Literature Circles

What are Literature Circles?

 

It is a method of instruction in which students are given a chance to talk about a selected novel with their peers. Students facilitate the discussion. It is a very student-centered activity. Teachers take a very passive role. They are merely observers of what the students are doing. Teachers may participate in a literature circle, but only as an equal to the students. Students do everything from selecting the novel that they wish to read, to deciding how many pages of the novel are to be read by the next class meeting.

 

Roles

 

***The students rotate the roles throughout the course of the novel.

 

·        Discussion Director

o       This person develops discussion questions or topics that the group will explore during their discussion. The focus isn’t on the small details. It’s more about big ideas in the novel and the readers’ reactions to these ideas.

·        Literary Luminary (Passage Master)

o       This person selects passages from the text that he or she wishes to hear read aloud. These can be passages that are important to the novel or passages that are funny to be heard read aloud. It’s the Literary Luminary’s job to mark the passage and then indicate the reason for picking the passage.

·        Illustrator (Artful Artist)

o       This person draws some type of picture that is related to the novel. This picture can be metaphorical in nature or literal. It’s important that the Illustrator doesn’t “give away” the picture. The other members of the group should view the picture and discuss what they see in the picture, relating it to what they’ve read.

·        Connector

o       This person connects the novel to other resources, to the outside world, or the personal experiences. The connector can also relate the selected novels to other works by the same author.

·        Summarizer

o       This person summarizes the section of reading that was assigned from the previous day. It’s important that the summarizer touches upon the main points in the section of reading, so that the groups’ memories can be refreshed before beginning the Literature Circle for the day.

·        Vocabulary Enricher (Word Wizard)

o       This person looks for important or special words in the novel. These can be unfamiliar words, interesting words, or words that are important to the novel. The Vocabulary Enricher marks the word and page. He or she then looks up the word in order to provide his or her group with a definition during the Literature Circle.

·        Travel Tracer

o       If the group is reading a novel where the characters move around a lot, having a travel tracer is important. This person tracks the characters’ actions, including where the action begins and ends.

·        Investigator

o       This person researches background information about the novel. The information can be about the setting of the novel, the author of the novel, major issues discussed in the novel, or even music that reflects the novel or the time of the novel.

 

 

Resources:

 

 

The following is a list of resources that focus on Literature Circles:

·        LiteratureCircles.com (http://www.literaturecircles.com)

o       LiteratureCircles.com discusses all aspects of Literature Circles. Their goal is “to support conversation and idea-sharing among people who are exploring this important ‘best practice’ strategy.”

o       LiteratureCircles.com has a section called For Teachers where there are links to other information, such as:

§        Defining Literature Circles

§        Classroom Coaching: Ask a Colleague

§        Articles/ Video Clips

§        News and Events

§        Book Recommendations

o       LiteratureCircles.com also has a section called For Kids where there are links to other information, such as:

§        Book Reviews by Kids

§        Great Book Projects

§        Find a Discussion Partner

·        ABC Teach (http://www.abcteach.com/Reading/litcircles/litcirclestoc.htm)

o       This website has a number of printable worksheets that can be used during Literature Circles.

§        Literature Groups Planner: lists student jobs, session dates, etc worksheet

§        Literature Circle Notes: vocabulary word lists, questions, notes about the novel worksheet

§        Mark Those Words: vocabulary word worksheet

§        I Just Have to Ask These Questions: questions about the text worksheet

·        Education World (http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr259.shtml)

o       This website discusses a number of issues involving Literature Circles. There are nine sections on this webpage:

§        Defining Literature Circles

§        Discussion Roles

§        Teacher’s Role

§        Grouping-Heterogeneous or Homogeneous

§        Age Groups

§        Tool for At-Risk Students

§        Giving Students a Choice

§        Highly Adaptable Teaching Method

§        Other Literature Circle Resources

·        Web English Teacher (http://www.webenglishteacher.com/litcircles.html)

o       This website has a number of hyperlinks that will take visitors to websites about Literature Circles. These links include lesson plans, a website that discusses the 12 Ingredients of Literature Circles, tips on organization and process, the roles involved in Literature Circles, and handouts that can be used for Literature Circles.

·        Stenhouse (http://www.stenhouse.com/pdfs/0333ch01.pdf)

o       This website has a book for sale entitled Literature Circles: Voice and Choice in Book Clubs and Reading Groups by Nancy Daniels. The website has a hyperlink that allows visitors to read the first chapter (16 pages) of the book.