Saturday 4 February 2017

Oh, And?

Since we're talking about the (many) (probably unnecessary) paths my brain goes down, I think I've mentioned it before but reading is really weird.

I was reading the other night (I haven't been keeping up with the "book I'm reading" at the side of the blog, I'll probably delete it, especially since I'm currently re-reading books) when I started to think about it.

We look at lines and shapes that represent letters that are sort of sounds but really just symbols, and we then put together those sound shapes into words and those words make pictures in our minds and all of this happens (when one is able to read) without us really noticing.  We just... read.  Our eyes move across a page and we are *in* a story.  We are picturing things and following things and feeling things.... it's... magical.  It really is.

Reading is the strangest thing when you really think about it.

(PS  I just moved my fingers on a keyboard and "talked" to you and your brain and eyes.... heard it.  Dude!)

3 comments:

Jason Langlois said...

And then think about the fact that math is just a language, and that the numbers we use are arbitrary symbols to communicate concepts in short hand. Formulas are just sentences constructed out of commonly accepted symbols.

It's all just conventions in our heads to communicate with other people!

And, for what it's worth, I really really appreciate you taking the time to communicate with us.

Jonathan said...

It's been a huge privilege to see our kids make the leap from understanding letter forms, to reading, and comprehending. I have no idea how teachers do it.

Victoria said...

Thanks Jason. And oh man, I hadn't even started to think about math! D'oh!

It's pretty darn amazing, eh Jonathan? Crazy.