Reflective Essay On Reading Class

It was October of my seventh grade year and I found myself sitting in Ms. Keyes’ reading class. One Tuesday afternoon, Ms. Keyes put us in groups based on our reading levels and interests. What interested me the most were books that were suspenseful, full of action, and ones that moved at a fast pace with a colorful cast of characters. Her goal was to get me to enjoy reading again; she made that her personal mission. When I walked into her fifth period class, she had the desks in groups of six. She directed us to our stations where a pile of books awaited and were stacked in the center of each group. When I saw all of the books on each table, I sighed. I walked over to my assigned seat she had given me and plopped down. My first thought was how big and heavy this book appeared to be. I quickly flipped to the back of the book to see how many pages there were. When I saw the number 432, my mouth dropped open. There was no way that I was going to read a four hundred-page book, she must have been crazy. After turning the book back to the cover I saw the title I Am Number Four. The cover looked very intriguing with bright colors so I decided to check it out. When I opened the book, the musty smell hit me. It seemed to me that these books must have been trapped in a box and left in a closet for a few years. When I turned back to Ms. Keyes she saw the unhappiness in my eyes and she knew it was going to be a challenge to get me to read this book. She informed the class that each pod would be reading their assigned book, chapter by chapter. Each week we would have to write a reflection about what we read and discuss it with our groups. Her number one rule was that we were not allowed to go ahead and read faster than the other people in our group. I immediately slumped down into my chair, frustrated with what she had just said. I was a fast reader and I didn’t like to wait for anyone else. She told us all to pick up our books and to at least get through the first two chapters in class that day because we wouldn’t be able to take the books home. When I looked back to the book lying in front of me, I picked it up and flipped to the first page. As I started reading, I decided to give this book a try and if I didn’t like it, I would tell Ms. Keyes that it would be best if I moved to a different group. While reading chapter one, I saw how action packed it was from the start, hoping it continued throughout the story. I was drawn in immediately and felt like I was a character joining in on all of the battles. I was so interested that I couldn’t put the book down. As I continued, page-by-page, it seemed that I was watching a movie in my head. This book was so intense and I was definitely engaged. When I started on chapter three, my mind immediately blocked out all of the noise that surrounded me. I took a deep whiff of the comforting musty book smell that I had already begun to love and snuggled into my cozy …show more content…
(I’m sure it is partly because my mom is a teacher.) Our house literally has hundreds of books and magazines. However, I have gone through times in my life where I did not enjoy reading and writing. For instance, in elementary school I was required to read leveled books for the Accelerated Reader (AR) program. This started in Kindergarten where we would have books read to us and then go on the computer to take the comprehension tests associated with each book. There were “points” awarded for correct answers on tests. For this we would receive stickers to chart our progress. For me, this took the enjoyment out of reading. It was a task that I had to complete and I did not look forward to. My book selections were often limited to my “range” and I was not allowed to choose books outside of the range. I felt frustrated and