Week 8 Reading Diary: Assessment

In re-reading the reading diary instructions, I noticed that it said that reading diary posts would differ in length each week depending on how much I liked the reading unit and my reactions to it. I found this really reassuring because some weeks I don't have very much to say, and other weeks I have comments on almost every story.

Typically, when I'm writing, I write about the most positive things like endearing characters, exciting plots, or clever prose. I also focus on negative things like confusing story elements and characters I dislike. In this way, I think I can quickly form opinions about the individual stories.

As far as reading diary tips, I would say that having the reading and your blog post open at the same time is the most effective use of your time. That way when you have comments, you can write them down then instead of trying to remember everything after you finish reading.

While I'm writing my reading diary, I keep notes on which stories I might want to write my storytelling post from. This way, I don't have to skim through all the stories on Wednesdays to remember which ones were my favorites. It also gets me thinking a day or two in advance about how I want to retell the story.

I do like to include quotes when the writer has said something better than I can. Sometimes the descriptions or dialogue really stand out to me.

Often times, a story from the Chinese or Japanese units will remind me of what I consider an American fairytale. I've saw versions of Little Red Riding Hood and Rapunzel last week.

Compared to my other classes, I would say I remember the readings better than I remember more academic readings. I think this is normal because humans think in the form of stories. We remember stories much better than we remember obscure facts.