Part three of five:
Critical reading has been the most rewarding skill that I’ve learned this semester. Before attending this class I loved do dissect books and read with the intent to learn. However, I hadn’t considered incorporating annotating the text in order to learn on a deeper level until practicing it in this course. The way I engage with the text is by pretending as if the author is a friend, and were sharing a comfortable conversation and that usually brews some interesting thoughts. Then, I try to pull it apart and understand the text on a deeper level. Most of my annotations are reactions, and they’re informan and engaging. This helps me develop a strong essay because I try and keep it simple, as if sharing a conversation with no pressure attached. It is important for me to first understand the text before reacting unconsciously. To achieve this, I’ll first read the text slowly and write definitions on the sides or underline important phrases or ideas. I’ll also incorporate circles to isolate a certain part of the text and I’ll use brackets if i need to highlight a section to come back to for reference. Once I understand the text as it is written, I will reread it with an open mind and react as if I’m talking playfully with the author. I’ll reach with “heck yeah!” or “holy moly that’s aggressive!” and “Why would you ever consider this?!”. Either way, I try to not read with bias or judgement, but just react with thoughts as they come. There are some good examples of this on my annotations page . Lastly, I think it’s important to look where the reactions are strongest; this is usually a spot in the paper that will be useful to reference. It’s a piece that was actually interesting or meaningful and that’s why it provoked so many reaction. With the text marked up it is SO much easier to go back a second time and pluck the important pieces out of an annotated text. I completely agree with all of the suggestions made by Susan Gilroy in her section about how to interrogate texts. She does a great job explaining how to actively read and engage with the text as you read. One thing she addressed that I particularly liked was when she said you’ll eventually get into the habit of hearing yourself as questions and using them as a thread to explore. Active reading is incredibly rewarding and helps me deeply understand the material.
