SFI reading comprehension: three free exercises with answers
Four reading strategies for SFI courses C and D: questions first, then purpose, details and what is not said. Three free Swedish exercises with answers.
- 9 min read
- Updated October 27, 2026
- Level A2–B1
- 3 exercises
Contents
Reading comprehension in SFI means finding what matters in an everyday text: who writes, why, and what you have to do. You do not need to understand every word. It is what you already do when a letter from vårdcentralen (the health centre) or a notice from your landlord arrives. Here you get four reading strategies and three free exercises with answers, from a notice at the level of course C to a news article at the level of course D. The texts are in Swedish.
The strategy: Read the questions first. Work out who writes to whom, and why. Find the details: dates, times and what you have to do. Then ask yourself what the text does not say directly.
Try it first. Then we explain.
Exercise 1 of 3Readingabout 3 min
A notice in the stairwell
Read the questions first. Then read the landlord's notice and answer.
Till alla hyresgäster på Lönngatan 12
Vattnet stängs av tisdag 10 november
Hej!
Vi ska byta gamla vattenrör i källaren. Därför stängs vattnet av i hela huset på tisdag den 10 november kl. 8.00–15.00. Under den tiden kan du inte använda kranar, dusch eller toalett.
Tvättstugan är stängd hela dagen. Har du en tvättid den dagen? Boka en ny tid på tavlan i entrén.
Tips: Fyll några flaskor med vatten kvällen innan.
Har du frågor? Ring fastighetsskötaren Jonas på 070-174 06 12, vardagar kl. 7–16.
Hälsningar
Bostadsbolaget Ekhem
- 1. Varför stängs vattnet av?
- 2. Under vilken tid är vattnet avstängt?
- 3. Du har en tvättid på tisdag. Vad ska du göra?
- 4. Varför har hyresvärden skrivit lappen?
0 of 4 answered
Four strategies for reading comprehension
The reading part of SFI tests whether you understand everyday texts: notices, letters, tables and articles. According to Skolverket's syllabus for SFI, in course C you should understand simple informative texts and short instructions. Course D adds explanatory and argumentative texts, both informal and more formal. The four strategies work for all of them.
| Strategy | The question you ask | Example from the exercises |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Read the questions first | What am I looking for? | ”Under vilken tid är vattnet avstängt?” (During which hours is the water off?) So you look for times. |
| 2. Find the purpose | Who writes to whom, and why? | The landlord writes to everyone in the building, so they can plan a day without water. |
| 3. Find the details | When? Where? What must I do? | If you have a laundry slot that day, you book a new one on the board in the entrance. |
| 4. Read between the lines | What is not said directly? | Kom gärna tio minuter innan (feel free to come ten minutes early) means: you do not have to, but it helps. |
Read the questions first. Then you know what you are looking for, and you can read faster. Read the whole text once. Then go back to the part that answers the question.
Find the purpose. Look at the heading, the sender and the first sentence. A notice from the landlord informs. A news story reports and lets people say what they think. A letter from an authority often tells you what to do.
Find the details. Dates, times, places and things to bring are often in a list or a table. Underline them or write them down.
Read between the lines. Some answers are not in a single sentence. You have to put two things in the text together, for example a rule and a situation.
The most common mistakes
- You pick the answer with the same words as the text. The notice has both 8.00–15.00 and 7–16. Both are times, but only one is about the water. Wrong answers often use words from the text that answer a different question.
- You mix up two dates. The letter from the health centre has two dates and two times. Always check which date belongs to what.
- You answer with what you know yourself. Maybe you are allowed to do your laundry after 3 pm in your building. But the question is about this text, and the notice says to book a new slot. Answer with what it says.
- You get stuck on an unknown word. Keep reading. Often the next sentence explains the word, and often the question does not need it.
Exercise 2 of 3Readingabout 4 min
A letter from the health centre
Read the letter to Amira and answer the questions. Look carefully at the dates and times.
Vårdcentralen Ekbacken
Bekräftelse på bokad tid
Hej Amira Hassan,
Du har en bokad tid hos oss för ett hälsobesök.
| Datum | torsdag 19 november |
| Tid | kl. 9.30 |
| Hos | distriktssköterska Eva Lund |
| Plats | Mottagning 2, plan 1 |
Vi tar ett blodprov en vecka innan, på torsdag 12 november. Kom då till laboratoriet mellan kl. 7.30 och 9.00. Du behöver inte boka tid. Ät ingen frukost innan provet. Vatten går bra att dricka.
Ta med till besöket:
- legitimation
- en lista över de mediciner du tar
Besöket tar ungefär 45 minuter. Kom gärna tio minuter innan och anmäl dig i automaten i entrén.
Kan du inte komma? Ring oss och avboka senast 24 timmar innan. Om du avbokar senare eller inte kommer, får du betala för besöket.
Med vänliga hälsningar
Vårdcentralen Ekbacken
- 1. Vad är det här för brev?
- 2. När ska Amira lämna blodprovet?
- 3. Vad gäller på morgonen före blodprovet?
- 4. Vad ska Amira ha med sig till besöket den 19 november?
- 5. Amira blir sjuk på morgonen den 19 november och ringer för att avboka. Vad händer enligt brevet?
0 of 5 answered
How to practise reading every day
Read the texts that are already around you, and ask the four questions. The notice in the laundry room, a letter from school and an e-mail from work are enough. Who writes? Why? What must I do? What happens if I do not?
Also read one short news story in easy Swedish every day, for example in 8 Sidor. Then say out loud, in one sentence, what the story is about. It is the same skill as a question about the main idea of a text. More ideas for all four parts are in the guide on how to practise for the national test.
Reading between the lines in a longer text
In course D the texts get longer, and they often contain opinions. A news story can let two people say different things about the same change. Then finding the details is not enough. You also have to understand who thinks what, and why.
Look for small words that show a new opinion is coming: men (but), däremot (on the other hand), alla är inte lika positiva (not everyone is as positive). Also ask yourself how the writer writes. Does the writer give their own opinion, or let other people speak? In the last exercise you read a local news story about a library. Two of the questions have no answer in a single sentence.
Exercise 3 of 3Readingabout 5 min
A news story with two opinions
Read the article from a local news site and answer the questions. Some answers are not stated directly in the text.
Biblioteket i Norrby öppet till klockan 22
Från den 1 december kan invånarna i Norrby gå till biblioteket varje dag mellan klockan 7 och 22. Men personalen finns bara på plats under de vanliga tiderna, vardagar mellan 10 och 18. Resten av tiden kommer man in med ett lånekort och en pinkod.
Kommunen tror att fler kommer att använda biblioteket.
”Många jobbar dagtid och hinner inte komma när vi har personal här. Nu kan man låna böcker eller studera på kvällen. I andra kommuner har det fungerat bra”, säger Lena Berg, som är kulturchef i kommunen.
Alla är inte lika positiva. Hassan Nur läser svenska på komvux och brukar sitta på biblioteket flera eftermiddagar i veckan.
”Det är bra att det är öppet längre. Men jag går dit för att få hjälp, till exempel med datorn eller med blanketter. På kvällen finns det ingen att fråga”, säger han.
Enligt kommunen blir det inte färre timmar med personal. Den som behöver hjälp kan också boka en tid med en bibliotekarie, även på kvällen.
Ett lånekort är gratis. Du visar legitimation i informationsdisken och väljer en egen pinkod.
- 1. Vad handlar artikeln främst om?
- 2. Varför vill kommunen ha längre öppettider?
- 3. Vad tycker Hassan Nur om förändringen?
- 4. Du behöver hjälp med en blankett, men du jobbar till klockan 18 alla vardagar. Vad kan du göra enligt artikeln?
- 5. Hur skriver journalisten om förändringen?
0 of 5 answered
Our honest take
What makes reading comprehension hard is rarely the words. It is reading everything equally carefully and getting tired before you find the answer. If you read the question first and search with a goal, you read both faster and better. So practise on real texts from your own life, and do not measure how many words you know. Measure whether you find the answer. The courses on Beyond SFI have short texts that look like real letters, notices and tables in every chapter. Longer articles are best read in 8 Sidor or a regular newspaper.
Common questions
Related articles
- Where to practise for the SFI national test, for free
- The SFI national tests: how they work
- Free SFI material: practice for courses C and D
Facts checked: October 2026. The exercises are written by Beyond SFI. All names and places are made up.
Sources
- Skolverket – Komvux i svenska för invandrare (sfi) (the SFI syllabus, Swedish)
- Skolverket – Commentary material on the SFI syllabus (Swedish)
- Skolverket – Old tests and example tasks in SFI (Swedish)
- Stockholms universitet – Om sfi-proven (Swedish)