Literature Circles

Mr. Shivers Ventura Elementary School

What is a literature circle?• Choose your own reading materials • Small temporary groups are formed, based upon

book choice• Different groups read different books • Groups meet on a regular, predictable schedule to

discuss their reading• Students use written or drawn notes to guide both

their reading and discussion • Discussion topics come from the you!• Group meetings aim to be open, natural

conversations about books, so personal connections, digressions, and open-ended questions are welcome

• The teacher serves as a facilitator, not a group member or instructor

• Evaluation is by teacher observation and student self-evaluation 11. A spirit of playfulness and fun pervades the room.

• When books are finished, readers share with their classmates, and then new groups form around new reading choices.

Literature Circle Books: Bridge to Terabithia A View From Saturday Serving the Apple Whites Judy Moody Gets Famous Confessions from the Principals Chair Where the Red Fern Grows The Return of the Indian Sarah, Plain and Tall Shiloh Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry The Best Christmas Pageant Ever Chocolate Fever From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil The Kid in the Red Jacket My Side of the Mountain The Whipping Boy A Wrinkle in Time Island of the Blue Dolphins The Secret Garden

Discussion Director: It is your job to write down some good

questions that you think your group would want to talk about. List a minimum of five thought provoking questions below.

Think of these starters: Why... If... What... Who... How...

Connector: It is your job to find connections between the

novel your group is reading and the outside world. This means connection the reading to: – Your own life– happenings at school or in the neighborhood– similar events at other times and places– other books or stories– other writings on same topic– other writings by the same author.

Literary Luminary: It is your job to read aloud parts of the

story to your group in order to help your group members remember some interesting, powerful, puzzling, or important sections of the text. You decide which passages or paragraphs are worth reading aloud, and justify your reasons for selecting them.

Write:page numbersparagraph numbers

Character Captain: It is your job to share observations

you have about the main character(s).

Select three adjectives that describe one or more of the characters in your novel

Support your selection with an example taken from your reading assignment.

Artistic Adventurer:

• It is your responsibility for sharing an artistic representation of the material you read for today’s Literature Circle. Some ideas for sharing may include: a character, the setting, a problem, an exciting part, a surprise, a prediction, or anything else. Examples of genres for expression may include: – Artwork – Music – Poetry – Collage – Mobile

Vocabulary Enricher:

It is your job to look for especially important vocabulary words within the book your group is reading.

Words chosen should be: Important Unfamiliar Different Puzzling Funny

Travel Chaser:

►It is your job to follow the setting as it changes throughout the story.

►Fill in the graphic organizer as the setting changes.

Fortune Teller:

It is your job to make predictions about events to come in the story.

Make sure you back up all your predictions with information (proof) from the novel.

Literature Circle Books: Bridge to Terabithia A View From Saturday Surviving the Apple Whites Judy Moody Gets Famous Confessions from the Principals Chair Where the Red Fern Grows The Return of the Indian Sarah, Plain and Tall Shiloh Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry The Best Christmas Pageant Ever Chocolate Fever From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil The Kid in the Red Jacket My Side of the Mountain The Whipping Boy A Wrinkle in Time Island of the Blue Dolphins The Secret Garden

Choosing the Book!

You will be given 2 minutes to look through each book.

Write down books that spark your interest!

List top 5 Books