An ongoing theme in this guide is the need for practice but it is worth noting that effective practice requires two ingredients: consistency and reflection. Annotating a line here and there, writing bits and pieces of an essay and never finishing it, making a quotes bank that is half filled – none of these are signs of consistency. The more you engage with a poem, the more you learn about it. This is perhaps one of the most marvellous things about literature because there is always something to find, question, and think about. You just have to be willing to come back to it. Reflection is another vital skill to have. Even if you do have a hundred annotations for your sonnet, fifteen essays written in the span of a few days, a quotes bank that goes on for countless pages, you will not make as much as progress as the student who actively seeks for feedback from their teachers, peers, or even themselves. Once you finish a poem, an essay, or anything to do with studying more broadly, consider what you found useful, interesting, and meaningful, as well areas in need of improvement and further revision. It is when combine these two elements that you have yourself a recipe for success.
