Most of the time when you are walking and map reading you are really just checking that you are where you think you are or working out where 4 paths meet on the map but 6 do on the ground which you should take.
The last time I actually properly walked on a bearing was 2 years ago and I can not remember the time before that. It is also 2 years ago, though a different walk, since I powered up my ancient GPS to give me an absolute location of where I was as I wasn't entirely sure. Both of these instances were in very poor viability.
That doesn't mean that I can always say exactly where I am but I will know roughly where I am, roughly where I'm heading and how to tell if I've got, or more importantly not got, there.
So I suppose you are right if 'reestablish your location' is checking where you are and 'plot a new heading' is work out where to go next.
The only way to get better at map reading is to do it and doing it with someone else, even if they know no more than you do, is much easier.
One final thing. One day you will be on a hill or in a wood, with the mist swirling round your knees, staring at the map and compass and nothing will line up. You with think to yourself 'this map is wrong and the compass is broken I'm going to press on anyway' at this point remember that strange bloke on the Walking Forum saying to you that the map and compass are NEVER, EVER* wrong. Now head back to the last place you knew where you were and sort yourself out.
*the number of times when this statement is not true is so close to zero as to be negligible.