Arienda Sandika Putri Pengarang Sahid, S.S., M.A. Dosen Pembimbing 1 Arif Widyantoro,M.Pd.B.I Penguji 1 Buntara Adi Purwanto, S.S., M.Pd. Ketua Penguji sahid Penguji 2

Students in Indonesia are currently required to be able tocompete in order to survive in this era of progress. Critical thinkingskills are very necessary to support students thinking progress insolving problems in the future. Critical thinking should have beenintroduced since elementary school, so that students get used tothinking critically. To be able to introduce critical thinking tostudents, it can start by making students have an interest in reading.This research aims to determine the role of the mind mappingstrategy in improving students reading and critical thinking skills.The research results show that the application of the mind mappingstrategy has a significant positive impact on the development ofstudents reading and critical thinking skills. The test results showa substantial increase from the average pre-test score of 61 to 71.5in post-test 1 and 80.75 in post-test 2. By using the mind mappingstrategy students tend to show a better understanding of keyconcepts, the ability to analyze information in depth, and the abilityto develop stronger arguments. Apart from that, students with mindmapping also show an increase in their ability to interpret text,connect ideas, and form critical thinking. These findings confirmthe close relationship between reading skills and critical thinking,where good reading skills can support the development of criticalthinking skills needed to solve complex problems. Thus, efforts toimprove students reading skills through the mind mapping strategyare an effective strategy. Keyword: Critical Thinking Skills, Reading Ability, Mind Mapping