LIGHT Reading Framework
- Feb 17
- 3 min read
Updated: 2 days ago
Contents
The LIGHT method
Why it helps
What to do (student manual)
Method comparison (efficiency, effectiveness, and adaptability)
A simple five-step method to understand any text deeply
Many students lose focus when reading long or dense texts. Main ideas blur, evidence becomes hard to track, and notes grow scattered. Unstructured advice such as “just annotate” rarely solves the problem. Students need a compact and repeatable process that (1) directs attention, (2) connects new ideas to what they already know, and (3) makes the text’s logic visible and memorable. The LIGHT method — Look, Investigate, Glue, Highlight, Tell — is a concise five-step approach that combines previewing, question setting, schema linking, structural marking, and brief retrieval. It is simple enough for daily reading yet powerful enough to improve comprehension and long-term recall across subjects.
1. The LIGHT method
L — Look (preview the map) : Skim titles, subheadings, visuals, and opening lines to identify three key signals such as time, place, topic, or cause and effect.
I — Investigate (ask better questions) : After previewing, write two “why” or “how” questions you expect the text to answer.
G — Glue (link to prior knowledge) : Add two hashtags connecting the text to what you already know — related subjects, past units, or real-world issues.
H — Highlight (reveal structure) : For each paragraph, highlight one main idea and underline one or two supporting details. Mark connectors such as cause and effect or compare and contrast.
T — Tell (close the book and recall) : Without looking at the text, write a two-sentence summary and list three key words to reinforce memory.
2. Why it helps
Faster orientation : Look directs attention to key parts before deep reading.
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