not support it.)

  1. Did you find it easier to extract information from one of the texts? If so, which one? Why do you think this was so?

(A text entry box would appear here, but your browser does not support it.)

Discussion

Check your answers against these:

    1. Scarborough

    2. Scarborough and the two other coastal centres in the north

    3. Devon

    4. No

    5. One month in advance

  2. You may have found the second text more difficult to read than the first. There was too much writing and there were not enough clues as to where you had to stop or which were the important points in the passage.

    The first text had clues as to the key points that the author wanted to get over:

    • bold type

    • headings in the middle

    • short paragraphs.

    This made it easier to extract the information.

In this section you have:

  • thought about the different types of text you read

  • practised identifying the main points from a text.

◄Contents►Next: 2 Skimming, scanning and detailed reading

OpenLearn - Everyday English 2
ou logoCreative Commons non-commercial share alike icon Except for third party materials and otherwise, this content is made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 Licence, full copyright detail can be found in the acknowledgements section. Please see full copyright statement for details.