Reading and Responding: Skimming, Scanning and Inference
What you must be able to do
Reading tasks include notices, menus, timetables, emails, advertisements and short articles. You need to skim for gist and scan for detail. Recognise text types by their layout and formulas: an email opens with Salut or Bonjour and closes with Bises or Cordialement; a notice uses imperatives (Ne pas fumer, Poussez); an advertisement uses exclamations and superlatives. Understand question types - true/false/not stated, matching, short answer - and know that not stated is a real option requiring evidence.
Traps to watch
- Cognates that mislead: librairie is bookshop, not library; location is rental; blessé is injured; assister à means to attend.
- Negation and restriction: ne ... que means only; missing it reverses the meaning.
- Not-stated items: if the text does not mention it, do not infer from general knowledge.
- Time and date formats: le 05/03 is 5 March, not 3 May.
- Word families: travail / travailler / travailleur; identify the part of speech before translating.
Worked example
Text: Le musée est ouvert tous les jours sauf le mardi, de dix heures à dix-huit heures. Entrée gratuite pour les moins de dix-huit ans. Question: Is the museum open on Tuesday morning? Answer: No - it is closed on Tuesdays (sauf le mardi). A second question may ask who gets in free: les moins de dix-huit ans, meaning under eighteens.
Rule of thumb: locate the exact phrase in the text and quote it before answering. If you cannot find a matching phrase, the answer is probably not stated. Answer in the language and length the question demands, and never copy a whole sentence when a phrase will do.