Literature Circles Picking a book to read … That may actually interest you!

What is it? A literature circle is a fancy way of saying you and three or four other people are going to read a book together. You will sometimes work on your own, sometimes you’ll work as a group, sometimes you’ll do a combination of both.

Why don’t we just read like a normal English class? Literature circles are a lot more fun, a lot more involved, and they allow a lot more freedom for assessment (meaning we can do other things aside from tests!).

Ugh, Ms. Simpson … Yes. Right now that packet is scary. It has a lot of pages. But don’t fret! You’ll be FINE.

No, seriously Ms. Simpson … You’ll be fine.

So what do we have to do? There will be group work, and individual work. Group work: In-Class Discussion/Double Entry Journals – Mar. 10 and Mar. 21 Group Presentations – Mar. 26 Individual work: Three Reading Guides – Due Feb. 25, Mar. 4, Mar. 17 Writing Assignment 1 – Mar. 10 Writing Assignment 2 – Mar. 25 Visual/Creative Cumulative Project – Mar. 26

So … How much do I do at home? You will have to read at home. You will be given SOME time in class, but you will be responsible for going home and reading some pages before each due date. Page 2 in the packet has all the days you need to be aware of, what page you need to read to, and how much should be completed on which dates.

Book Introductions So which book do you pick? Here’s a quick guide to each novel!

Divergent If you like books like The Hunger Games, you will love this novel! It is a futuristic, dystopian novel that follows Tris, a 16-year-old girl who must decide which faction she wants to be with. Does she stay with her faction, the faction that supports selflessness, or does she go somewhere else and betray her family? “Peter would probably throw a party if I stopped breathing.' 'Well,' he says, 'I would only go if there was cake.”

The Wave If you like stories from other historical time periods that are fun, interesting allegories, this will be a good one for you! It follows Laurie, a student at a California high school, and her teacher, Ben Ross, who conducts an experiment in fascism after he cannot answer a question from one of his history students. It turns into a movement no one can stop. “Maybe he was making a big deal out of nothing, but on the other hand, there had been that feeling, that group unity.”

Of Mice and Men If you like historical fiction, this is a great choice for you. This is an awesome classic by John Steinbeck. It follows two migrant farmers, George and Lennie, as they search for work during the Great Depression. It is tragic, and does contain some racist comments common to the era. It is still a phenomenal book. “Guy don't need no sense to be a nice fella. Seems to me sometimes it jus' works the other way around. Take a real smart guy and he ain't hardly ever a nice fella.”

Fahrenheit 451 This is another dystopian novel. Unlike Divergent, however, it is not as modern, but still interesting nonetheless. This novel presents a future American society where books are illegal, and firemen will burn any house that contains novels or books of any sort. “Why is it," he said, one time, at the subway entrance, "I feel I've known you so many years?" "Because I like you," she said, "and I don't want anything from you.”

To Kill a Mockingbird This is another classic that some of you may have heard of before. It follows Scout, a young girl, and her opinions on what’s going on in the world around her. It may involve her lawyer father, Atticus, defending a man on trial for rape … It may involve her creepy neighbor, Boo Radley … All of the story deals with the idea of what is fair and what is not. “Sometimes the Bible in the hand of one man is worse than a whisky bottle in the hand of (another)... There are just some kind of men who - who're so busy worrying about the next world they've never learned to live in this one, and you can look down the street and see the results.”

Book Speed Dating Today, you will do “book speed dating.” In the groups where you sit, you will pick up one of the five books, and will be given a few minutes to sample some of the pages. On page three in your packet, there is a speed dating sheet. You will fill this out as you go through each book. On the bottom, you will decide which three of the five books you liked the best, and why. Remember, you can be assigned ANY of those three books. Make sure they’re three you would read. Once the groups have finished, put your name on your packet and put it on the orange table. You will walk out with a book today!

Expectations The expectations are listed on page one, but if you need to know them again, here they are: You will read your book. Entirely. You will actively participate to the best of your ability. You will create unique, thoughtful projects. You will ask questions or stay after school if you are having difficulty with your novel. You will complete all assignments on time. You will give each assignment your best effort!