|
By Alex Morse, Nursing Content Tutor There are many “helpful hints” for reading that I have learned myself or have learned from other people that really do work! Here are some ideas to help you get the most out of your reading, speed reading and skim reading. Below is a list of things that I find to be helpful, when I am reading my Nursing textbooks. 1) Break up the information. During my first semester of nursing classes, I didn’t know any better so I left all of my reading assignments to the last minute, which did not go over well. Now, I try to read at least a chapter a night, so that way I am not cramming and I can really think about what I am reading. 2) Use the Powerpoints as a guide. When I go back and read the chapters and take my notes, I use the powerpoints as a guide for my reading. With nursing textbooks there can be so much information that makes it really overwhelming..by using the powerpoints to guide me through the text, this allevates the issue. 3) “Think like a nurse.” When I am reading I always tell myself to “think like a nurse.” I hear my nursing instructors saying it over and over and now I try and incorporate it into my reading. As I am reading I think, “how can I keep my patients safe,” “what do I need to teach my patient about” “what are the strange side effects I need to know about before giving my patient a medication,” “how will the medical diagnosis affect the patient and their family” ”what is the most important thing to consider first.” These are the broad questions I ask myself when I am studying, because these are usually the types of questions that appear on the exam..along with the knowledge questions. 4) Practice NCLEX questions. I immediately started doing better on my nursing exams when I practiced with NCLEX questions. When you learn the style that nursing test writers use to ask questions, it makes it easier to answer the questions. |
