Text-to-text: This type of connection is made when we see something in a story that reminds us of something we read in another story. For example we were able to make connections between the way Axel behaved in "Cliff Hanger" and the way Mulan behaved as a character in "The Ballad of Mulan".
Text-to-world: This type of connection is when we are able to connect something we read with knowledge about something "real world". In the story "Something Beautiful" a young girl sees beauty in the very ugly world around her. Likewise, we may see beauty in surroundings that may not be seen as aesthetically pleasing.
Text-to-self: This is probably the most relevant type of connection that one can make. This is when we see ourselves or our life in a character or plot of a story. For example, I connect to Judy Blume's classic "Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing" because my own sons remind me of the two main characters Peter, and Fudge.
"The Keeping Quilt" is a favorite of mine because of the deep text-to-self connection I have with the story. My grandmother was a life-long quilter who made quilts for family and friends. Although she is no longer with us, my family has several beautiful quilts that help us feel comforted and close to her. Many of the scraps in her quilts were left-over scraps from shirts, dresses, and pajamas made for my sister, cousins, and myself. We look at Gramsey's quilts as not only bed coverings, but holders of memories passed.
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| Gramsey, Wesley, and Connor, December 2008 |
