A post about reading...

This started out as a post about a book I've recently read, but I realized my intro turned into a tangent about reading. I decided, however, that what I was saying about reading was too important and I should make it into its own post...

My summer reading this year has admittedly been a little slow. I've noticed my reading patterns each year follow the same trajectory: I'm hard-core from January-April, and then I typically get into a slump during May and June, and pick up a little bit in July and August. I will slow down a bit in October, but then end the year strong in November and December.

I use the Goodreads app to track my reading, which helps motivate me because I can see my progress through their annual Reading Challenge. In 2017, my goal was 30 books... and I reached that mid-November, ultimately reaching 37 before year's end. So this year I set my goal at 40, but when I hit 25 by April, I upped my goal to 50. Currently I've made it through 36, so I'm well on track to the finish line.

I want to tell you about my most recent read, but first I want to address the elephant in the room. You are probably right now thinking "How on Earth does she have time to read that much??" or "Boy, I'd like to read too but I just don't have the time."

One of the saddest things I've discovered about teaching AP English: my students often tell me about how they used to love to read in Elementary or Middle School. Honestly, at some point most of you must've been voracious readers; if you weren't, you wouldn't have built your skills enough to be in AP English. My students always say, "I used to read all the time but now in High School I've just got too much else to do between homework and sports and extracurriculars and my job."

I used to feel that way, too. I've always been a reader, but during college and during my first few years teaching, I didn't read anything for fun anymore. And at one point I got really sad because I realized I never got to do this thing that I loved. I realized that reading for pleasure was so important to my mental well-being and I longed to be able to get that joy again.

And there is a simple, honest answer to how I started reading more again: I decided to. I made a very conscious, very deliberate decision to allow myself time to read. I knew it was important, as important as anything else I was doing, and it warranted allowing myself time to do it without feeling guilty.

I think that I had been thinking, and I bet you do too, that reading wasn't as necessary as everything else on my plate. I was viewing it as this "want to do" instead of a "need to do." Once I convinced myself that there was value to doing it, I never looked back.

It's not that I have more time than you, or fewer responsibilities. I just decided that I would make time for what I valued, even if it was only 15 minutes a day that I spent with a book instead of mindlessly scrolling through the day's social media updates. And from that, I built it back into a habit, something that I just do automatically whenever I can.

I can't describe how happy I've been since I started reading regularly again. My brain is always active, and I'm always wanting more. I get excited about what I might discover, whether that's pushing the boundaries of my understanding of the world, or just pure brain-candy.

This is such an English-Teacher-y thing to say, but reading widely is truly the single best thing you can do to get better at reading, writing, and thinking. It doesn't always have to be "the classics" or something super difficult; heck, I've read several graphic novels this year and each one of them pushed me out of my comfort zone and taught me something despite being considered by some to be "only a comic book." I read YA, I read nonfiction and memoir, I re-read Harry Potter, I read professional development books, and I read horribly-written romance novels. Anything that engages your brain will help you become a stronger thinker and build your background knowledge, which will lead to success in this course and college.

I've been trying for years to figure out how to encourage more independent reading among my AP students because I truly believe it's the most important thing we can do. Unfortunately, I refuse to give "points" on mindless assignments just to ensure you do it. That's not my style. I will continue to struggle with this, and maybe will implement an idea or two during the year, but consider this blog post to be my first nudge to you, that will hopefully get one or two of you to pick up more books than you usually do.