Synthesis #1

The first few weeks in AP lit have been interesting. I feel that all of my lit classes thus far have really been a joke, an easy A, and not serious. Last year my class completely skipped annotation because people said they were having a hard time with it. So, it is refreshing to have a class that will actually challenge me, and has already. I like how we have several different elements of  different classes at play here. We are doing note taking on our own time, group discussions, and blog work. This class appeals to a lot of different learning styles which is good. My learning style is more of a "see it, learn it." So i like that we have the AP to refer back too and add to our notes in class.
In class we have spent our time learning about DIDLS. At first, i wondered how much time we could spend on what seemed like a topic of little importance. Then, However, I realized that this is the basis of Literature. You must be able to understand work to analyze it, and this is what DIDLS is all about. DIDLS is about looking at what might be considered the minuscule elements of the authors writing, and interpreting them to use toward a greater understanding of meaning. After learning how to properly start to use these techniques, i wonder how much i have missed in passed readings. I have started to pull the information we learned in class, not only for assignments but for pleasure reading as well. I now feel that i am understanding literature at a much deeper level than i was before.
This is the first year i have taken AP classes, so i was unfamiliar to the timed essay writing. I was very nervous when i heard we had our first in class essay and did not think i would do well. And while that was somewhat true, i realized that i did do something things well, like finishing. Grading my own essay was also very helpful, because i got a better understanding of what i need to write. I was able to see what i did well, and what i needed to work on and how i could improve it. I am now looking forward to our next essay, to see if i can implement those improvements.
Im looking forward to see what else this class has to offer, cant wait! :)
~Dana Page