Action Research Project

Literature Circles

In the Elementary Classroom

Students interacting in Literature Circles

Natalie R. Bruveris

TE 808, Sec.1Lynn Fendler, Ph.D.

Steve Tuckey

Abstract

The primary focus of my action research project was analyzing and

interpreting the effectiveness of Literature Circle Groups as a form of reading

instruction for the elementary level. I pursued this research because I had a

strong desire for this teaching method and I thought that this form of

instruction might be advantageous to my group of fourth grade students and

their learning needs. Literature Circles consist of small groups of students

who read daily with one another, discuss the literature, and participate

activities and projects related to the reading. My research paper begins by

introducing the purpose of my research, continues by identifying specific

questions to focus my research, methods for data collection, my analysis,

and finally, the conclusion. Overall, this research proved to be extremely

significant to me because it taught me the overall value of performing action

research and how to analyze the effectiveness of a particular teaching style

that I implement in my classroom.

I. Introduction/Research Purpose

As an educator, I viewed myself as a lifelong learner. With this role, I

held myself accountable for researching teaching methods that meet my

highest expectations. I believed that literacy instruction was held to a very

high standard in most elementary classrooms. It is essential that students

learn to read and write critically, meaning to carefully judge and evaluate a

piece because that is a lifelong skill that will benefit them through adulthood.

As a novice teacher, I was very motivated to determine some of the best

approaches that work in my classroom to enhance my ability to instruct my

students. My overall teaching style was a very balanced approach across

the curriculum. A balanced approach means that I find it necessary to

implement various teaching strategies in every subject to meet the needs

and learning styles of each of my students. A balanced approach would also

include changing the group configurations of students during academic

instruction. I think that this balanced approach is a good compromise to

attempt different strategies with students and see what works best for each

learner. I am an advocate of using the Whole-Language approach to

reading, as well as the Phonics approach. The Whole Language approach

focuses more on the appreciation for reading and comprehension skills. The

Phonics approach to reading emphasizes accuracy and precision. I liked to

expose my students to hands-on learning, exploration and informational

learning from textbooks, inquiry-based learning, and an application-based

approach. In correspondence with the balanced approach with my

instruction, I also liked to change the configuration of students. Students

rotated working in pairs, independently, in small groups, or with the whole

class. Overall, it seemed that they preferred small group work the best.

At the time of my research, I was in my second year of teaching. I had

previously completed a full year internship in a third grade classroom in the

year 2006-2007 and the completed a year of daily substitute teaching

positions in 2007-2008. During my research, I was a long-term substitute in

a fourth grade classroom in the Metro Detroit area. The school where I

taught is quite large, containing 543 K-5 students. My classroom setting

consisted of a class of twenty-two students: thirteen girls and nine boys. My

students ranged from above grade level readers to slightly below grade level

readers. They were a very enthusiastic group of learners that meshed well

together socially, but differed quite a bit academically.

I initiated my research by searching for literature that would help me

better understand the process of action research projects. A colleague of

mine strongly recommended that I read the book What’s Worth Fighting for

in Your School by Michael Fullan and Andy Hargreaves. This book provided

me with immense insight on finding a purpose and guidelines for my action

research and information on collaboration. This book helped guide me to

develop a meaningful action research project that tied in nicely with the

expectations of my district’s Language Arts Curriculum.

In my school district, each grade level has reserved novels that

represent different genres. It is up to the teachers to decide which novels to

teach and to select appropriate teaching methods to reach Michigan GLCEs

and district expectations for Language Arts. It was nice to have the freedom

to implement the Language Arts Curriculum as I chose; however, it was

grueling to determine the most effective methods for each new group of

students, with limited teaching experience in my career so far. A majority of

my past reading instruction has been whole-group instruction. It was my

feeling that students were not engaging with the reading on as deep of a

level as I had hoped. This is what guided my inquiry question towards the

topic of Literature Circles because the topic has always struck my curiosity.

Literature Circles intrigued me because it seemed to be a method that would

allow students to be self-directed, take me out of my comfort zone as a

teacher, and invest my complete trust in my students to make their reading

meaningful.

Furthermore, I read the book The Art of Classroom Inquiry, A Handbook

for Teacher-Researchers by Ruth Shagoury Hubbard and Brenda Miller

Power. In order to challenge my existing ideas of how to teach reading, I

searched for information on finding and framing a research question that

related to literature circles. The text provided numerous sample questions

that really fueled my desire to find a question that I felt passionate about in

order to develop my teaching career. Soon after scanning this text, I had a

clearer vision about my path with my action research. I also found the

chapters on the research design, strategies for data collection, analysis, and

support to be extremely beneficial to my comprehensive understanding of

action research projects.

Throughout the course of obtaining my bachelors degree at Michigan

State University, I was introduced to Literature Circles in various classes.

Most of my exposure to Literature Circles was through course readings. In

one of my undergraduate courses, my instructor implemented literature

circles with the students in the education program to show us how effective

they can be. I found them very worthwhile because we were all personally

engaged with a text that interested us and we each had an individualized

task. However, I never had the opportunity to facilitate them in my own

classroom. I heard some pros and cons about this instruction through

colleagues, but I was anxious to actively research this topic. I thought that

researching this topic would help me decide whether it is something that I

will want to continue using in my comprehensive literacy program.

My purpose in conducting this research was to challenge my existing

ideas and theories of reading instruction. I had never attempted to pass on

my teacher hat so aggressively to my students and show so much faith in

them to lead literature discussions without my guidance. I was vaguely

familiar with Literature Circles and was always intrigued as to how they were

implemented. I wanted to conduct action research to determine if Literature

Circles serve as an essential component into a comprehensive balanced

literacy program. I felt that it was essential for students to think reflectively

and analytically when reading and it was my goal to see whether literature

circles fulfilled this expectation. I wanted to find a way to encourage

students to think critically about texts when they are independently reading,

and it was my goal to identify if Literature Circles would help students to

think deeper about a text. Thinking critically while reading is an essential

skill that must be practiced for students to become better readers. Since

this was my first time practicing this teaching method, I based my decisions

on how to organize the Literature Circle groups on recommendations from

experienced colleagues, feedback from my colleague surveys, and literature

pieces that I have read and critically analyzed. Once I implemented

Literature Circles with my fourth graders, I observed aspects of my

instruction that were effective and components that needed improvement in

order to learn the most effective way to teach and implement Literature

Circles in my future teaching.

Additionally, I continued my search by looking for a book that clearly

explained what Literature Circles were and suggestions for implementation

in the elementary classroom. I came across the title Literacy for the 21st

Century, A Balanced Approach by Gail E. Tompkins. I determined that there

is factual evidence about how literature circles fit into a balanced literacy

program. The material in this book especially helped me gain some insight

into my subsidiary questions.

According to this textbook:

“One of the best ways to nurture children’s love of reading and ensure that they become lifelong readers is through

literature circles-small, student-led book discussion groups that meet regularly in the classroom… The reading materials are quality books of children’s literature, including stories, poems, biographies, and informational books, but what matters most is that students are reading something that interests them and is manageable…Students meet several times during a literature circle to discuss the book and extend their comprehension of it. Through these discussions, students summarize their reading, make personal, world, and literary connections, learn vocabulary, explore the author’s use of story structure, and note literary language.” (Tompkins, 384)Another piece of literature is Guided Reading-The Four Blocks Way by

Patricia Cunningham, Dorothy Hall, and James Cunningham. It really helped

me develop a sense of what Literature Circles are, how they are organized,

and how to assign roles to each Literature Circle Group.

“Literature Circles are similar to Book Clubs in that children choose books and meet in small groups to discuss them…Another major difference is that rather than give the whole group the same purpose for reading, children in Literature Circles have different roles and can choose the role they want. These roles determine their purpose for reading.” (Cunningham, 202)

The teacher provides options of text sets for students. Students can

be grouped according to interest or reading level. As a facilitator of learning,

I strived to make my students become independent learners. Based on my

limited experiences with Literature Circles prior to this project, the

instruction seemed to be very student centered versus teacher centered.

Students were engaged with a text by interacting with different reading roles

to learn how to engage in effective conversations about literature. The

reading roles consisted of students focusing on summarizing, illustrating,

making connections, investigating vocabulary, interpreting titles, and

analyzing characters. These reading roles determined their purpose for

reading on that particular day. According to literature that I reviewed, it

seemed that the small Literature Circle groups would serve as a stepping

stool to guide students towards independent thinking and less reliant upon

the teacher’s conclusions and interpretations of the text. Often with whole

group instruction, we do not create independent learners because they get

lost in the group. It was with utmost optimism and hope that through my

experience with Literature Circles, my students would be able to engage with

the text on a deeper and more personal level than whole group instruction.

II. Action Research Questions

I began my action research study with a burning issue in which I

anticipated a clearer understanding after the analysis of my research. The

question is as follows: How, if at all, do Literature Circles help my students

engage with the text on a deeper level than whole group instruction? I

measured and observed student engagement with the text primarily by

monitoring discussions, analyzing their Literature Circle reading role sheets,

and conferencing.

These are the central questions that my action research contained.

However, there are more detailed questions that surfaced during my inquiry

project to arrive at my conclusion. For instance, I investigated the following

questions to determine the students’ level of engagement:

What are the key features of Literature Circles?

Do literature circles offer options of differentiation within a classroom?

What are the roles and responsibilities of the student and teacher?

What are some tools that work and do not work in Literature Circle

discussions?

How do students focus on various literary elements?

How much scaffolding is necessary to effectively structure Literature

Circles?

I wanted to be sure to investigate positive and negative feedback on the

spectrum of using Literature Circles so that I would be aware of any

challenges that I might face. Since this was my first exposure to

implementing Literature Circles, I thought this would better prepare me for

what was yet to come. The textbook Moving Forward with Literature Circles

by Jeni Pollack Day, Dixie Lee Spiegel, Janet McLellan, and Valerie B. Brown

did provide small glimpses of potential challenges that I would face with

implementation of my Literature Circles. One of the learning theories upon

which Literature Circles are based is sociolinguistics. Students are

encouraged to engage in social interaction through small group discussions

about the reading. This book suggested that some students try to dominate

a discussion and others can be too passive.

“We have observed students who monopolize and direct all interactions. They set the agendas, ask the questions, determine who will respond to questions, and often evaluate the responses of others. Unfortunately it is sometimes easier for the rest of the group to acquiesce. Things move along quickly and the assignment is completed, but discussion frequently suffers.” (Day, 67)

This potential weakness alerted me to aspects of student

interaction that I would have to monitor while walking around the

classroom when students are participating with Literature Circles. In

my classroom, I clearly specified that when they were working in small

groups, it is required that all group members must participate and

have their voices heard in the discussion. The reading role of the

discussion director (described in more details in the methods section)

is to monitor student interaction and assure that everyone has an

equal opportunity to speak and share their opinion. I planned to

address this concern that I learned about from this book by rotating

the discussion director position, in hopes that it would alleviate the

problem of one particular student particular student “monopolizing and

directing” all of the discussions.

Another critique of Literature Circles from this resource was that

the teacher can control the discussion, which deviates from the key

feature of Literature Circles. Literature Circles should be child-

centered, not teacher-centered. In addition, another problem I

anticipated was students reporting about their book, not discussing.

Heavy scaffolding is a great way to avoid students reporting, versus

discussing. The last problem that could have occurred was difficulty

with the selected book. When students were self-selecting the novels,

often there was frustration with students having a difficult time finding

meaning or participating in the group discussions.

Although these downfalls do occur, according to But Does it

Work? Recent Research on Literature Circles by Harvey Daniels

reports a potentially promising outcome to my action research.

“A 1998 study of fourth graders by Klinger, Vaugh, and Schumm found that students in peer-led groups made greater gains than controls in reading comprehension and equal gains in content knowledge…Interestingly, the researchers found that students small-group talk was 65% academic and content-related, 25% procedural, 8% feedback, with only 2% off-task.” (Daniels)

The textbook Moving Forward with Literature Circles by Jeni

Pollack Day, Dixie Lee Spiegel, Janet McLellan, and Valerie B. Brown

also enlightened me on how to prepare, facilitate, and appraise

literature circles that deepen understanding and cultivate a passion

for reading. On the other end of the spectrum, this textbook provided

five integral benefits of using Literature Circles in the classroom: They

can help you teach, not merely check comprehension, they allow you

to teach many facets of comprehension, encourage students to learn

from one another, motivate students naturally, and promote

discussion more effectively than whole groups.

III. Methods

Before implementing Literature Circles in my classroom, I needed to

determine potential methods for organizing, managing and introducing

Literature Circles that best fit my classroom. Since Literature Circles were a

new concept to me, I had to develop criteria that would help guide my

decisions. I had a group of students that ranged from gifted readers to lower

readers, so I knew that the selected Literature Circle texts would have to

vary in reading levels. To maintain all students’ interest, I knew that I

wanted the novels to vary in genre so that I would intrigue each student. I

had a student with autism, who needed routine and structure, so I knew that

I would need to implement the Literature Circles in a very organized format.

I also knew that I wanted to offer a surplus of reading roles for each group, to

keep my students stimulated and avoid boredom with one particular reading

role. I hoped that these criteria would especially benefit my four students

diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder. I performed a lot of research

before making a professional decision on which structure would best fit with

our classroom. I used my prior knowledge from my undergraduate courses

and from classroom observations that I had in the past to guide my action

plan. Furthermore, I initiated several discussions with my fellow colleagues

to determine the best method for implementation of Literature Circles. One

of my colleagues has given workshops on Literature Circles, which provided

me with great insight into my management decisions. He has personally

experimented with different ways to structure and manage Literature Circles

in his classroom over the years, so it was beneficial to discuss the varying

possibilities to structure them. His teaching experience and knowledge of

Literature Circles was such a helpful resource. Within these discussions, my

fellow educators provided me with advice, management techniques,

teaching strategies, organizational options, and gave their insight to some of

the advantages and disadvantages to Literature Circles. One colleague

recommended that I use folders with reading role sheets that specify the job

of that specific role. She also suggested that I obtain magazine racks to

organize the reading role folders for each Literature Circle group.

To further enhance my knowledge of how to effectively manage and

organize Literature Circles, I produced a survey for my colleagues to

complete (Appendix 1.1). After collecting and analyzing about fifteen

responses, I had clearer insight of potential techniques that might work for

my teaching style and my group of fourth grade students. These survey

responses also indicated some potential challenges and advantages of

implementing Literature Circles. Overall, I found these colleague responses

to strongly support that in Literature Circles, students are engaging with the

text on a deeper level than with whole group instruction.

Through my research, I learned that Literature Circles novels can be

organized by a genre theme, author study, or through varying genre

interests of the students. Since my goal was to help students engage in a

text on a deeper level, I decided to enhance student interest by offering

novels from various genres to attract all students to at least one novel title.

The titles that I have selected were the following: Charlotte’s Web by E.B.

White (Animal Fable), Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar

(Fantasy), F is for Freedom by Roni Schotter (Historical Fiction), Superfudge

by Judy Blume (Fiction), and The Report Card by Andrew Clements (Realistic

Fiction). I introduced these novels by giving a brief book talk about each.

Students were then able to explore and skim through each book before

making their novel request. I also allowed students to personally select their

top two choices of the five novel options on an index card. Next, I assigned

students in groups based on their requests. This method was selected in

hopes that they would be more engaged because the novel sparked the

child’s interest.

In Literature Circles, each student has a different reading role and can

choose which role they want for each day. Each student had to take turns

doing each role at one point of the Literature Circle unit. The students were

allowed to select their reading role; however, they had to choose a different

reading role each session. These roles determine their purpose for reading.

The reading roles that I selected after surveying and talking to educators

were: Artful Artist, Super Summarizer, Discussion Director, Literary

Luminary, The Connector, Vocabulary Enricher, Title Translator, and a

Character Captain. In my particular class, the five Literature Circle groups

consisted of only 4-5 students in each. I had an overabundance of reading

roles that rotated for each group, hoping that my students would have a

heightened interest. The Artful Artist drew some kind of illustration related

to the reading. The Super Summarizer prepared a brief summary of today’s

reading. The Connector found text-to-self, text-to-text, and text-to-world

connections with the book. The Vocabulary Enricher located significant

words from today’s reading and wrote a definition for each. The Discussion

Director developed a list of questions and prompted that the Literature Circle

group discussion, based on today’s reading. They were expected to assure

that each group member had the opportunity to share their opinions in the

discussion. The Discussion Director also asked each group member to

present and share their findings for their role for each day. The Literary

Luminary located parts of the story that he/she wanted to read aloud that

emphasized interesting, powerful, funny, puzzling, or important sections of

the text. The Title Translator deciphered the relationship between the

significance of the title to the contents of the chapter. If the chapters were

not titled, this student had to create and defend a title name. The Character

Captain was responsible for revealing specific personality traits of the

character(s) within the novel. Each student had bookmark with each role

listed to keep track of which roles they had already completed. Each

Literature Circle group has a basket with the text set and a magazine holder

with folders for each role. Each folder provided an explanation of the task for

that specific role. Prior to implementing the literature circles, I used the

fishbowl method to scaffold and teach students about the job description of

each role. The roles served as a way to assess each students’ engagement

in the text each day and participation with their Literature Circle groups. The

role sheets were collected at the end of every Literature Circle session as a

form of assessment to help determine how well students were engaging in

their roles.

My observations were always in the afternoon during reading period.

At this time, my fourth graders were given a mini lesson and goal to

accomplish that day. Students were already aware of group expectations

from previous lessons. Reading assignments were given for each book and

students were off to work on their goals for the day. I chose to do my

observations in the same format every day. I would begin by first reflecting

on the goal or objective for the lesson. Next, I would work with one focus

group daily and observe their reading skills. In these meetings, I would

record my observations on the group meeting log forms (Appendix 1.2).

Group meeting logs were a beneficial way for me to collect data because it

allowed me to assess students’ feelings towards Literature Circles. This

meeting also assured me that all students were doing their share of the

group’s work and participating in group discussions on a regular basis. After

about twenty minutes of observing and conferring, I began circulating the

room visiting with each group and noting key things that I heard the students

say and responses they shared with one another in my notes.

Immediately following each Literature Circle session, students were

provided with the opportunity to nominate a spokesperson from their

Literature Circle group to give a book talk. Each spokesperson identified the

highlights from their group’s previous conversation and experience with their

Literature Circle roles. The first reason for implementing this method was to

monitor the enthusiasm and engagement with the novel thus far and the

second reason was to motivate other students to read the supplementary

novels in the future.

Another method that I implemented was class logs forms (Appendix

1.3). These logs allowed me to write observations about each Literature

Circle group on a specific day. This method provided me with insight as to

how engaged students are during each session of our Literature Circle

meetings and to keep track of the depth of content being discussed on a

specific day. I saw whether students were analyzing the characters,

searching for meaning in the text, and interpreting the actions of the

characters. I used simple anecdotal records on loose-leaf paper to record

any random thoughts, comments, or ideas that I had during our Literature

Circle sessions.

As an additional assessment of student engagement with Literature

Circles, I collected student samples from their reading roles that they are

involved with during Literature Circles. These writing pieces served as a

planning piece to prepare for the role that they played in their group’s

discussion. This collection of writing samples provided me with some insight

as to how deep students are connecting with each novel, based on their

written responses. Since the roles are mostly based on their personal

performance and participation in their discussions, I used this data as a

supplemental piece for analysis.

In addition, I had students complete a self-assessment form. These

forms allowed students to evaluate what they did well in, problems that they

may have affected their personal participation, and areas for improvement.

Self reflection is always a good way for students to develop into independent

learners because they assume the position of taking responsibility for their

own learning. I also completed a self-assessment form to evaluate my

success in teaching Literature Circles and determined how I could improve so

that students can connect with the text on an even deeper level. For

example, I wanted students to make the reading authentic for themselves.

Students demonstrate this by making text to self connections, text to text

connections, text to world connections, analyzing a passage, interpreting the

actions and/or behaviors of a particular character, and determining the

significance of a title. These are all aspects of Literature Circles that

students were able to achieve.

Towards the end of our Literature Circle unit, students prepared a

presentation about their novel to share with their peers. This presentation

provided me with insight and data as to what level of engagement each

Literature Circle group was able to achieve at the culmination of the unit. As

the students performed their oral presentations, I searched for key features

to determine the depth of analysis that was accomplished. These key

features consisted of making text to self and text to world connections,

interpreting the behavior of characters, providing detailed summaries, and

grasping meaningful passages. Group members were expected to

participate in the presentation. Students used their knowledge and

experiences from their Literature Circle roles to determine what the

important topics to present were. The presentation highlighted the biggest

connections, significance of the novel title, an illustration, passages worth re-

reading for the class, an overall summary, vocabulary that enriched their

lives, and memorable characters. These presentations served as a

culminating activity and possibly served to persuade and excite students to

read the other Literature Circle titles. Overall, my data collection period

lasted about seven-eight weeks.

To culminate my data collection on Literature Circles, I had each

student in my class anonymously complete a “Post Literature Circle

Implementation Student Survey” (Appendix 1.5). This survey required each

student to reflect on their experience with Literature Circles and essentially

determine the level of engagement that they had with Literature Circles.

Students were asked to read ten specific statements and circle a number on

a scale from 1 to 3 to match their feeling towards each statement. A 3

meant that the student strongly agreed, a 2 meant that the student agreed,

and a 1 meant that the student disagreed.

IV. Analysis

After completing my research I found that based on my anecdotal

records, colleague surveys, student surveys, group meetings, checklists,

student conferences, and student work analysis, Literature Circles did have

students intensely engaged in the text. In comparison to the whole-group

reading instruction, my data suggested that students experienced a more

authentic learning experience with Literature Circles because they took

ownership for each discussion role and personalized the meaning of the text.

First, I read and interpreted the colleague surveys. Out of the 20

people that were surveyed, 16 experienced educators believed that students

are engaging with the text on a deeper level than with whole group

instruction. The 4 people that did not respond yes had never implemented

literature circles before so they were unable to respond. Some repeated

commentary on the colleague surveys reported that students’ discussions

allow for a deeper connection to the text, more ownership for student

learning, teach a lifelong strategy to respond to literature, and is more

effective because it is student-centered. I was surprised to see such a large

number of educators that have not yet implemented Literature Circles, but

they had intended to for years in their responses.

An overwhelming majority of the colleague surveys argued that there

were without a doubt more advantages to Literature Circles, if managed

effectively. The feedback from the colleague surveys included the following:

It can be more difficult to teach specific reading skills, groups may not

always get along, difficult to manage, and it can be challenging to monitor

students’ productivity. My colleagues also reported that there was more

time to meet with individual groups, student-centered, students can be

grouped according to reading level or interest, fosters excitement, promotes

independent learning, builds reading confidence, students get the

opportunity to lead discussions and ask questions, students view reading as

a pleasurable experience, students take personal ownership, provides an

authentic reading experience, allows more self-reflection, there is less

anxiety in small groups, easy to differentiate in Literature Circles, develops

teamwork skills, leadership skills, cooperative skills, and students are

exposed to varied perspectives. The results from the colleague surveys

provided me with initial confidence that there would be potential for

Literature Circles to be effective.

According to my anecdotal records, student surveys, and completed

role sheets it was a challenge for some students to fully understand how to

engage in each Literature Circle role. The Literary Luminary, the Connector,

and the Character Captain seemed to be the most challenging roles for

students, based on the feedback from my students at our group conferences.

As I looked over their completed role sheets, I found that majority of

my students were engaging in most of the reading roles appropriately and

were exceeding my expectations. The work samples from students lead me

to believe that Literature Circles were more engaging for students than

whole-group reading instruction. During Literature Circles, I found that my

students were focusing their reading roles on topics that they were asked to

focus on, but also commented on additional topics and key events that were

generated from their own group. As an adult, when reading a novel I engage

in a text by discussing the content with fellow adults, asking questions, and

making connections. According to student role sheets, it seemed that my

students were engaged with the text in a very advanced and critical manner,

much like how I would as an adult, but at a fourth grade level. However,

based on student performance on the role sheets, it was clear that students

were somewhat unclear about how to engage with the Character Captain

reading role.

Furthermore, another advantage that I noticed during my anecdotal

record keeping was that implementing Literature Circles successfully lends

itself to differentiation. “The open-ended assignments in a literature circle

unit allow you to meet the needs of students at all reading levels.” (Huber, 3)

Students read a novel of choice that was appropriate for their reading level

and engaging in Literature Circle roles for which they can take ownership.

Also, throughout my anecdotal notes in the data collection period, I

found that when working in smaller groups during reading time, students

took more responsibility for their individual roles in comparison to whole

group tasks that they have done in the past. Often, when my students

worked on tasks for whole group reading activities, they did not value the

importance of truly engaging in the task. However, with Literature Circles,

they knew that they were responsible for contributing to the group

discussions and commenting and providing feedback to their peers so they

developed more ownership for each reading role. Each day a new Discussion

Director, Connector, Literary Luminary, Title Translator, Artful Artist,

Vocabulary Enricher, and Super Summarizer played an integral role. By

placing not only an individual assignment and goal expectations on students

as I do in whole-group instruction, the extra accountability and roles were

well accepted by the students based on students’ survey results and my

personal notes.

By a show of hands (with their heads down) towards the end of our

Literature Circle unit, 20 out of my 22 students expressed that they

preferred engaging in Literature Circles over whole-group reading

instruction. The student conference forms echoed this: 20 out my 22 fourth

graders preferred Literature Circles over whole-group instruction. The two

students that did not prefer it were my lower readers, as defined by

standardized tests and previous classroom reading performances. It may be

possible that their classification as lower readers is related to the typical

format of reading and does not consider their potential reading performance

through other reading instruction methods. In fact, these students

performed very well throughout our Literature Circle unit, demonstrating

their abilities to critically analyze the text. These students claimed that they

felt that they were sometimes confused about the reading and would have

benefited from whole group clarification. It is possible that my lower readers

display a decreased confidence with reading, so they may feel overwhelmed

with the independence that Literature Circles allow. The remainder of

students who preferred Literature Circles felt that they connected more with

the text by reading out loud in their small groups. They followed along

easier because there were fewer distractions than in a whole group, and they

felt that they were dedicated to doing their personal best on their role sheets

because they didn’t want to let their group members down.

Additionally, I used the results from the “Post Literature Circle

Implementation Student Survey” (Appendix 1.5) to determine the perception

students had towards Literature Circles and how they felt they engaged with

this learning method. These results were obtained by anonymously

surveying all 22 of my fourth grade students at the completion of the unit.

The first statement, “I have participated in Literature Circles to the best of

my ability” resulted in 0% students disagreeing, 32% agreed, and 68%

students strongly agreed. The statement, “I felt more comfortable in

Literature Circle groups, in comparison to whole-group instruction” resulted

in 9% disagreeing, 50% agreed, and 41% disagreed. The next statement, “I

volunteered and contributed to group discussions to the best of my ability”

resulted in 0% disagreeing, 18% agreed, and 83% strongly agreed. The

following statement, “I feel that I connected with the text on a deeper level

with Literature Circles than with whole-group instruction” resulted in 14%

disagreeing, 41% agreed, and 45% strongly agreeing. The next statement,

“I feel that everyone in my group got along well, worked together, and

helped one another” resulted in 14% disagreeing, 55% agreeing, and 32%

strongly agreeing. The statement, “It was easier for me to follow along with

the novel when I worked in the small Literature Circle groups, in comparison

to reading a novel with the whole class” resulted in 9% disagreeing, 64%

agreeing, and 27% strongly agreeing. The statement, “I clearly understood

how to complete and engage with each Literature Circle reading role”

resulted in 27% students disagreeing, 50% agreed, and 23% strongly

agreed. Students responded to the statement, “I know the difference

between participating in a discussion and reporting out” by 5% disagreeing,

36% agreeing, and 59% strongly agreeing. The next statement, “I felt

comfortable sharing my ideas with my Literature Circle group” resulted in 0%

students disagreeing, 27% of students agreeing, and 73% of students

strongly agreeing. Finally, the statement “I look forward to participating in

Literature Circle groups in the future” resulted in 0% disagreeing, 36%

agreeing, and 63% strongly agreeing.

V. Conclusion

Overall, I was very pleased with the outcome of my research. I felt

that my methods for data collection provided me with insight that will benefit

my future teaching practices. As I reflected back on the information

acquired from my resources, I was reassured through my collected data that

Literature Circles truly were an effective strategy to teach reading. I was

very impressed with how Literature Circles helped build my students’

teamwork skills and encouraged some students to form a relationship with

other peers that may have not developed without this opportunity.

Although my research supports the idea that Literature Circles provide

more opportunities for students to engage with the text on a deeper level

than with whole-group instruction, I still find it necessary to do some whole-

group reading instruction. My teaching style remains to be a very balanced-

approach to literacy instruction, which would encompass a variety of

methods to teach reading, including whole-group instruction and Literature

Circles. “In a balanced approach to literacy instruction, teachers integrate

instruction with authentic reading and writing and experiences so that

students learn how to use literacy strategies and skills and have

opportunities to apply what they are learning.” (Tompkins, 1) As my

research stated, Literature Circles are useful, productive, offer

differentiation, and mold themselves well with the balanced approach to

teaching literacy. Based on the comprehension skills that I noticed

students using in their Literature Circles, I feel that this reading approach did

help my students become life-long learners. The Literature Circle unit helped

my students develop reading skills that they can use the rest of their life.

After collecting and analyzing the data on Literature Circles, I found the

unit to be a very positive and authentic experience for myself as a teacher

and for the students. It was refreshing to be the facilitator of student

learning and observe them taking responsibility and ownership for their own

learning. I was thrilled with the outcome of the culminating Literature Circle

group presentations on their novel because it was a great way for students

to proudly highlight some of the skills that they developed during the

Literature Circle unit. This project also really seemed to motivate other

groups to want to read the other novels, which pleases me! Majority of my

students stated in their post literature circle surveys that they look forward

to participating with this learning method in the future.

In conclusion, this action research project not only introduced me to a

new mode of teaching reading, but it opened my eyes to how beneficial

action research can be to my personal development as an educator. This

experience allowed me to discover another way to help engage my students.

This project has pushed me to challenge my teaching practices and has

directly improved my ability to teach reading effectively.

VI. Future Implications

In the future, I plan to use Literature Circles as a method to teach

reading. The next time that I use Literature Circles in my classroom I would

ease into the small group Literature Circles. I would begin the year by

reading a novel as a whole class. I would slowly expose students to each

Literature Circle role by using heavy scaffolding during this whole group

instruction and teach how to have a discussion using the fishbowl method.

In addition, each student would be independently practicing how to fulfill the

duties of each role so that when we actually implemented the Literature

Circles in small groups there wouldn’t be any confusion. This gradual

movement from teacher-directed to student-centered will definitely benefit

students’ in the long run and allow them to get more out of the small group

Literature Circle sessions.

I would also continue to use Literature Circles as a method to

differentiate instruction for my students. “Students have different needs,

abilities, and prior experiences.” (Day, 122) With each new group of

students that I teach in the future, I will restructure my Literature Circle

groups to accommodate their individual needs and abilities.

Furthermore, I will use Literature Circles to teach various genres. I

plan to offer novel options that would vary in student interest; however,

assure that they are categorized under one specific genre to be studied and

explored. I look forward to further my experiences and knowledge with

Literature Circles. I feel that the methods of data collection that I used and

incorporated into my research helped me reach a better understanding of

my research questions, but it also opened the door to possible research

questions that I could investigate in order to improve the way that I

implement Literature Circles. I also anticipate pursuing further action

research in other aspects of my teaching in the near future.

VI. Works Cited

Au, Kathryn H., Jana M. Mason, and Judith A, Scheu. Literacy Instruction for Today. New York, NY: Harper Collins College, 1995.

Cunningham, Patricia M., Dorothy P. Hall, and James W. Cunningham. Guided Reading the Four Blocks Way: Grades 4-6. Boston: Carson-Dellosa Company, Incorporated, 2000. 182-203.

Daniels, Harvey. “But Does it Work? Recent Research on Literature Circles.” Literature Circles: Voice and Choice in Book Clubs and Reading Groups. Portland, ME: Stenhouse, 2002.

Day, Jennifer, Dixie Lee Speigel, and Valerie Brown. Moving Forward with Literature Circles: How to Plan, Manage and Evaluate Literature Circles to

Deepen Understanding and Foster a Love of Reading, Grades 3-6. New York: Scholastic, Incorporated, 2002.

Fullan, Michael G., and Andy Hargreaves. What’s Worth Fighting for in Your School? New York: Teachers College P, Teachers College, Columbia University, 1996.

Hubbard, Ruth Shagoury, and Brenda Miller Power. The Art of Classroom Inquiry: A Handbook for Teacher-Resources. Chicago: Heinemann, 2003.

Huber, Marcia, and Jane Yamade. Literature Circles: Using Student Interaction to Improve Reading Comprehension. Ed. Sheri Samoiloff. New York: Creative Teaching P, Incorporated 2001.

Sigon, Cheryl. Modifying the Four-Blocks for Upper Grades. Bostom: Carson-Dellosa Company, Incorporated, 2001.

Tompkins, Gail E. Literacy for the 21 st Century: A Balanced Approach. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2005. 380-97.

Appendix 1.1Literature Circle Colleague Survey

Responses Collected in September 2008

Have you implemented Literature Circles in your classroom? If

so, how are they structured?

Response #1: “In my Literature Circle program each child has a role,

which changes every day. Each group gets a planning sheet where

they plan their reading and roles. Every day that group meets, they

will share their work and also discuss anything they found particularly

interesting about the book.”

Response #2: “One format that I have used involved breaking

students apart into small groups where the group would all work on

one skill to analyze a text. For example, an entire group would work

on summarizing a chapter. Students rotate among the various rotation

centers to experience each way of analyzing the text.”

Response #3: “I grouped students by interest and ability. Each

student has a role and a task. I focus all of the texts on a specific

genre study.”

In Literature Circles, do you feel that students are engaging

with the text on a deeper level than with whole group

instruction? Why or why not?

Response #1: “Yes, definitely! This is especially true for students who

are timid in front of the whole group. When I walk around I hear things

being discussed that I never thought of! It also gives me ideas and

questions to pose when we do discuss the novel as a whole group.”

Response #2: “Literature Circles allow for a deep connection to the

text, and allow for a more engaging opportunity when compared to

whole group instruction. Literature Circles allow for more ownership

for student learning, it allows for students to relate to the texts and

discuss connections that are authentic to them.”

Response #3: “Yes. I feel that often students do not participate in

whole group discussions. In Literature Circles, students are in a

smaller group which makes them feel more comfortable sharing their

thoughts and ideas. Students also are allowed to pick their own text,

making them more enthusiastic about reading.”

Response #4: “No, not at the second grade level where I teach. I

think that they are engaged on an equal level to that of whole group

instruction. Although, I do enjoy seeing them build independence and

cooperative skills.”

Response #5: “Yes, if they are structured effectively. I find it essential

to meet with each group 1-2 times a week to assure that they are on

task.”

Response #6: “Yes, because they have to come up with their own

questions and opinions. It’s not as teacher-directed as whole group

instruction.”

Response #7: “Yes. The smaller the group, the more engaged they

are.”

If you have used Literature Circles before, what are some

advantages and disadvantages when using them?

Synopsis of collected colleague responses:

ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES

-More time to meet with individual

groups of students

-It can be harder to teach specific

reading skills than with a standard

reading program

-Gives the students opportunities to

work with students of all levels

-The groups do not always get along

-Fosters an excitement for reading

and allows students to build on their

teamwork and leadership skills

-It can be difficult to keep up with

every group if you have a large class

-Builds reading confidence when

students are put with the right mix of

students

-You have to begin the year with

teaching the children how to have a

discussion

-The students are more comfortable

discussing in small groups

-Some students may not use the

time designated appropriately

-Students take ownership to their

reading. It provides an authentic

experience, differentiates within the

instruction.

-They can be difficult to manage

-Students are allowed more self-

reflection and discovery of opinions.

What is the primary role of the teacher when using Literature

Circles?

Response #1: “The role of the teacher is to guide the students in their

reading. I try to ask questions that will them talking or thinking. I aid

them if they have problems and praise them when they have a good

discussion.”

Response #2: “The primary role of the teacher is to set clear

expectations and model the roles that students use. Teachers are

responsible for monitoring that students are reading texts that are an

appropriate reading level, that students are on task, a d that students

understand the roles that they play within their group. They are

responsible for assessing how well students understand the texts.

They may do this group casual interviews, listening to group

discussions, as well as some formal assessments.”

Response #3: “The teacher will serve as a guide. He/she should be

overseeing, but not controlling the Literature Circles.”

Response #4: “The teacher is the facilitator. Initially, the teacher sets

up guidelines, equips the kids with skills necessary to run their own

program.”

Response #5: “Guiding, encouraging, and observing.”

Response #6: “Demonstrate proper ways of good group discussions,

provide mini lessons each day and engage with students to help assess

for understanding.”

Response #7: “Teachers provide prompts and graphic organizers to help guide discussions.”

Appendix 1.2Group Meeting Logs

Cumulatively Collected from October through November (2008)

Synopsis of Responses in our Group Meetings:

F is for Freedom By: Roni Shotter Topics Discussed at Meetings: Main events occurring in the story,

development of the main characters, and the connections that the group made with the story.

Good Things that Happened: Students seem to be truly enjoying reading the novel. They are finding the plot to be very suspenseful and educational. They like doing the role sheets, even though some tend to be challenging. Students are happy with the students in their group.

Problems that Occurred: Students reported that they sometimes talk over one another, so they are working to take turns and wait for one student to finish their answers.

Participation: Everyone is participating with the reading assignment, discussion, and the reading role sheets.

Charlotte’s Web By: E.B. White Topics Discussed at Meetings: We discussed the plot

development, conflicts and resolutions occurring in the story, discussion questions and their responses and ideas.

Good Things that Happened: They are getting all of their reading assignments completed in the designated time. They are more content with partner reading that whole group reading because they can stay on topic and read faster.

Problems that Occurred: They were a little confused by some vocabulary terms that they’ve been reading in the text.

Participation: One student mentioned that Literature Circles are okay because he finds it difficult to stay focused sometimes.

Sideways Stories from Wayside School By: Louis Sachar Topics Discussed at Meetings: The significance of the titles and

how they can be interpreted, making predictions and conclusions, and the development of characters.

Good Things that Happened: Students appear to be very excited about their plot. They seem to appreciate the comedic twist that the plot has. Students demonstrate enthusiasm towards the artful artist role especially.

Problems that Occurred: They mentioned that the Character Captain can be challenging because it can be difficult to locate examples of personality traits.

Participation: Excellent participation. Each student is trying to give their personal best with each role and are doing a good job with rotating the roles.

The Report Card By: Andrew Clements Topics Discussed at Meetings: Interpreting the chapter titles, plot

development, significant passages, and connections that they’ve been making with the text.

Good Things that Happened: The cooperation with group members is going really well. Each student is interested in helping their classmates understand the plot and assist them with their reading roles. Students expressed that they are making great connections with the text and are enjoying the plot.

Problems that Occurred: Sometimes they seem to get side-tracked. The Literary Luminary and the Character Captain seem to be the most difficult.

Participation: They are rotating the reading roles so that everyone has a chance to participate in each role.

Superfudge By: Judy Blume Topics Discussed at Meetings: We discussed their favorite and

least favorite roles, their enthusiasm towards the plot, and connections that they are making with the text.

Good Things that Happened: The book is easy to understand and has a lot of comical parts which makes the book more enjoyable.

Problems that Occurred: This group seems to have trouble getting along at times, although they never seem to hesitate to call me over to work things out. Their least favorite Literature Circle role is the Character Captain reading role.

Participation: One particular student seems to be resistant to working with the group, but shows enthusiasm towards engaging with the novel. As a whole, the other group members are working well together to actively engage in the group discussions.

Appendix 1.3Class Log Forms

Cumulatively Collected from October through November

Synopsis of Recorded Notes from the Class Log

Literature Circle Groups

My Comments/Observations Date(Year 2008)

Group #1: Charlotte’s

Web

- Students changed from reading as a whole group to reading silently to help them stay on task

- Students are identifying with the feelings and emotions of Charlotte and Wilbur

- Demonstrate their ability to defend the meaning of the title and identify why the author selected the specific chapter titles.

- One student seems to be disengaged during the discussion.

- Effectively engaging in a group discussion. The discussion director asks questions to the group and the

10-6

10-16

10-21

10-24

11-5

11-19

students take turns answering and commenting.

- My lower readers in this group are actively contributing to the group discussion, when normally they shy away from a whole-group discussion.

Group #2: F is for

Freedom

- One student came up with the idea to put the student names in a bowl to allow everyone to equally participate in the discussions

- After one particular student made a prediction another student asked, “Why do you think that that will happen next?” This demonstrates that they are thinking critically.

- At one point, this group was “reporting out” the roles instead of discussing the meaning behind the text. This shows me that I need to do more scaffolding.

- Seem to finish much quicker than the other groups. The pacing can be difficult.

10-5

10-18

11-6

11-8

Group #3: Sideways Stories from

Wayside School

- After each student shares his/her role, the group members pay a compliment and a critique. (Modeled off of our writing when we do the peer revision step, which is a cross-curricular connection)

- They demonstrate familiarity with the Literature Circle routine and procedures.

- Working hard on their literature circle reading roles. Came to me with questions to clarify their confusion to assure that they will do their personal best.

10-5

10-15

11-3

Group #4: The Report

Card

- In their discussion, they are asking several “How” “What” and “Why” questions that clearly demonstrates their level of thinking.

- -They are having difficulties with one of the students being more outspoken and taking the initiative to delegate during today’s discussion.

- Demonstrate my expectations of what I want accomplished and discussed during the Literature Circle sessions.

- My ADD student in this group was off-task

10-9

10-19

11-4

11-10

Group #5: Superfudg

e

- Demonstrate their frustration with the Character Captain role. They need clarification on how to identify personality traits of each character.

- -Take responsibility for their roles. One student was helping another group member with the Literary Luminary Role…contributing to team building skills.

- They were discussing other novels written by the same author and were sharing personal experiences with each. One student shared, “You should really read Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume!”

- Seem to be working at a slower pace than the rest of the class.

10-7

10-13

10-29

11-8

Appendix 1.4Self-Assessment Form

Cumulatively Collected from October through November (2008)

Collected Results of Student Responses:

1. What do you do well in Literature Circle Discussions?o “I am good at sharing my opinions.”o “I do really well in Literature Circles. I’m not afraid to speak up

in my group.”o “I am a very good artful artist.”o “I do a great job at the Discussion Director role.”o “I do a really good job with helping my group out and answering

their questions.”o “Our group works well with each other. We take turns and do

not fight.”o “I have really good answers to discussion questions.”

2. What problems do you have?o “The Character Captain and the Literary Luminary roles are

difficult for me.”o “I have problems with the Character Captain.”o “My biggest problem is the Character Captain role.”o “My group doesn’t have any problems.”o “Some people in our group sometimes get distracted.”o “We need to work on improving our summaries.”o “Sometimes I have trouble understanding each role, but then I

just ask my classmates.”o “Sometimes we lose focus.”o “We take a long time to read aloud, so we do better when we

silently read or partner read.”o “We get side-tracked sometimes.”

3. How has your participation changed over the last few weeks?

o “Our discussions have improved over the past few weeks.”o “Our participation has been getting better.”o “At first when we started Literature Circles I had a hard time

focusing, but now I can focus more and get my reading assignments completed with my group.”

o “We have been giving our personal best effort every week.”o “I think it has stayed the same.”o “We’ve learned not to interrupt each other when someone is

talking.”

4. What is one thing you would like to get better at in Literature Circles?

o “I want to get better at the Vocabulary Enricher reading role.”o “I really think the Connector and the Literary Luminary roles can

be difficult for me.”o “I do a really good job at everything.”o “Raising my hand to comment in my Literature Circle groups.”o “I want to get better at reading faster.”o “I want to work on communicating my ideas better.”

Appendix 1.5Post-Literature Circle Implementation

Student SurveyNovember 25, 2008

Post Literature Circle ImplementationStudent Survey

Directions: Read each statement below and circle the choice that best matches your feelings. You may select 1, 2, or 3. 3 means I strongly agree, 2 means I agree, and 1 means that I disagree.

Disagree Agree Strongly

Agree

I have participated in Literature Circles to the best of 1 2 3my ability.

I felt more comfortable in Literature Circles groups, in 1 2 3comparison to whole-group instruction.

I volunteered and contributed to group discussions to the 1 2 3

best of my ability.

I feel that I connected with the text on a deeper levelwith Literature Circles than with whole-group instruction. 1 2 3

I feel that everyone in my group got along well, worked 1 2 3together, and helped one another.

It was easier for me to follow along with the novel when 1 2 3I worked in the small Literature Circle groups, in comparisonto reading a novel with the whole class.

I clearly understood how to complete and engage with each 1 2 3Literature Circle reading role.

I know the difference between participating in a discussion 1 2 3and reporting out.

I felt comfortable sharing my ideas with my Literature 1 2 3Circle group.

I look forward to participating in Literature Circle groups 1 2 3in the future.