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 remember starting high school and us reading, "The Secret Garden" like this.

I'd been given the book as a present when I was 8 or 9 and as I didn't have many books I'd read and reread it numerous times.

I also spent the first 9 years of my life in Yorkshire.

The teacher kept getting me to read it because I didn't just read it but did the dialect words in the correct accent.

I'm dyslexic so normally hate reading out loud, if I read out loud it doesn't go into my head, it sort of bypasses.

Sometimes did this, with a finger in the book at the class page. Sometimes I'd have read the book already because the English lit book was handy when I was bored on the bus or waiting around at school, and instead would surreptitiously read my own book under the desk while keeping the class book open at the right page. I thought I was getting away with something at the time… looking back, I'm sure the teacher knew damn well what I was doing but didn't think it worth challenging.

I'm diagnosed with ASD and ADHD but I'm sure reading ahead must be pretty normal? Plenty of teenagers must be capable of reading a lot faster than speaking speed.

I don't think this is anything to do with ADHD tbh as very common. Why else do you think you have it?

I always read ahead, couldn't bear going at "read aloud" pace, it was so.slow.

sorry,should have said that I'm not ND

Yes this happened with us, the teacher really didn’t want us reading ahead.

my problem was I didn’t even realise I WAS reading ahead - one minute I was following the class, next thing I know I’m five pages ahead!

I think this is a technique for speed reading but surely you could read every word if you chose to

I think this is probably pretty normal though, especially for clever children. I always used to read the next few chapters of the textbook in lessons when the pace of the class was too slow, I thought that’s what half the class was doing.

OP - Reading in your head along with someone else reading out loud slowly is really bloody difficult. I struggle to do it when I’m helping DC with their reading books but I do try because obviously it’s important to see where they trip over. It takes an inordinate amount of willpower though!

We still do this
Some pupils go at their own speed and read ahead

Also reminding me of being incredibly bored in church and the only thing to occupy me was a choice between the bible or the hymn book.
I’d generally read the next few pages of the bible while a “reading” was happening. It was basically a choice between reading ahead or just trying to tune out the reading and trying to daydream which I’m not as good at. Dull hours!

I sometimes wish I didn’t!! As soon as I look at something I’ve read it. It sometimes feels invasive for eg if I go into someone else’s office I have to be careful where I look because if I so much as glance at their screen or some paperwork, the info has gone in. If it’s confidential, I feel bad about it.

Plus it’s balanced out by being completely shit with maths. I got mixed up counting 6 objects recently

Read ahead and got a rare bollocking at school when I didn't know where the class was when it was my turn to read out loud.

I remember thinking now cruel it was for kids who struggled to read.

Can you link to your post about reading out loud in your head I can't figure out if I do or not as I don't know what the alternative is 🤣 I also can't picture things in my head

We had to read the old fashioned Lamb's Shakespeare with all the rude bits taken out. It was excruciating but then we had a theatre group come in and perform various scenes. It was brilliant and changed my whole opinion of Shakespeare.

This would be my answer too. Not sure what it proves though. I suspect following along with the current reader would be more unusual. Is this supposed to prove something? Conformity?

Reading allowed was the worst thing that happened to me - I hated doing it myself but in a way it helped a lot listening to someone read and I could follow at the same pace. I have good memories of my sister reading Charlie and the Chocolate factory to me as a kid because I struggled so much. Even now, I love an audiobook and when I study I have a screen reader so I can read and have the words in the background.

The worst thing that happened to me (and I still remember this vividly to this day) was spelling tests. I remember I had practiced so hard but the words didn't go in, and the one time I got 1/10. I was in year 4, so 9 years old and whilst the class was working away chatting, moving around the teacher sudden yelled "PUDDLE! DID YOU EVEN LOOK AT YOUR SPELLINGS THIS WEEK?!" I said yes and she cut me off and screamed "NO YOU DID NOT! DO NOT LIE TO ME!" She gave the test to another pupil to give to me with a big 1/10!8' red, and he came along shaking his head at me. The whole class laughed.

Flip sale, wasn't the worst**

Sake!!! That's autocorrect not dyslexia 😂😂😂

I usually read ahead. Never could understand the point of making everyone go at the same pace, especially as one of my teachers would always pick the slowest readers to read aloud. Why not let those that can read faster actually enjoy the book?? Ask questions afterwards to make sure they've actually read it!

Anyway. OP I think you can safely cross this one off your list. I think it maybe worth having a look at the diagnostic criteria for ADHD and if possible see if you have your old school reports. They will suggest things like "could try harder" "has potential" "doesn't hand in homework" etc.

ironically when I was in secondary school I thought I did really well, but when I read back through my reports recently even at secondary there was a lot of comments about effort, daydreaming, homework standards and the classic "so much potential if she just tried harder!" It was hard reading them back. But I passed exams to an acceptable standard so nothing was ever done about it. I think you also need to instead look for things that "could be adhd" think of things that you struggled with at school/home/work in the past. Did you miss bits of information because you were too busy chatting or daydreaming? Fidgety? Not do homework until the last minute of at all? Etc.

I always hated this! Yeah I definitely read ahead. I'm naturally a very fast reader and enjoy reading things in my head so I can give characters different voices and read dramatically in situations.. no idea if this is normal however 😂 I don't like audio books for that reason, they're usually very monotone and there's never much emotion behind the reading

Always used to read ahead.

And I have always struggled with reading aloud because I speed read and you just can’t speak that fast, my brain won’t engage with my mouth that quickly.

My school insisted I couldn’t actually read. I could. The argument went on for years until one teacher pointed out that I obviously could read if I could relay exactly what I had just read back perfectly and could comprehend it all. And I could also write perfectly. I’m in my 40s and I atill
can’t get my head around them insisting I couldn’t read at all!

I was thinking about this recently- we used to have to read out loud when we were at school aged 10 and 11.
I'm also a very fast reader and found it so boring reading at the speakers pace so I was always pages ahead.
I was never chosen to read out loud and I never knew why - my classmates thought it strange that I was never asked and it did single me out.

However, with hind sight, I think the teacher obviously knew I was pages ahead and obviously reading it and enjoying the books which was possibly why I was never asked?

I used to refuse to participate in these classes. No reading ahead just no reading at all.

There is a special circle of hell reserved for those people and their PowerPoints 😄

I always read ahead, used to hate having to share a book as was a fast reader.