Short-text reading means reading a notice, message or paragraph closely enough to answer questions about it. This chapter teaches four skills, each building on the one before.
It sits inside SPM English and comes before extended reading. Your school sets the order of chapters, so use this page as a map.
What does this chapter cover?
- Finding purpose, audience and main message: decide why the text exists and who it is for.
- Using context to infer vocabulary: work out a new word from the words around it.
- Recognising paraphrase instead of identical words: match an option that says the same thing in other words.
- Eliminating distractors using evidence: reject tempting options by pointing to the line that contradicts them.
How do the four skills meet in a short notice?
Here is an original notice. “Library users are reminded that the reading room will close early on Friday for cleaning. Please return borrowed books before noon.”
The purpose is to inform and to request, and the audience is library users. “Reminded” and “please” show a polite tone. An option saying “The reading room shuts sooner than usual on Friday” paraphrases “close early”. An option saying the library is closed all day is a distractor, because the notice only says the reading room closes early.
All four skills were needed for two sentences. In a longer passage they work the same way.
Who should start where?
If you misread what the text is for, begin with purpose and audience. If you know the text but options confuse you, begin with paraphrase and distractors.
After the lessons, try the reading short texts practice set and write down wrong answers in the mistake log and paper-error review. If you would like a teacher to read with you, see online one-to-one English tuition.