Literature Circles/

Reading Circles/

Book Club

To Kill A Mockingbird

Literary Explorations

What are literature circles?

Literature Circles are small groups of students who meet together to talk about books they have read.

How does it work?Each member of the group has a job with certain responsibilities.If the group is to work effectively, each person must do his or her job.Participation and self-control are important ingredients in successful Literature Circles.

When: Chapters 4-9

Who: All students in groups of 5 or 6

Where: Read at home; discussion in class

Roles

You will have a different role for each of the 3 days to start with. Your goal is to find the one you are most comfortable with and that is easiest for YOU.

Discussion DirectorYour job is to develop a list of questions that

your group will want to discuss about the piece. Don’t worry about the small details; your job is to help people talk over the big

ideas in the reading and share feelings. Usually the best questions come from your

own thoughts and ideas as you read.

Sample question starters:

Who, what, where, when, why, how.

Questions cannot be answered with yes or no.

Connector Text Connector

Your job is connect the text to something in life or another text. Does this story remind you of

anything? Does it remind you of another book?

Text Connecto

Summarizer

Your job is to write a brief summary of the story. That means that you are retelling the key points in a shorter version. Include the main ideas, but leave out small details.

Vocabulary Enricher

Write down words the author used that you think are especially interesting or vivid. Use a dictionary to find

word meanings. When your group meets, help your group members talk about the words you have chosen.

.

Illustrator

Your task is to create a “picture” related to the reading and/or to your experience within the reading.

What “Big Picture” is the author creating with the characters, conflict or the setting?

Literary Luminary(aka Powerful

passages)Your job is to pick parts of the piece that you want to

read aloud to your group. You might choose a: - Good Part - Interesting Part - Confusing Part - Funny Part -

Important Part - Surprising Part - Scary Part - Good Description

Evaluation is by teacher observation and student

self-evaluation.

This is what I envision the day to look like:

•Mrs. B gives 5 minute intro

•Get books, packets, and sheets out.

•Discussion director asks the group if there’s any questions or comments from last night’s reading. If so, discuss them! (That’s what this whole thing is about!) If not:

•Discussion director asks questions he/she has written and poses them to the group. Various members respond in a Socratic seminar fashion. You may get through all 5, or you may only get to 1 and that leads to tangents.

•If time, choose and discuss: 1 vocab, 1 passage, illustration and make sure all agree on beginning, middle, and end. Remember to ask: why did you choose that word?

•Last 8 minutes: Wrap up, reorganize and give out roles for tomorrow and go back to seat.

Traits of Good Book Club Members

Do the reading

Listen to other people

Have good ideas

Ask people questions

How will I be graded?

I will grade your worksheets everyday for 10 points. No

halfsies.

I will visit your groups and assess how your academic

ideas. I have a rubric you will get a grade for.

Monday – Intro, Meet groups, get organized and read

Tuesday – Discuss Chapter 4 ; start 5

Wednesday – Discuss Chapter 5; start 6

Thursday – Discuss Chapter 6; quiz over 4-6

What if I’m absent or didn’t read? Absent: Since you know the reading schedule, you are

expected to keep up with it. In order to earn your points back for not having a “role”, you can either complete 2 roles the following night OR complete 1 for the next day’s discussion and a study guide for the day you missed.

You will be a part of the group and expected to participate regardless. The discussion should catch you up.

Didn’t Read: Lose the points for not reading and doing the assignment, but sit in the discussion. Follow along as best as you can, but do not get the group off track. If you do, you will be asked to leave the group for the day and read in another classroom.

Happy reading and writing!