Types of Reading Aloud

By: Brandi Garretson

Types of Reading Aloud

There comes a time in everyone’s high school career when they are asked to read aloud. It happens often enough that there are certain members of the class that distinguish themselves. This time is always made more fun by the fact that you can choose who you want to read. (We always called it popcorn.) Whether you are a bad reader, a good reader, or somewhere in between, you are inevitably called on to read.

The first is, of course, the Actor. This person is almost always involved in theater or spring play. They are dramatic. The person that comes to mind is the person that always insists on being either Romeo or Juliet. The Actor is intense. They aren’t just reading the play. They are living it, breathing it. The Actor is Romeo or Juliet. They are only capable of a dramatic rendition. You know, no matter what I say about the Actor, it wouldn’t be freshman-year English class without an argument about Romeo and Juliet and a cry from the Actor that the class is butchering the dialogue.

Next, is Tongue-Tied Timmy. Now, I have to say it. There is always that student that just cannot read out loud. It doesn’t matter if this person is the smartest person in the school. If they can’t read aloud, they can’t read aloud. There is no question. This person almost always happens to be the victim of a cruel popcorn reading joke. This person gets picked on when the class wants to slow the reading down to avoid homework. (Although it usually doesn’t work.)

This brings me to my final type of reader, the Bully. This person is the one who picks on not-so-great readers. This person picks on the terrible readers, the dramatic retellers, and even the kids that are good at reading. In retrospect, popcorn reading is never really a good time. It’s cruel to make students read aloud, especially when there is a Bully. However, it’s a rite of passage. Everyone’s got to get picked on by the Bully at least once. And to all the Bullies out there: please be patient. Everyone knows that Tongue-Tied Timmy is a bad reader. Even he knows, but there is no excuse to pick on someone who can’t help how they read out loud.

All in all, reading out loud is just an unfortunate time for everyone. (I was always an advocate for reading alone.) It’s unfortunate for the kid that dramatically “performs” the play, it’s unfortunate for those of us who are tongue-tied and can’t even talk during a normal conversation, and it’s unfortunate for the teacher, who has to put up with the class moving at a glacial pace. Next time, just tell your teacher to look up a free Audiobook. It really does save everyone.