Reading Strategy
Reading is the paper where you have the most control, because the text stays in front of you. Good technique gets you the marks without needing to understand every word.
Order of work
Read the questions before the text. They tell you what matters. Then read with a purpose. The time shares below are a personal rule of thumb.
1
ActionScan the paper: what documents, how many questions and marks?
Share of your timeA little
2
ActionRead the title, source, date and first and last lines of the text
Share of your timeA little
3
ActionRead all the questions and underline key words
Share of your timeA fifth
4
ActionRead the text and mark where each answer seems to be
Share of your timeHalf or more
5
ActionAnswer, then come back for hard ones
Share of your timeThe rest
6
ActionCheck that nothing is blank
Share of your timeA last check
Reading in layers
Skim for the main idea, then scan for details. Only read closely where a question requires it.
Skim
Use forMain idea, purpose, genre
HowFirst sentence of each paragraph, title and conclusion
Scan
Use forNames, dates, facts
HowLook for one target and ignore the rest
Close reading
Use forInference, opinion, tone
HowRead each sentence around the key words and its connectors
Map
Use forLong texts
HowWrite two or three words beside each paragraph
Reading the connectors
Connectors show the argument. In French texts, the writer's position often comes after a concession.
| Function | Words |
| Addition | de plus, en outre, par ailleurs, de surcroît |
| Contrast | mais, cependant, pourtant, toutefois, néanmoins, en revanche, or |
| Concession | certes, bien que, malgré, même si, il est vrai que |
| Cause | car, puisque, en effet, étant donné que, grâce à, à cause de |
| Consequence | donc, ainsi, par conséquent, c'est pourquoi, d'où |
| Purpose | pour, afin de, afin que, de sorte que |
| Conclusion | bref, en somme, en définitive, finalement, en conclusion |
| Example | par exemple, notamment, ainsi, entre autres |
- Certes, cette réforme coûte cher, mais elle reste indispensable.Admittedly, this reform is expensive, but it remains essential.
- Or, personne n'a vérifié ces chiffres.But no one checked these figures.
Unknown words
Don't stop. Most unknown words are irrelevant to the questions. If one matters, work it out:
1. Word family: venir, revenir, devenir, parvenir. 2. Prefixes and suffixes: in-, im-, dé-, re-, mal-, -able, -ment, -tion, -eur. 3. Context: what meaning would fit here? 4. Cognates: most -tion words, and many -ique and -té words, resemble English.
Watch false friends.
actuellement
Meanscurrently
Notactually
éventuellement
Meanspossibly
Noteventually
sensible
Meanssensitive
Notsensible
assister à
Meansto attend
Notto assist
attendre
Meansto wait
Notto attend
rester
Meansto stay
Notto rest
librairie
Meansbookshop
Notlibrary
déception
Meansdisappointment
Notdeception
formidable
Meansgreat
Notformidable
sympathique
Meansnice
Notsympathetic
prétendre
Meansto claim
Notto pretend
achever
Meansto finish
Notto achieve
important
Meanslarge, big, as well as important
Notonly important
Multiple-choice technique
The correct option usually rephrases the text and doesn't copy it. Prove your answer with a line.
1. Read the stem, and answer in your own words before looking at the options. 2. Find the supporting line. 3. Eliminate wrong options for a stated reason. 4. If two remain, look for the word that makes one too broad or too strong.
Copied words
How it worksOption repeats text words but changes the meaning
DefenceMatch meaning, not words
Outside knowledge
How it worksTrue in the world but not in the text
DefenceOnly the text counts
Too absolute
How it workstoujours, jamais, tous, seul
DefenceCheck for hedges in the text
Reversed cause
How it worksSays A causes B when the text says B causes A
DefenceTrack the connectors
Partial truth
How it worksTrue for one part of the text only
DefenceReread the question
Wrong speaker
How it worksOpinion of someone the writer quotes or rejects
DefenceWho's saying this?
Inference, tone and purpose, at B2 and above
Questions move to what is meant, not only what is said. Ask: who wrote this, for whom, and why? Pay attention to adjectives, conditional forms and quotation marks. The conditional may mean the writer isn't vouching for a claim. Quotation marks can show irony or distance.
| Question type | What to look for |
| Point of view | Evaluative words, adjectives, what comes after mais |
| Purpose | informer, convaincre, dénoncer, alerter, critiquer, défendre |
| Tone | ironique, critique, nuancé, indigné, enthousiaste, neutre |
| Implicit meaning | What the writer leaves for you to conclude |
| Reference | Who or what do il, cela, celui-ci, ce dernier point to? |
| Meaning in context | Replace the word with each option. Which one fits? |
Genres
Know what to expect, though texts vary. A notice usually gives conditions. A letter usually states its purpose in the first paragraph. Press articles often put the main facts first. An opinion piece often keeps its thesis near the start or at the end. Literary texts need attention to atmosphere and character, and may use the passé simple. See the literary-tenses sheet.
Time and answers
Don't get stuck: if a question takes too long, mark it and return. Answer everything, since a blank earns nothing. Check how time is shared across the collective papers on your convocation, and practise with mock timing.
Training plan
1. Read one short Lingo Pal library text daily, a level above your comfort zone. 2. Summarise each paragraph in one line, in French. 3. Keep a list of connectors and how they work. 4. Time yourself on the mock reading paper, then review each mistake: was it vocabulary, a trap or time? 5. Read real French press and opinion pieces on many topics, especially at B2 and above.