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

No I didn't read ahead, even though I was a fast reader. Interesting question, though.

I did/do this and I have ADHD. No idea if it’s ‘normal’ though…

I just talk very fast in my head 😂
I see pictures in my head.
Reading is an interesting diversion from my head singing or chuntering away to itself.
This is why I have a bit of a MN issue. It fills my head wonderfully with constant varied stuff 😂

Totally normal. I did it. Now am English teacher, and I don't tend to teach that way, but if I do there are always students who do that.

Yes I remember thus and how nervous i used to be

I don’t u sweat and, do you not hear the words in your head as you read then? How do you know what it says? Although I also don’t get how you can’t picture a house. Do you not have any images in your head? How do you reply life events? This is so interesting.

I don’t understand*

Varied if I read ahead depending on how quickly the other person read
I am quite a quick reader though

I can read far quicker than anyone can talk. People reading out loud is such a painful way to get through a book. It's why I hate voicemails, they are a waste of my time.

I certainly read ahead.

I just sort of absorb the words. I definitely don’t ‘hear’ every single one.

and I don’t see anything in my imagination. It’s more like concepts and ideas. I’ve just sat here with my eyes shut trying furiously to picture an apple. Nope. I can taste it and smell it though.

I dream in full technicolour though, weirdly.

What if it is a person? Can you picture a relative or a celebrity? Or the Mona Lisa?

This.

We used to read The Hobbit, I loved it.😊

I always read much faster than most of my peers.

I’m an arts/maths person. I would have easily drifted off in the scenario you are explaining OP through lack of interest.

Nope. Just tried. I get flashes but I can’t see a picture at all.

I’m also a little bit face blind which is obviously linked. The amount of times I’ve not recognised someone I know really well when it’s out of context is embarrassing.

I remember it as ruining perfectly good stories, but it never occurred to me to read ahead and I was a bright child with a good reading age 😄

This baffles me. It’s crazy we’re all so different. Your dreams are like what I see every second of every day. I can reply scenes in my head as if they were happening all over again, and can picture anything at anytime.

I was and am a very fast reader and would get really bored by any ‘out loud’ or silent reading where we had to wait for everyone else to catch up. But I am also dyspraxic. So possibly my experience doesn’t help you.

I hated it. Couldn't focus or keep up. I was an excellent reader, but not a good listener 🤣

I do have ADHD, and I would zone out when people were talking. Still do. I miss so much.

@redbigbananafeet, me too. It amazes me how people think they are 'presenting' something when all they are doing is reading from the current slide, not summarising it or adding extra detail. I could easily read through it in about a third of the time, but no, we have to do it as it's training....

I hated it so much. I was a fast reader and heartily resented the slow pace that reading aloud forced on us all. I read ahead until the book was done and then just got lost in doodling. Now that I work with language teachers I advise them to use reading aloud very, very judiciously.

I can read so fast in my head but when I have to read aloud I panic, feel like I can’t read, stutter. It was awful at school, I used to dread English Literature when we had to read poems and paragraphs aloud to the class.

I hated the reading aloud because, much as I knew other children needed to become confident readers, I couldn't maintain any interest when they were painstakingly sounding out every word.

I used to keep my left index finger on the page the readers were following whilst I read on, moving my finger over when I heard 32 other pages turning - with The Hobbit, I reckon by the time the class had just about left Beorn and his bees, I was near enough at Durin's Day.

Worst of all, though, was when the teacher insisted upon reading a section and would mispronounce names, as it would grate on me so much, I'd have to pay attention rather than keep it ticking along in the back of my head.

I'm not much better now - I hate anything being read out loud and detest with every fibre of my being any online training where you can't read and click through to the next slide on the deck until the audio track - that I've already muted - has finished playing.

Life's too short to listen to words when I can see them in a fraction of the time.

I'm likely to be dyslexic and did not do this because I find reading hard but am otherwise quite bright