A strategy to consider in Reading Class or Literature Class

1. LITERATURE CIRCLE
Reading Strategy

2. WHAT ARE LITERARY CIRCLES?
• Literature circles are smalls, temporary discussion groups of students who
have chosen to read the same work of literature. Each member agrees to
take specific responsibilities during discussion sessions. The circles meet
regularly, and the discussion roles change at each meeting. When the circle
finishes a book/story, the members decide on a way to showcase their
literary work for the rest of the class (Daniels, 1994)
• Literature circles engage students in rich conversations about shared
readings. Students can express their opinions, predictions, and questions
about a text in a productive, structured way. The teacher may ask students
to take on specific group roles, such as summarizer or director, which are
designed to develop reading, speaking, and thinking abilities. As the
students become more skilled in literature circle conversations, they can
move beyond specific role assignments.

3. WHAT ARE THE DISCUSSION
ROLES?
uses some form of
artwork to represent a
significant scene or idea
from the reading.
points out interesting or
important passages
within the reading.
finds connections
between the reading
material and something
outside the text, such as
a personal experience, a
topic studied in another
class, or a different work
of literature.
writes questions that will
lead to discussion by the
group.
writes questions that will
lead to discussion by the
group.
Literary
Luminary
Literary
Investigator
Vocabulary
Enricher
Discussion
Manager,
Leader Illustrator
Summarizer
File
Manager/
Blogger
Creative
Artist

4. WHAT ARE THE TEACHER’S
ROLE?
The teacher must
drop out from the
group The teacher must NOT
drop out from the group

5. HOW LITERATURE CIRCLES ARE
ASSESSED?
Questions:
1. Based on our literature circles, what are the most important ideas you
learned about your reading selection today?
2. How well did each member of your literature circle contribute in his or
her assigned role?
3. What went well in your literature circle?
4. What would you do to improve our literature circles?

6. WHAT ARE BENEFITS OF
LITERATURE CIRCLE?
In literature circles, every student can participate in conversation. They are
often less intimidated than they might be in a class discussion. The students
are also actively constructing their own meanings of a text, rather than
waiting for a teacher to "give" them an official meaning.
By practicing the analytic strategies of each group role, students become
cannier, more resourceful readers.
The different roles in a literature circle show students that historical texts
may embrace multiple perspectives, depending on who is telling the story of
history. As the students bring these perspectives to the entire group,
everyone benefits and learns from one another.
As students try out various roles and learn ways to talk about a text, they
begin to internalize these habits and perspectives; eventually, they can
discuss literature productively while guiding the conversation themselves.

7. MORE TEACHING STRATEGIES
• Word/Idiom/Figures of Speech Poster
• Word Gallery/Idiom Gallery/Figures of Speech Gallery
• Character Pageant/Character Costume Play
• Short Film Documentary
• Internet Blogging
• Comic Strips
• Reflective Journal