“Readers usually grossly underestimate their own importance. If a reader cannot create a book along with the writer, the book will never come to life. Creative involvement: that’s the difference between reading a book and watching TV.
In watching TV, we are passive – sponges; we do nothing. In reading we must become creators, Imagining the setting of the story, seeing the facial expressions, hearing the inflection of the voices. The author and the reader ‘know’ each other; they meet on the bridge of words.” — Madeleine L’Engle, “Walking on Water: Reflections on faith and Art”
I came across this as I was cleaning the garage of old papers and magazines I have been keeping for years. That has been a travel in time and the source of many stories to come.
I saw this in my students. They had problems creating ‘images’ in their minds. I have seen this in myself. In some stories I create vivid images of people and places. But, in other books it is difficult. This may be why math is very difficult; what does one envision. As math becomes more complex so do the mental images. If we don’t nurture this ability to visualize complex and abstract ideas it is difficult to grasp the concept. At least that is the case for me. I didn’t understand this when I was in school; at any level. In the past decade this has become clear and my teaching experience made it abundantly clear.
I use ‘mind mapping‘ in an attempt to visualize ideas. But, I think this is not enough.
“In the case of good books, the point is not to see how many of them you can get through, but rather how many can get through to you.” ― Mortimer J. Adler