--- title: "Active Reading Questions to Ask Before, During and After" description: "A practical list of active reading questions to ask before, during and after a text, with a step-by-step method for academic articles and a note-taking system." canonical: "https://omphalis.ai/blog/active-reading-questions" source: "https://omphalis.ai/blog/active-reading-questions" --- # Active Reading Questions to Ask Before, During and After Updated November 7, 2026 · 14 min read ![Active Reading Questions to Ask Before, During and After](https://media.babylovegrowth.ai/blog-images/organization-18678/1793880327277_Geometric-layers-suggest-a-thoughtful-reading-process.jpeg) The best active reading questions are the ones you ask at three moments: before you start (why am I reading this, and what do I already know?), while you read (what is the main point, and what evidence backs it?), and afterward (what did I learn, and what is still unanswered?). Write them down, answer them in your own words, and keep them next to the passage that prompted them. Below you will find question lists you can copy, a step-by-step routine for academic articles, and a way to keep your notes from piling up unread. ## TL;DR - Active reading means engaging with a text before, during and after reading, and questions are the simplest way to do it, according to [Ohio State's Teaching and Learning Resource Center](https://teaching.resources.osu.edu/glossary/term/active-reading). - Before: set a purpose, preview headings, predict, and list what you already know. During: ask who, what, why and how, and paraphrase each paragraph. After: name the main idea, the strongest evidence and what is left to find out. - Write each question down and answer it in your own words. Notes that contain questions and explanations support retention, per [Brown's Sheridan Center](https://sheridan.brown.edu/resources/classroom-practices/critical-reading). - Match the depth to the text. A skim for a deadline and a close read for an exam need different questions. ## Table of Contents - What active reading questions are for - Questions to ask before you read - Questions to ask while you read - Questions to ask after you read - A step-by-step routine for an academic article - Active reading strategies that make questions stick - Taking active reading notes - Our perspective - Try these questions in Omphalis - A printable question set - FAQ - Sources ## What active reading questions are for Passive reading is moving your eyes down the page and hoping something sticks. Active reading is [reading and thinking together](https://www.open.edu/openlearn/society-politics-law/sociology/reading-and-note-taking---preparation-study/content-section-2.3): picking out key ideas, processing the information, and later putting it in your own words. Questions are what turn the first into the second. A course from Lumen Learning puts it this way: [any type of question](https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-esc-introtocollegereadingandwriting/chapter/preview-questions-answers/) shows you are thinking about the text enough to react to it and talk back. You stop decoding and start conversing. That same course sorts questions into three useful kinds: - **Fuller understanding:** What is the author's aim or purpose? - **Deeper understanding:** Why is the author taking this stance? - **Beyond the author:** How does this text relate to something in my own experience? Keep those three kinds in mind. A good reading session usually needs at least one of each. ## Questions to ask before you read Pre-reading questions take two to five minutes and decide how well the next hour goes. They give your brain a job before the words arrive. ### Purpose and context - Why am I reading this? An exam, a paper, a meeting, curiosity? - Why was this assigned now, at this point in the course? A university study skills page suggests asking exactly this in its [pre-reading prompts](https://www.lsa.umich.edu/). - How much of it do I actually need to read closely? Princeton's McGraw Center makes the point that effective reading is [specific to the course, the text and the upcoming assignment](https://mcgraw.princeton.edu/strategic-approach-effective-and-efficient-reading). The purpose question is what makes that possible. ### Prior knowledge and prediction - What do I already know, or think I know, about this topic? - What do I expect to learn? - Based on the title and headings, what will the author argue? The prompts above echo Baylor's Success Center, which recommends asking [what you know, what you think you will learn, and what you predict](https://successcenter.web.baylor.edu/sites/g/files/ecbvkj1551/files/2023-04/Active_Reading_Worksheet.pdf) before starting. UNC's Learning Center adds a practical twist: right after previewing, [make a prediction, list what you know, and write down your questions](https://learningcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/skimming/). A wrong prediction is not a failure. It is a signal about where the text surprised you, and surprise is where learning happens. ### Turn headings into questions Washington University's Learning Center describes SQ3R (Survey, Question, Read, Recall, Review) and recommends [turning titles, headings and learning objectives into questions](http://ctl.wustl.edu/learningcenter/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/01/Reading-Strategies_TLC_2024.pdf). A heading like "Causes of the 2008 Financial Crisis" becomes "What were the causes, and which does the author weight most?" Now each section has a question to answer. ![Five steps in the SQ3R reading method](https://media.babylovegrowth.ai/blog-images/organization-18678/1793880373938_Five-steps-in-the-SQ3R-reading-method.jpeg) ## Questions to ask while you read This is where most readers stop asking. Pick a rhythm: one pause per section or every few paragraphs. ### Basic comprehension The Open ELA textbook recommends [who, what, where, when, why and how questions](https://pimaopen.pressbooks.pub/openela/chapter/asking-questions/) about details, plus clarifying unclear parts and predicting what comes next. In practice: - Who is this about, and who is the author talking to? - What is the claim in this paragraph? - Why did this happen, or why does the author say it did? - Does this make sense? If not, which sentence lost me? - What do I think comes next? ### Reading like a skeptic Harvard Library's reading guide encourages you to get in the habit of [hearing yourself ask](https://guides.library.harvard.edu/sixreadinghabits/) questions such as "What does this mean?" and "Why is the writer drawing that conclusion?" Add these: - What kind of evidence is this: fact, opinion, a study, an anecdote? - Where does the evidence come from? - Is the reasoning logical, or is there a gap? - Does the author lean on emotion or loaded words? The last three come from the analytical questions in the [University of Cincinnati Press text on academic reading](https://ucincinnatipress.pressbooks.pub/foundationreadwrite2nded/chapter/text-analysis/), which asks whether you believe the author and accept their ideas, and why. ### Finding the main idea, evidence and examples When a paragraph feels like fog, try the four-part approach from LibreTexts' rhetoric manual: [note the topic, label the main idea, label the major ideas, and note the minor ideas](https://human.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Composition/Introductory_Composition/Writing_and_Reading_Rhetoric_Manual__What_Why_and_How_3e/01%3A_Critical_Reading/1.02%3A_While_Reading_Strategies). Each step is a question: 1. What specific topic does the text focus on? 2. What does the author want me to learn or be convinced of? 3. What reasons does the author give to convince me? 4. What specific evidence illustrates those reasons? A study module on main ideas also suggests a process of elimination: [find the examples, evidence and explanations first](https://padletuploads.blob.core.windows.net/prod/123526207/522f1771c52bb91b6ec18dc7e4f8e36e/Main_ideas_and_supporting_details.pdf). If a sentence is left over once the supporting details are marked, it may be the main idea. Signal words such as "for example" point you to the support. ### When you hit a question you cannot answer Do not skip it. Brown's Sheridan Center advises that you [write the question down, look for the answer in the material, and explain the answer in writing once you find it](https://sheridan.brown.edu/resources/classroom-practices/critical-reading). That small loop is the difference between collecting questions and learning from them. ## Questions to ask after you read The last five minutes decide what you keep. Close the text, and try to answer these from memory first. - What was the main idea, in one sentence? - What are the one or two strongest pieces of evidence? - What is the author's ultimate takeaway on this issue? - Do I agree? Why or why not? - How does this compare with other things I have read on the topic? - What do I still need to find out? The first four mirror the University of Oregon's [critical reading prompts](https://opentext.uoregon.edu/writingasinquiry/chapter/critical-reading/), which ask for the main idea, one or two compelling examples, and the takeaway. The comparison and "did you find what you needed" questions come from [Humanities LibreTexts](https://human.libretexts.org/Courses/Lumen_Learning/English_Composition_I_(Lumen)/02%3A_Reading_Strategies/2.05%3A_Questioning). To check yourself, summarize in a paragraph, then look back at the text. Anything you could not recall goes on your review list. UNC's Learning Center lists [summarizing the main ideas](https://learningcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/skimming/) among its active reading steps, and Vanderbilt's Writing Studio suggests a [five-minute reflective exercise](https://www.vanderbilt.edu/writing/resources/handouts/active-reading/) with free-writing, quick questions, a one-paragraph summary, an outline or a quotation bank. ## A step-by-step routine for an academic article Caltech's learning center lays out a [four-step process](https://ctlo.caltech.edu/aboutctlo/whoweserve/undergraduates/learning-resources/learning/active-reading) with time estimates. Here is how it looks with the questions built in: 1. **Preview (5 to 10 minutes).** Read the headings, bold and italic text, tables and figures. Ask: what is the topic, and what do I already know? 2. **Question (2 to 5 minutes).** Turn what you noticed into questions and decide the purpose of the reading. Ask: what must I be able to explain when I finish? 3. **Read and paraphrase.** Go one paragraph at a time, restating each in your own words and tying it to the paragraphs before. 4. **Reflect (5 to 10 minutes).** Were your questions answered? Did the reading raise new ones? For a long paper, add a decision at the start. Brown's Sheridan Center describes [active skimming](https://sheridan.brown.edu/resources/classroom-practices/critical-reading) as skimming the whole text while deep reading only the sections that serve your goal. If you read a lot of research, our guide to [reading a research paper faster without reading it worse](https://omphalis.ai/blog/how-to-read-a-research-paper-faster-without-reading-it-worse) applies the same idea. ## Active reading strategies that make questions stick Questions work better paired with a few habits. **Mark the page with words, not just color.** Harvard's guide recommends putting away the highlighter and using pen or pencil to write words and phrases in the margins, and it warns that [yellow lines can look cryptic the next day](https://guides.library.harvard.edu/sixreadinghabits/) unless you remember why they mattered. It also suggests a personal symbol system, such as an asterisk for a key idea and an exclamation point for the surprising. A question mark beside a confusing sentence is the simplest symbol of all. **Adjust to the text.** RMIT's learning lab says active reading means [making choices about what you read and how](https://learninglab.rmit.edu.au/university-essentials/study-essentials/reading-skills/active-reading/index.html): have a purpose, decide how much to read, note connections to other texts, and take notes visually in tables, diagrams or mind maps. The same idea applies to exam prep. A guide on [reading comprehension strategy and practice](https://prepadmit.com/blog/bocconi-reading-comprehension) shows how previewing, chunking and recall change with the text's purpose. **Preview with help.** Vanderbilt's Writing Studio suggests consulting a [chapter summary, abstract, class notes or a review](https://www.vanderbilt.edu/writing/resources/handouts/active-reading/) before page one, so your first pass already has a frame. **Chunk and recall.** Princeton's McGraw Center recommends [surveying, chunking, actively recalling and connecting](https://mcgraw.princeton.edu/strategic-approach-effective-and-efficient-reading) as part of the reading process. Stop at the end of each chunk and say the point aloud before moving on. **Connect to what you know.** Ask how the new idea fits what you already hold, whether it contradicts it, and whether it is relevant to your purpose. Then predict what the author will say next. If you were right, you are following the argument. If not, reread. For more on this, see our [reading comprehension strategies for adults](https://omphalis.ai/blog/reading-comprehension-strategies) and our piece on [running a reading session so it ends with something you can use](https://omphalis.ai/blog/how-to-run-a-reading-session-so-it-ends-with-something-you-can-use). ![Active reading strategies that make questions stick](https://media.babylovegrowth.ai/blog-images/organization-18678/1793880409154_Active-reading-strategies-that-make-questions-stick.jpeg) ## Taking active reading notes Questions only help if you can find them again. A workable note format has three columns, on paper or on screen: | Passage | My question | My answer, in my words | | --- | --- | --- | | "Page or quote that prompted it" | Why does the author dismiss the earlier study? | The sample was small, and the author says it was not replicated. | | Table 2 | Does this support the main claim? | Partly: only for one age group. | The left column is the part people skip, and it is the most useful. A question with no passage attached becomes a mystery a week later. The same goes for notes on other formats: we have written about annotating [PDFs](https://omphalis.ai/blog/annotate-pdf), [Word documents](https://omphalis.ai/blog/annotate-word-documents) and [YouTube videos](https://omphalis.ai/blog/annotate-youtube-videos) for this reason. When you review, read your questions first and try to answer them without looking. Then check the passage. This is retrieval, not rereading, and it is the reason question-based notes beat a page of highlights. ## Our perspective > Most reading tools are built for speed: shorter summaries, faster skims. We think that misses what readers actually need. A summary can leave you feeling fluent without understanding the argument. We call that false fluency, and it is the risk we design against. Active reading questions are the opposite of a shortcut. They keep you with the full source and make you do the thinking. Where we can help is the friction around that thinking. Omphalis is built so you can save an article, paper, podcast or video, read it in a cleaned-up, structured view, get an explanation of a difficult passage without leaving it, and attach your own note to the exact original passage. When a question comes up mid-paragraph, you can ask it and get an answer with citations from the source, so you can check it against the text instead of trusting it blindly. Your questions, answers and highlights stay tied to the passages that prompted them, which is what makes review work later. We built it for students handling piles of academic reading and professionals who curate insights, and for anyone who has ever saved a long article and never opened it again. Understanding, not speed, is the point. *Omphalis Team* ## Try these questions in Omphalis If you want a place to put this routine to work, Omphalis lets you import articles, papers, PDFs, EPUBs, Word documents and feeds, read with inline explanations, and [ask questions about your reading with citations](https://omphalis.ai/ask). Notes attach to the original passage, and [highlights and notes reopen that passage](https://omphalis.ai/highlights) when you review. ![Omphalis](https://media.babylovegrowth.ai/blog-images/organization-18678/1790615591899_omphalis.jpg) There is a Free plan to start. Paid plans, including Pro at $9 per month or $90 per year, Premium at $19 per month or $190 per year, and Scholar at $39 per month or $390 per year, add fuller features such as deep reading, PDF extraction and advanced listening. Compare them on the [pricing page](https://omphalis.ai/pricing), or start from [omphalis.ai](https://omphalis.ai). ## A printable question set Copy this into your notes app and trim it to fit. **Before** - Why am I reading this, and how closely? - What do I already know? - What do the title and headings predict? **During** - What is this paragraph's claim, in my words? - What evidence supports it, and where does it come from? - Does this make sense? What do I expect next? **After** - What is the main idea in one sentence? - What was the strongest evidence? - Do I agree, and how does this compare with other sources? - What do I still need to find out? ## FAQ ### What are the main aims of active reading? The aim is to understand definitions, follow the debate and interpret the evidence, so you can later restate the ideas in your own words, as the [Open University's study guide](https://www.open.edu/openlearn/society-politics-law/sociology/reading-and-note-taking---preparation-study/content-section-2.3) describes it. It also means reading with a purpose rather than simply finishing the pages. ### What questions should I ask while reading? Start with who, what, where, when, why and how about the details. Then ask about the author: what is the main point, what evidence is offered, and does the reasoning hold up? Write down anything you cannot answer, and look it up in the text. ### How long should active reading take? It takes longer than a passive first pass, but the review is shorter. Caltech's routine budgets [5 to 10 minutes to preview, 2 to 5 to form questions, and 5 to 10 to reflect](https://ctlo.caltech.edu/aboutctlo/whoweserve/undergraduates/learning-resources/learning/active-reading), plus the reading itself. ### Should I highlight or write notes? Write. Harvard's reading guide argues that highlighting can dilute comprehension and recommends [margin notes in pen or pencil](https://guides.library.harvard.edu/sixreadinghabits/). If you do highlight, add a short note on why the passage matters. ## Sources - [Ohio State Teaching and Learning Resource Center: Active reading](https://teaching.resources.osu.edu/glossary/term/active-reading) - [OpenLearn: Reading and note taking, active reading](https://www.open.edu/openlearn/society-politics-law/sociology/reading-and-note-taking---preparation-study/content-section-2.3) - [Lumen Learning: Patterns and Questions to Understand Ideas](https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-esc-introtocollegereadingandwriting/chapter/preview-questions-answers/) - [Brown University Sheridan Center: Critical Reading](https://sheridan.brown.edu/resources/classroom-practices/critical-reading) - [Princeton McGraw Center: A Strategic Approach to Effective and Efficient Reading](https://mcgraw.princeton.edu/strategic-approach-effective-and-efficient-reading) - [Baylor Success Center: Active Reading Handout](https://successcenter.web.baylor.edu/sites/g/files/ecbvkj1551/files/2023-04/Active_Reading_Worksheet.pdf) - [UNC Learning Center: Skimming](https://learningcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/skimming/) - [Washington University Learning Center: Active Learning Strategies for Close Reading](http://ctl.wustl.edu/learningcenter/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/01/Reading-Strategies_TLC_2024.pdf) - [Open ELA: Asking Questions](https://pimaopen.pressbooks.pub/openela/chapter/asking-questions/) - [Harvard Library: Reading Strategies, Interrogating Texts](https://guides.library.harvard.edu/sixreadinghabits/) - [University of Cincinnati Press: Text Analysis](https://ucincinnatipress.pressbooks.pub/foundationreadwrite2nded/chapter/text-analysis/) - [LibreTexts: While Reading Strategies](https://human.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Composition/Introductory_Composition/Writing_and_Reading_Rhetoric_Manual__What_Why_and_How_3e/01%3A_Critical_Reading/1.02%3A_While_Reading_Strategies) - [Main Ideas and Supporting Details module](https://padletuploads.blob.core.windows.net/prod/123526207/522f1771c52bb91b6ec18dc7e4f8e36e/Main_ideas_and_supporting_details.pdf) - [University of Oregon: Critical Reading, Writing as Inquiry](https://opentext.uoregon.edu/writingasinquiry/chapter/critical-reading/) - [Humanities LibreTexts: Questioning](https://human.libretexts.org/Courses/Lumen_Learning/English_Composition_I_(Lumen)/02%3A_Reading_Strategies/2.05%3A_Questioning) - [Vanderbilt Writing Studio: Active Reading Strategies](https://www.vanderbilt.edu/writing/resources/handouts/active-reading/) - [Caltech CTLO: Active Reading](https://ctlo.caltech.edu/aboutctlo/whoweserve/undergraduates/learning-resources/learning/active-reading) - [RMIT Learning Lab: Active reading](https://learninglab.rmit.edu.au/university-essentials/study-essentials/reading-skills/active-reading/index.html) ## Recommended - [How to Run a Reading Session So It Ends With Something You Can Use](https://omphalis.ai/blog/how-to-run-a-reading-session-so-it-ends-with-something-you-can-use) - [Ask questions about your reading, with citations](https://omphalis.ai/ask) - [Ask voice: talk through your reading, with citations](https://omphalis.ai/ask/voice) - [Read and understand research papers](https://omphalis.ai/research-papers) --- Listed on: [Featured on launched.tools REVIEWED ✓](https://launched.tools/tools/omphalis)