Interactive

Literature

Circles

Traditional

Literature Circles

Also Included!

©2014 erin cobb

imlovinlit.com

Grades 4-8

Includes Complete “How-To” Guide

Interactive Literature Circles

Table of Contents

©2014 erin cobb imlovinlitcom

Literature Circle Teacher’s Guide 3-5

Sample Bookmarks 6

Interactive Literature Circles

Construction Guide for Interactive Literature Circles 7-11

Cover Page for Interactive Literature Circles 12

Interactive Literature Circles: Discussion Director 13-19

Interactive Literature Circles: Character Sketcher 20-24

Interactive Literature Circles: Passage Picker 25-26

Interactive Literature Circles: Word Wizard 27-31

Interactive Literature Circles: Figurative Language Finder 32-36

Literature Circle Rubrics (for Interactive & Traditional) 37

Peer Evaluation Form 38

Traditional Literature Circles

Traditional Literature Circles: Discussion Director 40-41

Traditional Literature Circles: Character Sketcher 42-45

Traditional Literature Circles: Passage Picker 46

Traditional Literature Circles: Word Wizard 47-48

Traditional Literature Circles: Figurative Language Finder 49-50

Credits 51

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Interactive Literature Circles Teacher’s Guide

©2014 erin cobb imlovinlitcom

About This Product After doing literature circles for a few years and in a few different ways, I decided to do an interactive version this year. Of course, literature circles are, by nature, very interactive. Students are interacting constantly with their classmates and with the literature. But I wanted to throw the “interactive notebook” element in there. I found that, overall, my students took more pride in their weekly role work and did better work to go along with it. Just in case you’re not ready to dive into the interactive element of literature circles just yet, I included the plain, old-fashioned literature circles. Those are still wonderful and the roles are essentially the same. The main difference is that the students are doing their work on paper instead of foldables. One more note – I like to give each group a binder or folder that contains all of the handouts they’ll need for the entire unit so that they can be self-sufficient.  

How I Manage Literature Circles 1.  Book Selection 2.  Quizzes (YES, quizzes!) 3.  Role Assignments & Work 4.  The Actual Reading 5.  Group Meetings 6.  Student Choice 1 – Book Selection I’d love to tell you that I pour through books, comparing their literary value and choosing only the best of the best for my literature circles. Unfortunately, I live in the real world. The books you’ll find in my literature circle selection were found

a) as bargains ($1-$2) in the Scholastic Book Clubs brochure b) on the clearance shelf at Books-a-Million c) in my classroom closet as a former class novel (from a past teacher) d) as online specials on eBay, Amazon, etc. e) purchased used from thriftbooks.com

Here are some books that have worked well for my literature circles in the past: 6th Grade (3-Week Lit Circles) – Number the Stars, If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period, Rules, My Life As a Book, The Cat Ate My Gymsuit 7th Grade (4-Week Lit Circles) – I Am David, The Eleventh Plague, Al Capone Does My Shirts, Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie, Rules of Survival, Trouble

Throughout the year, I keep my eyes open for books I can purchase 8-12 of cheaply for possible literature circle books to expand my choices. When planning a round of literature circles, I try to give students 5-6 different choices with a variety of genres and topics, and I try to keep them all about the same length. I look up their AR point values at arbookfinder.com and try to keep them within a point or two of each other.

Once I select a book, I have to make sure I have enough copies that each student can have his own. This is crucial, because if a student is absent, he’ll need a book to catch up with. I assign certain sections to be read on certain days (more on that in a bit), and to hold the students accountable for this, each student MUST have his own copy of the book. He MUST be able to bring it home at any time. The students also need to be able to use sticky notes throughout their book without interfering with someone else’s notes.

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Interactive Literature Circles Construction Guide

©2014 erin cobb imlovinlitcom

Step 1, Continued 6.  Color, cut out, and glue the cover page onto the front of your lapbook. On the blank book, add

the title of the book your group is reading. 7.  Color and cut out the discussion question pocket. Be careful when you glue at the bottom of page

2 that you only put dots on the side and bottom edge, leaving the top edge open. See the photos for item 7 below.

8.  Color and cut out the word pockets. Be sure to check if you need 3 or 4, depending on your scheduled weeks and/or number of members. You’ll need to glue them overlapping by about an inch if you’re using 4 pockets. Just like in the discussion director’s pocket, be sure to only put glue dots on the sides and bottom edges. These go on page 4. See the photos below.

9.  Color and cut out the figurative language tabs. Be sure to check with your teacher to find out which ones you’ll be using. You’ll need to fold the top tab section forward and glue only the tab down. Start at the top. If you’re using 8, you’ll need to “underlap” these by about an inch. To do this, glue the second row’s tab down just under the first tab. See the example photo below.

6   7a   7b  

8a  

8b (start at the top)  

8c  

9a   9b  

9c  

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Interactive Literature Circles Discussion Director

©2014 erin cobb imlovinlitcom

You will serve as the group’s leader for the week. Your assignment is to write down at least four questions that your group can talk about. As the Discussion Director, it’s your job to promote quality discussion within your group. Be sure to write questions that allow discussion instead of questions that simply require a right or wrong answer. This means using open-ended questions instead of close-ended questions. If there is only one correct answer to your question, then it is not open ended. You must also be sure to ask questions that require your group members to refer to the text and use evidence to support or justify their answers. Use the “How to Write Discussion Questions” handout to help you.

When your group has its weekly meeting, you will lead the meeting with the following format: 1.  Start the meeting by reviewing which chapters were assigned, and which group

member is doing each role. 2.  Begin with the discussion questions you wrote. Pass out your question cards so

that each group member has one. Advise your group to read the question and open the card to respond on the left side only. Allow about 3-4 minutes (or until everyone is finished) and then have group members pass the cards to someone else. The second person answering will write their answer on the right side. Wait another few minutes and repeat until all of your question cards are complete.

3.  Read each question and read at least one of the answers. Ask your group members if anyone has anything to contribute.

4.  Ask the Passage Picker to share his/her quotes, explanations, and questions. When they have finished, ask the group “Does anyone have any more comments or questions for the Passage Picker?”

5.  Ask the Character Sketcher to share his/her sketch and discuss the traits, goal, problem, and solution. Then, invite other group members to comment on or ask questions about the sketch.

6.  Ask the Word Wizard to share his/her cards. As he/she is sharing, each member should be making a definition card for each word. The Word Wizard will provide specific instructions.

7.  If your group has a Figurative Language Finder, have him share his figurative language examples. Each member should be filing at least 4 examples in his Figurative Language File Cabinet.

8.  Let your teacher know that your meeting is finished. She may give each member an evaluation form to rate members of your group or have additional questions for your group.

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Interactive Literature Circles Discussion Director

©2014 erin cobb imlovinlitcom

How to Write Discussion Questions

YES NO Open-Ended + Evidence Close-Ended OR No Evidence

How does the author characterize Little Man in the first chapter? What is Little Man so picky about?

How does Cassie feel about school? How do you know this? Does Cassie like school?

How does Ms. Crocker’s attitude about the books differ from Mama’s attitude about the books?

What did Mama do when she saw the book?

In what ways is Cassie’s first day of school like your first day? In what ways are they different?

How did Cassie get to school on her first day?

Do you think Little Man had a right to throw a tantrum like he did? Tell why or why not. Did Little Man throw a tantrum?

Do you think Little Man should be in trouble when he gets home? Why or why not? When Little Man got home, was he in trouble?

What do you think the Logan children are going to do about the bus later in the book? Would you be mad if the bus splashed you?

Do you agree with Cassie that Mr. Morrison is there because of the burnings? Explain. According to Cassie, why is Mr. Morrison there?

What kind of friend is T.J.? How do you know? What does T.J. want the Logans to do?

How would the chapter have been different if Mr. Morrison hadn’t been staying with the Logans?

When did Mr. Morrison get there?

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Interactive Literature Circles

©2014 erin cobb imlovinlitcom

Credits: Teacher’s Scrapbook, Teaching in the Tongass, KG Fonts

Visit my blog at http://imlovinlit.blogspot.com

Also available from my interactive series:  

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