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Cindy Adams |
Literature Circle Strategies
for High School Classrooms
Harvey Daniels inspired a multitude of teachers in the early 90s with his literature circle strategies. Click here to see all of Daniels' available books.
Over the last 11 years, I have experimented with literature circles in my middle school and high school English classes and adapted strategies as I learned more about my students, about teaching, and about literature circles. From 1999-2001, I presented several regional and national workshops on literature circles. Here is a link to the L-O-N-G handout from that workshop. It is filled with writing ideas to use as extensions for literature circles.
Since 2002, I have been very successfully using Jim Burke's adaptations of the literature circle role sheets found in his book THE ENGLISH TEACHER'S COMPANION . Burke also has an excellent and comprehensive web site with the actual lit circle role sheets available online. Click here to visit it
Writing in the Round:
Writing Strategies for Literature Circles
Cindy Adams
Capstone Writing Project, June 2001
Mobile Bay Writing Project, May 2000
“Motion is not progress.” –Dr. Jeff Golub,
January 2000
"Readers must
analyze and think, producing their own understanding, not simply remember
information provided by teacher or textbook." --Robert E. Probst, 1994, English
Journal
"Writing is
both a process of doing critical thinking and a product communicating the
results of critical thinking." --John
Bean, 1996, Engaging Ideas
Goals for
Student Interaction with Texts and Writing Materials:
q
Students will learn about
others
q
Students will learn how
texts operate, how they shape our thought and manipulate our emotions
q
Students will learn about
cultures and societies, their varying concepts of the "good life," of love and hate, justice and revenge, good and evil, and other
significant issues of human experience
q
Students should learn how
context shapes meaning
q
Students should learn about
the processes by which they make meaning out of literary texts
q
Students will
effectively use a variety of writing strategies to encourage reading
comprehension, critical thinking, and communicate their understanding of texts to
others
--Probst, 1994
How to Help
Students Accomplish These Goals:
ü
Invite them to respond to
the text through writing and discussion and graphic representations
ü
Give students time to shape
their responses and gain confidence in them
ü
Find links among student
responses
ü
Invite discussion and
writing about self, the text, others,
and society
ü
Look back to other texts,
discussions, and writing and forward to what students might
read next, what they might write tomorrow
How
To Set Up Literature Circles
Best
Time of Year for Literature Circles:
Literature Circles work well ANY time of the year.
Honestly, though, I use them the last six
weeks of school. The students feel
confident of the "safety" of the
classroom environment as a place for writing and reading analysis by then.
Students and teachers are ready for a change of pace at that point in the
school year.
Offering literature circles at
this point helps me, as a professional, to "fill-in-the-blanks" for
college preparatory high school students. Because
of potential censorship issues, a lot of books are unofficially "off
limits" for use as whole class books.
Literature circles allow small groups of students to self-select books
such as Grapes of Wrath and
A Lesson before Dying, get parent
permission to read them, and then set off to explore the more contemporary or
mature books that otherwise never grace a classroom setting where a teacher is
close by to help with questions and interpretations.
Forming
Groups:
Literature Circles can be formed by students themselves agreeing upon a
book to read, but teacher-chosen groups prevent problems such as the students no
one wants in their group getting excluded, off-task behavior, and groups formed
with all high or all low ability students.
I ask students to give me the names of several students (both male and
female) in the class that they would work well with.
I look these over and form groups so that everyone has at least one
person they asked for. It takes
time, but makes for stronger groups.
Literature circles with 3-5 members work
well.
Choosing
Books:
Before announcing the groups, I give book talks to
arouse interest in the titles I've chosen.
I ask everyone to list their 1st, 2nd, and 3rd choice.
Then I announce the group members and ask them to compare their choices
with others in the group and come to an agreement.
I usually offer 2 more
choices than the number of literature circles I am planning to form.
If I am planning for 5
literature circles, I usually offer 7 books in book talks.
Offer books that have a strong plot, several characters, imagery and
figurative language, strong vocabulary words, a strong climax, and
at least one theme.
If I have a mixed group of abilities on the middle school or high school
level, I always offer at least one Young Adult fiction selection as a choice
even though my school is heavily oriented towards "classics."
The shorter length and simpler plot line helps encourage reluctant and
slower readers.
Preparing
Students for Literature Circles
Advance preparation
is crucial! Literature circles are most successful when students have been
prepared for the various roles and the meeting procedures.
Prior to the first meeting of the groups, you will want to go over:
1.
an
explanation of each role you will be using
2.
how to
write fat questions
3.
how to
choose appropriate passages
4.
summarizing
a chapter
5.
how to
write an excellent sentence for a vocabulary work
Prior to starting the novels, my classes practice with short stories or
picture books. The entire class reads the story, then they practice all of
the roles we'll be using. We
discuss various questions and passages the students find, then write about them
in the journals. It may take several short stories before the class feels
comfortable with the system.
It is beneficial to practice the skills of summarizing chapters, writing
fat (higher-order level) questions,
and choosing passages in a text BEFORE I
start a rotation of literature circles. To
practice these skills, the entire class reads the same novel.
A common reading helps the less able students hear good questions and
passages that stronger students have come up with.
In addition, the more summarizing students do, the better summarizers
they become.
Organization:
The more organization a teacher puts into the
program, the better the literature circles run. I do the following:
¨
provide a
two pocket folder with brads for each group, labeled with the title of the book
¨
provide a
sheet for role assignments, which students fill out to show the rotating roles
¨
provide a
sheet of reading assignments for particular days. I usually allow each group to decide on the number of pages to be read for
each class session, but I give the class a (tentative) date by which I want the
entire novel completed. This helps
all the groups to finish about the same time.
¨
if you
choose the vocabulary words for each segment of reading, provide a list of these
for each folder
¨
provide a
Daily Group Record Sheet to each group for self-evaluation of the roup members
¨
I
include a simple research project (usually internet-based) for each novel
¨
each
folder usually contains several writing ideas.
Literature circle members may choose from the list. Some choices will be individual; some will need the
cooperation of the entire group. These
are due the last day of the unit.
¨
you may
want to include a listing of possible journal topics or assignments to give variety to the journal writing
|
Parent Permission Slip (this
slip becomes the first sheet in a student's journal for the novel) Dear Parents, This quarter
your student has a choice of novels to read as we begin small group
literature circles. Your
student, ____________________________________, has elected to read
the novel ____________________________________ .
Please discuss this book selection with your student and perhaps
visit a library or bookstore to preview the novel.
Please sign this permission slip to let me know that
you give permission for your
student to read the novel.
Sincerely,
Teacher's
Signature Parent
Signature: ______________________________
Date: ____________ |
Role and Page Assignments
Novel Title: ______________________________
Lit
Circle Meeting # 1:
Date: ________ Read Pages: __________
Discussion
Director: _____________________________
Summarizer:
_____________________________
Vocabulary
Reporter: ___________________________
Passage
Master: ______________________________
Lit
Circle Meeting # 2:
Date: ________ Read
Pages: __________
Discussion
Director : _____________________________
Summarizer:
_____________________________
Vocabulary
Reporter: ___________________________
Passage
Master: ______________________________
Lit
Circle Meeting # 3:
Date: ________ Read
Pages: __________
Discussion
Director : _____________________________
Summarizer:
_____________________________
Vocabulary
Reporter: ___________________________
Passage
Master: ______________________________
Lit
Circle Meeting # 4:
Date: ________ Read
Pages: __________
Discussion
Director : _____________________________
Summarizer:
_____________________________
Vocabulary
Reporter: ___________________________
Passage
Master: ______________________________
Lit
Circle Meeting # 5:
Date: ________ Read
Pages: __________
Discussion
Director: _____________________________
Summarizer:
_____________________________
Vocabulary
Reporter: ___________________________
Passage
Master: ______________________________
Lit
Circle Meeting # 6:
Date: ________ Read
Pages: __________
Discussion
Director: _________________________
Passage Master: ______________________
Summarizer:
___________________________
Vocabulary
Reporter: _________________________
Discussion
Director
Name:
______________________________________
Book: _________________________
Assignment:
page ________ to page ________
Literature Circle's Name: _____________
Your
job is to develop a list of questions that your group can discuss about this
part of the novel. Your questions should be ones which require thought and get everyone talking
and sharing their opinions and reactions.
The best discussion questions come from your own thoughts, feelings, and
concerns as you read. Do NOT write
questions that call for a simple "yes" or "no" answer or a
factual detail !
Order for Leading Your Group Discussion
ü
Call
on the Summarizer to read the summary.
ü
Pose
each one of your questions to your group for discussion
ü
Ask
for each member of your group to state their comment/questions about this
section of the novel.
Lead your
group
in response to what each person says.
ü
Call
on the Passage Master.
ü
Call
on the Vocabulary Reporter.
ü
You
fill out the Group Record sheet, with input from your group members
ü
After
discussion is completed, assign roles for your next reading and make sure
everyone gets a new role sheet,
including
absent members.
ü
Call
the teacher over. Be ready to discuss items on the Group Record sheet.
Discussion Questions or Topics for Our Lit Circle:
1.
__________________________________________________________________________
2.
_________________________________________________________________________
3.
__________________________________________________________________________
4.
__________________________________________________________________________
5.
__________________________________________________________________________
6.
__________________________________________________________________________
Types
of Questions:
What did you think about......? (name a
specific event, action, or character's action)
Why do you think that.......?
What do you think will happen......?
(ask for predictions of events and
characters' actions)
What is happening at the part
where.......?
What do you think ______________
(event/incident) means?
Passage Master
Name:
______________________________________
Book: _________________________
Assignment:
page ________ to page ________
Literature Circle's Name: _____________
Locate 3
passages of the story that your group should reread, discuss, and think about.
ü
Passages
should be important things for everyone to
notice, remember, or think about.
ü
Choose
a variety of passages, not all the
same type--here are suggestions:
·
surprising/startling
·
confusing
(something you wonder if other people "got")
·
descriptive
writing: figurative language, strong verbs, etc. (identify literary devices)
·
important
(maybe a clue? foreshadowing?)
·
controversial
event (elicits different opinions from group members)
During Your Group Meeting, Do the Following:
1.
Make sure everyone opens to the
right page and help them find where the passage begins.
2.
Either read it aloud yourself,
have everyone read it silently, or ask someone to read it.
3.
Tell
your reasons for selecting each passage; ask for comments. Do they agree with your choices?
Page _______ Paragraph(s) ______ The
first 3 words of the paragraph are: _________________________________
This is interesting (or puzzling)
because:
An interpretation that can be made from another passage, found
on Page _________, Paragraph
_______ is
because
In today's reading, a tie-in to my experience and/or knowledge
appears on Page _________, Paragraph ______ and is
Summarizer
Name:
______________________________________
Book: _________________________
Assignment:
page ________ to page ________
Literature Circle's Name: _____________
Your job is to prepare a brief summary of today's reading. The other members of your
group will be counting on you to
give a summary that conveys the key points, the main highlights of today's
reading assignment. It is a good
idea to jot down the main events on scratch paper before you complete this form.
Be sure to write your summary in
complete sentences !
When you have finished your summary, give this section a short
title--something that captures the main idea.
My Title for the Section:
_______________________________________________________________________
Summary:__________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________(finish
on back of sheet if necessary)----------->
My comment or question about this part of
the book is: ____________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
My group agreed that my summary was
complete and accurate _______yes
________ no (if no,
add what is missing on the back of the sheet)
Word
Reporter
Name:
______________________________________
Book: _________________________
Assignment:
page ________ to page ________
Literature Circle's Name: _____________
Your job is to
look up definitions to the words you are given, (or find unknown words on
your own if no vocabulary list is provided), and create an excellent sentence
using each.
During
the Lit Circle Meeting, Do the Following:
1.
Make sure everyone in your group copies down each word and definition on
their vocabulary sheet
2.
Together create a new sentence and write this on your vocabulary sheet
3.
Make sure the teacher checks the group's sentence for accuracy
1.
Word: _____________________________________
Page _________ Paragraph ________
Sentence from the book:
____________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
The
definition is: :
____________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
My
excellent sentence is: :
____________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
2.
Word: _____________________________________
Page _________ Paragraph
________
Sentence from the book:
____________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
The
definition is: :
____________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
My
excellent sentence is: :
____________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
3.
Word: _____________________________________
Page _________ Paragraph
________
Sentence from the book:
____________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
The
definition is: :
____________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
My
excellent sentence is: :
____________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
My comment or question about this part of
the book is: ____________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
Daily Group Record Sheet
Name:
______________________________________
Book: _________________________
Assignment:
page ________ to page ________
Literature Circle's Name: _____________
Following the group meeting, the
Discussion Director will complete this form with the help of the group members.
1. Two topics which generated the most discussion today were:
2. As a group, we agreed one of the most important or intriguing passages in this section was about:
(this may or may not be one that the Passage Master selected)
3. Group Participation Today: (1)
means beginning (2) means
developing (3) means focused (4) means
exemplary
|
Member's
Name |
Completed
Reading |
Contributes relevant
info |
Listens
to group members |
Fulfills
duties |
|
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Remember to give this sheet to the teacher before
leaving today.
Integrating Writing Strategies with Literature
Circles
Thousands
of books are available as choices for literature circles.
Developing a variety of literature circle activity folders can be
overwhelming unless the teacher has a bank of
generic writing ideas that will work with a wide range of novels.
Here is bank of writing activities that will work for many literature
circles.
1.
Daily Journal Sheets: that chart the progress and critical thinking of
the small group and its
members. All groups
complete these with every book. (See attached "role" sheets)
2. Wordsplash: to introduce a work to students. After small groups speculate on the reason those particular words appear together, ask them to predict the story that the words might tell (1 side, 1 page). You can also ask a literature circle group to design a wordsplash for the NEXT literature circle that will read this novel.
3. Mandalas: after students read a story, chapter, poem, or novel, ask them to draw a picture that represents the images and feelings and characters of what they just read on a circular piece of paper. Do this before discussion. Often times, this activity will help students to crystallize their thoughts on a piece. After drawing, ask them to write just one sentence explaining the drawing. After small group sharing of the drawings, ask them to write 7 sentences explaining the story and its significance. Fran Claggett's book Drawing Your Own Conclusions, explains this strategy in great detail. This is a first step of that strategy
4. Main Idea or Theme Posters: Ask each small group of readers to choose the main ideas and events of the novel they are reading. My favorite time for using this activity is the middle of a long novel or about 3/4 of the way through a novel when you want to make sure all the students are "caught up" in their understanding of the novel. On the high school level, I might ask for 20-25 of the most important events that have happened