An introduction to student-led literature study Literature Circles An introduction to student-led literature study

Why Literature Circles? “Learning is not a spectator sport.” Teachers talk too much. Telling a student to think is like telling a student to fly. There can be no learning without discipline. The school that fails to teach thinking fails in everything. The student, not the teacher, is the primary agent of learning. If thinking were easy, there would be more of it. Students asking students real questions leads to life- long learning.

Purpose of Literature Circles Literature circles are student-centered, collaborative learning groups whose goals include developing independent thinking, reflective thinking and critical thinking, and increasing student understanding and enjoyment of literature. The ultimate goal of literature circles is to enable students to become life-long readers, and as a result, life-long learners.

Key concepts Independent Reading: Students will read and appreciate a literary work’s meanings independently, forming their own opinions and interpretations. Collaborative Learning: Students will discuss their impressions and interpretations of literature in order to deepen their understanding of literary themes, character development, vocabulary, and literature’s connections to real life.

Twelve Principles of Literature Circles First, students choose their own reading. Second, small, temporary groups are formed based on book choice. Third, different groups read different books. Fourth, groups meet for discussion on a regular, predictable schedule. Fifth, group members use written notes to guide both their reading and discussion. Sixth, discussion questions come from the students, not teachers or textbooks.

Twelve Principles (continued) Seventh, group meetings strive to become open, natural conversations about books. Eighth, students take on a rotating assortment of role tasks. Ninth, the teacher does not lead or participate in group discussions, but acts as a facilitator and observer. Tenth, evaluation is by teacher observation and student self-evaluation Eleventh, a spirit of fun about reading pervades the room. Twelfth, when books are finished, readers share with their classmates and then new groups are formed.

Key Roles: Discussion Co-Leaders For each scheduled group meeting, Discussion Co-leaders develop a list of 10 questions about the reading that promote group discussion. Questions created must be interpretive, not merely fact recall. Interpretive questions require readers to “read between the lines” and draw their own conclusions about an author’s meaning or intent. Discussion Co-Leaders may NOT ask evaluative questions (If you like something or not). Why two discussion leaders? Two brains and viewpoints provide more brainpower in formulating questions, more listening power for spontaneous follow-up questions, and increased group participation.

Key Roles: Characters Captain Responsible for listing major characters in the story. Gives a brief description of each character’s personality. Explains each character’s relationship to other characters in the story. As a novel progresses, the Characters Captain is responsible for introducing information about any changes in specific characters.

Key Roles: Passage Master The primary role of the Passage Master is to locate two or three key passages of the text that he/she thinks the group would like to hear read aloud. The role of the Passage Master is important because with each reading selection, he/she must identify passages that are interesting, powerful, funny, puzzling, or important to the development of the novel as a whole.

Key Roles: Wordsmith The Wordsmith identifies vocabulary words in advance that are especially important to the reading. The vocabulary selected may be confusing or unfamiliar, or familiar words that are repeated, used in an unusual way, or are important to the meaning of the text.

Key Roles: The Connector The Connector finds connections between the book and the world at large. The Connector asks evaluative questions of the group. Evaluative questions make reading relevant. These questions should connect reading to daily life, historical events, or people or problems with which the Connector is familiar. Occasionally, it is appropriate to have two Connectors to pose evaluative questions.

Requirements Discussion co-leader: must have a page number and a quote next to each question to justify and clarify the question. Character Captain: must have a page number and a quote next to description and relationship to other characters and/or changes as the novel progresses along with your analysis; you must discuss at least 5 characters each time. See me if this will be an issue. Wordsmith: this job will be paired with a discussion co-leader if there are only 4 or fewer group members. You must clearly explain each word’s importance to the author’s purpose.

Requirements Passage Master: Choose three important passages that are 1-3 pages long. This passage must be annotated by you for diction, tone, syntax, and other literary devices. Please make hard copies of the passages for me and your group members or make them available electronically. Connector Worksheet: You need to write 5 questions that relate to the real world or another text. For at least 3 of these, you need to include a hard copy of a text that shows the novel’s connection to the real world (i.e. news articles or other literary passages) or make it available electronically.

Key Roles: The Movie Critic (sometimes) This role only exists when a film version is used to follow-up discussion of a text. The Movie Critic’s role is to develop a list of at least five key differences between a work of literature and its interpretation on screen. Discussion should focus on whether changes made to a book’s screenplay improve or distort the author’s story. The critical question posed by the Movie Critic to the group is: Would the author agree with these changes? If so, why? If not, why not?

The Goal of Literature Circles Ultimately, the goal of Literature Circles is to create a culture of learning through reading. Student-led discussion promotes increased retention of literature. Student-led inquiry leads to a deeper comprehension of literature, as well as its values and applications to society as a whole (relevance).

Work Cited Moeller and Moeller, Victor J. and Marc V., Literature Circles That Engage Middle & High School Students. Larchmont, NY: Eye on Education, 2007. Print.