Reading Reflection

    English classes are usually never my favorites. I didn't use to like getting deep about the meaning of a story, and I didn't like writing much either. My perspective has kinda changed in the last few years, I like to write a lot more, and now I can appreciate the deeper meanings of stories that I'm interested in. I think one of the common pitfalls in English classes, at least for me, is a lack of interest. There have been times when whatever material we are studying in my English class does pique my interest, and in those sections, I tend to do a lot better. This isn't a huge revelation or anything, I feel like most people in the world can recognize that kids do better in English classes if they're interested, it's just harder to get kids interested than it should be.

    I've never been a great reader. I've always liked stories and storytelling but novels were never a medium I could really get behind. I prefer having visuals; I've always been a huge fan of graphic novels and comic books as opposed to traditional books. There was always something so daunting about huge blocks of text, rife with information that I'm supposed to absorb and remember. So, I just didn't read unless I absolutely had to. I remember the first time I tried reading for pleasure; I was home sick from school in elementary and I was bored, so I read the entirety of the first Magic Treehouse book, I really enjoyed it. In the time following that, I tried to recreate that positive reading experience; I sat down with dozens of books around my house trying to read them as enthusiastically and as quickly as I had the first one. Sometimes it worked, but not usually. I ended up giving up, and going back to only reading when necessary. 

    I couldn't tell you what sparked it, but recently, I've had a surge of interest in stories again. I've gone back to trying to read for pleasure (with varying degrees of success) and I gained interest in even more mediums of storytelling and art. I'm taking this class with the hopes that I will develop good reading habits, and foster an interest in reading that I feel I should have had this whole time. I think that with this class I can start to read more and better, which can help me not only find a new way to entertain myself, but also help me to better educate myself.