I truly enjoyed the first section in this chapter that is entitled “Reading for the Conversation”. The first paragraph on page 173 was all too familiar to me, “after some awkward silences, the class would come up with something we could all agree was an accurate summary of the author’s main thesis… the discussion would often still seem forced.” In my life, I have had many teachers ask this same generic question and proceed to stare at the class expecting an answer that would never arise, resulting in them just explaining the answer. Nothing really is sparked with that type of question, no imagination is ignited to make the gears start moving. But this section in the chapter has helped me to see how to approach such a thing differently.

One question on page 174 was “What is motivating the writer’s argument?”  I feel as though questions such as this are important. As stated further down the page, these questions gave “alternative ways of seeing the topic at hand.” This is very important, I tend to learn slightly differently than people in the classroom; having these questions to apply to my readings will help to give me a different view on things. Reading this way is more demanding. It forces you to think from many different angles. This skill is important in reading, it helps you to fully understand the concept and topic that is at hand.

 

collreadwrit1a