Imagine sitting in English class. Your eyes are reading words, but your brain isn't making any sense of them. Then, your teacher calls on you to answer a question. You panic. And all that comes out of your mouth is "umm." 

I've seen this happen countless times in literature classes. Teachers ask questions, and students don't know how to respond. And it's not because students aren't paying attention. Oftentimes, it's simply because literature is hard and requires skills that students need to...