Was it normal to do this as a child?

[FaffingChampion]

Do you remember having lessons where everyone took it in turns to read a page aloud from the same book?

If so, we’re you able to follow along at the pace of the person reading, or did you find yourself involuntarily tuning out the person reading and reading ahead at your own pace?

I’m trying to get an ADHD diagnosis and am sifting through childhood experiences trying to figure out what’s normal and what isn’t.

YABU - this is a totally typical thing for children to do
YANBU - no, I never did this or I did this and am/suspect I am neuro divergent

I imagine most children do this.

I'm not sure how to vote with the way you've worded the yabu yanbu but I would have read ahead and tuned the kid out... I was a bit of a bookworm and was way ahead of my peers with my reading though so I think that's probably part of it. So I'd have read ahead then daydreamed.

ya I

Yabu. I always used to read ahead lol!

Read ahead, tuned out, don't consider myself ND, I thought most people did this?

You read silently faster than you read aloud, so I imagine lots of children got a bit ahead.

We had to do this but I always read ahead, no ADHD I just liked reading.

God yes, it was monumentally boring. Always read ahead.

Normal for me. Couldn't tell you about anyone else.

I just remember it as a terrible way to read a book. You'd get the one that read really really fast so all the words blended in to one vs the monotone voice one who read slow slow sloooooooooow.
If you didn't like reading aloud you would spend the whole time worrying "is it my turn yet" rather than concentrate on the story. Somebody would do silly voices so everyone would just giggle and again you couldn't concentrate on the story.
Daft way to read a book.

Yeah my family read ahead. I’d say it’s a sign of intelligence/ fast reading, not SEN.

Was annoying when the teacher suddenly called on me to read and I was like “Eek where exactly are they in the book.”

What a weird system it was. Made me loathe some classic novels.

This

I totally did this!

Absolutely read ahead.

Although I had a weird realisation in conversation with DH years ago; taking about why he is a slow reader and I’m a fast one. He reads in his head as though he’s reading out loud. This blew my mind. I posted here about it and it was 50/50 people who read normally 🤣 and people who say every word in their head like they’re reading aloud.

I am also one of those people who doesn’t see images in their head (aphantasia) like if you said picture a house I’d be describing the house to myself rather than seeing it if that makes sense. I think the two things are linked.

You read faster in your head than out loud. I also do this when listening to PowerPoint presentations at work where poor presenters just read out an overly annotated PP, all the while thinking "Just shut up and let us read it."

I would always read ahead - I can’t do anything at all at someone else’s pace. I do probably have ADHD but it sounds like most people did this so not necessarily connected.

Always read ahead.

I would count how many kids until my turn then go to the page which would be mine and read that so i wouldnt be caught out unexpectedly about a word i couldnt read. In the mean time id have no idea what was going on as id be too busy practicing my page to listen what was being read.

OK that is pretty emphatic that it’s normal! Will scratch that off my list!

He reads in his head as though he’s reading out loud. This blew my mind. I posted here about it and it was 50/50 people who read normally 🤣 and people who say every word in their head like they’re reading aloud.
That must be a huge deterrent to reading for enjoyment! I read 100 times faster in my head, can skim a page and get the gist in seconds.

Same here. I read ahead but usually managed to keep track of where the others were up to so I could read the right bit when it was my turn. Usually but not always.

I usually finished the class book within a day or so of being given it and found the class read-around excruciating. We had one teacher who asked us not to read ahead, but she didn't say it until the next lesson and it was too late for me. I never confessed and had to write various pieces pretending I had no idea what the outcome would be...

Um because you don’t read aloud at the same pace you read in your head. Imagine listening to someone reading out loud as fast as they could read. Everyone slows it down for the listeners’ benefit obvs.

I'm a fast reader. I could generally track back efficiently to the bit that everyone else was on when it was my time to read. It could be tedious doing group reading as it could be painfully slow.

I also used to secretly read other sections of text books from different chapters to the ones we were studying. I got a balanced education in the end, even if it wasn't in the official order.

I was a doodler. My teachers knew I was listening because I'd answer questions Hermione style although my written work was more Ron Weasley.

DS is very ND.
I do wonder if there is more neurodiversity in the family...

We used to do this and it bored me silly, as I was always reading ahead and would lose track of the painfully slow progress. One of those things I vowed I would never inflict on a class when I became a teacher.