uvalde literature circles

Literature Circles in the Classroom: What? Why? and How?

Why Literature Circles?

• Choice, independence, personal investment• Collaborative learning• Differentiation, independent reading levels• Lifelong readers• Empowered and literate citizens

Source: Mini-Lessons for Literature Circles by Harvey Daniels and Nancy Steineke, p. 3

Literature Circles 101

• Students choose their own reading materials • Small groups (3-6 students) are formed, based

upon book choice Note: 4-5 students per group is ideal

• Grouping is by text choices, not by “ability” or other tracking

• Different groups choose and read different books • Groups meet on a regular, predictable schedule

to discuss their reading

Source: Mini-Lessons for Literature Circles by Harvey Daniels and Nancy Steineke, pp. 3-4


• Students write notes that help guide both their reading and discussion

• Discussion questions come from the students, not teachers or textbooks

• Personal responses, connections, and questions are the starting-point of discussion

• A spirit of playfulness and sharing pervades the room



• Teacher-led mini-lessons serve as bookends, before and after literature circle meetings

• The teacher does not lead any group; s/he is a facilitator, fellow reader, and observer

• When books are finished, groups share highlights of their reading with the classmates through presentations, reviews, dramatizations, book chats, or other media

• Assessment is by teacher observation and student self-evaluation


Preparing Students for Literature Circles

Practice Asking Good Questions and Discussing Texts

• Read “Eleven” by Sandra Cisneros• Jot down 2 or 3 questions that would be

interesting to discuss with your partner• Write each question on a separate sticky note

and place on text where you thought of it• Create a T-chart for Lead Questions and

Follow-Up Questions• Trade T-chart papers with your partner

Adapted from Reading and Writing Together: Collaborative Literacy in Action, “Literature Circles: Getting Them Started and Keeping Them Going” by Nancy Steineke, pp. 130-131

Important Tip: Demo these next steps for your students!

Practicing Asking Lead and Follow-Up Questions

1. Partner A reads his/her question aloud and hands the sticky note to partner B who places it in the Lead Questions column

2. Partner B answers the question3. Based on partner B’s answer, partner A asks a follow-up

question4. Before answering, partner B writes the follow-up question in

the Follow-Up Questions column next to the sticky note5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 two or three more times6. Switch roles so that Partner B starts the next round with a

Lead Question7. Repeat until all Lead Questions have been asked and

discussedAdapted from Reading and Writing Together: Collaborative Literacy in Action, “Literature Circles:

Getting Them Started and Keeping Them Going” by Nancy Steineke, pp. 130-131

What Kinds of Questions Work Best?

• With your partner, identify the lead question that produced the most extended and interesting discussion

• Share your best questions• Discuss: What kinds of questions work best?

Adapted from Reading and Writing Together: Collaborative Literacy in Action, “Literature Circles: Getting Them Started and Keeping Them Going” by Nancy Steineke, pp. 130-131

Your Turn: What Kinds of Questions Work Best?

• Open-ended• Related to our personal lives, experiences• Makes connections to rest of text, between

elements of the text• Examines author’s purpose or elements of style• Makes predictions, draws conclusion, inference• Could be directly found in the text

What Kinds of Questions Work Best?

• They make you think.• There’s more than one possible answer.• It makes you fill in details from your

imagination.• It brings up a controversial idea.• It makes you notice something you didn’t

before.• It makes you see something in a different way.

Source: Reading and Writing Together: Collaborative Literacy in Action, “Literature Circles: Getting Them Started and Keeping Them Going” by Nancy Steineke, p. 131

Getting Literature Circles Started

Before You Begin

• Choose 5 or 6 titles (have 6 copies of each) according to a common theme, genre, or author

• Books should be similar in length/number of chapters

• Books may include various reading levels to meet the goals of differentiated instruction

• Familiarize students with different roles• Have students practice asking good questions

and discussing texts

Day One

• Teacher presents selected books: book talks, read alouds

• Students preview books: book pass• Students fill out choice slips with 1st, 2nd, 3rd

choices

• Arrange groups, prepare role sheets, assign roles for day two

Day Two

• Assign groups and roles in each group• Discuss what will be done each day:– Students should come prepared with reading and

completed role sheets– Groups will meet and discuss – led by discussion

director– Questions?

• Give students schedule of reading assignments• Students spend rest of class reading silently

Day Three

• Review what will be done each day• Groups meet to discuss and share their roles• Students come together as a whole class;

discussion directors share short summary of something significant that was discussed

• Teacher reviews reading and role assignments for the next day

Day Four

• Questions, concerns, clarifications?• Repeat process from Day Three• Following days are same as Day Four

Literature Circle Roles

• Discussion Director/Discussion Leader• Illustrator/Sketcher• Summarizer• Connector/Conflict Connector• Investigator/Fact Finder• Wordsmith/Word Wizard/Word Master/Word Finder/Word

Watcher/Vocabulary Enricher/Vocab Detective• Illuminator/Literary Luminary/

Passage Master/Quotation Seeker• Geographer/Travel Tracer/Story Mapper

Literature Circle Roles

Role• Discussion Director• Connector• Illustrator• Vocabulary Enricher• Literary Luminary

Reading Strategy• Asking questions• Making connections• Visualizing• Determining importance• Noticing author’s craft

Class Schedule for Literature Circles

• 5-10 minutes Opening/Mini-Lesson• 20-25 minutes Groups Meet to Discuss• 5-10 minutes Debrief/Closing


Mini-Lessons for Literature Circles

• Role Sheets• Reading Logs/Journals• Post-Its• Bookmarks• Coding/Annotating the text• Written Conversation• Exit Slips

• Save the Last Word for Me (works well for Literary Luminary, Vocabulary Enricher, and Illustrator)

Save the Last Word for Me

Preparation• Underline or highlight a line in the text that

stands out to you• Jot down a comment or two about the text

your highlighted

Save the Last Word for Me

Discussion• When it is your turn to share, tell your group

where your selection can be found (page, paragraph number), then read the text aloud

• Don’t comment yet! – Listen to the others respond to the text you read aloud

• You have the “last word” to respond – You can either connect with what others said or just share your initial thoughts

Keeping Literature Circles Going

Troubleshooting Literature Circles

• Create norms/establish ground rules• Create anchor charts and/or table cards for

discussion skills (looks like, sounds like)• Collaboratively write advice for other students

on how to be successful with literature circles• Have students reflect and set goals• Celebrate positive behaviors and growth!

Your Turn:An Ideal Literature Circle Discussion

Looks Like• Eye contact• Text in front of them• Student-created questions• Students have supplies• All students looking at text or

person speaking• All members of the group present

whole time• Taking turns speaking• Nodding agreement• Students have journals, taking notes• Smiling

Sounds Like• Using names• One person speaking at a time• Conversation is on topic• Quality questions: academic vocabulary,

Bloom’s, text support• Complimenting each other• Disagreeing respectfully (I look at it

differently, I believe, another way to think about it)

• Fun – laughter, excited voices, enthusiasm• Conversational tone – small group volume• Many voices – one person at each group

is talking

Literature Circle Skills• Asking follow-up questions so

that people explain their answers in more detail

• Being friendly• Staying focused on the group• Listening to everyone’s ideas• Keeping everyone in the group

involved• Recognizing members’ good ideas• Welcoming diverse viewpoints

• Disagreeing constructively, with confidence and enthusiasm

• Extending discussion on a topic• Paraphrasing• Attentive listening• Building on one another’s ideas

(piggybacking)• Directing the group’s work• Using the text to support an idea• Asking clarifying questions when

confused


Literature Circle Skills• Take turns• Listen actively• Make eye contact• Lean forward• Nod, confirm, respond• Share air time• Include everybody• Don’t dominate• Pull other people in• Don’t interrupt• Speak directly to each other• Trust each other

• Receive others’ ideas• Be tolerant• Honor people’s ideas• Piggyback on ideas of others• Speak up when you disagree• Respect differences• Disagree constructively• Don’t attack• Stay focused, on task• Be responsible to the group• Support your views with the

textSource: Mini-Lessons for Literature Circles by Harvey Daniels and Nancy Steineke, p. 8

Assessment of Literature Circles

• Preparation (role sheets)• Participation (observations)• Reading Responses (journals)• Final Project• Self evaluation• Folders/portfolios• Rubrics

Joining Groups to Observe

• When I sit down in your group, continue what you are doing. You don’t need to look at me or acknowledge my arrival.

• I may just observe the group and move on. If I have something to say, I will say it at the appropriate moment.

• Please don’t ask me to give you answers or settle debates.

• As I leave, I may or may not give you a suggestion or idea to pursue.

Self Assessment Ideas

Performance Assessment – Have students generate the criteria, such as:• Do the reading• Listen to other people• Have good ideas• Ask people questions• Stick to the book

Your Turn: Implementing Literature Circles

Do’s• Be prepared!• Practice each role all

together (with short stories)• Enlist/expect students to

help “make it work”• Provide scaffolding (e.g.,

question stems)• Model discussion etiquette• Make it fun!

Don’ts• Underestimate students• Take over the discussion• Be afraid to keep trying• Give up• Interfere, provide answers

References

uvalde literature circles

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