The Power of Literature Circles in the Classroom by Elena Aguilar
My six-year-old son has finally, really started reading. It's
thrilling to watch him grab book after book off his overflowing
shelves and read stories he's been hearing for years. Now he wants
to take books to school so that during recess, he can entice his
friends to sit together and read. He says it will be called the
"Reading Club."
"I was in a book club once," I said, explaining how a group of
friends read the same novel and then discussed it over dinner. My
son loved the idea and immediately started brainstorming who he'd
invite, when they'd meet, what they'd read, and what they'd
eat.
But the rabbit hole of nostalgia that I tumbled into was of my
experience as a teacher facilitating literature circles. I get kind
of giddy and dreamy-eyed when I remember what it felt like to
circulate through a class of seventh graders meeting in lit
circles, when I remember their arguments about a character's
actions, or the post-its covered in notes that stuck out of the
pages, or the pleas for a few more minutes when I'd say we were out
of time. During literature circle meetings my classroom vibrated
with learning, passion, and joy.
Why Literature Circles?
I promise to provide practical resources on the how, when,
where, what of lit circles, but let me first make a case for why
every K-12 classroom should institute some version of literature
circles.
Reason #1: Literature circles can be a place
for cooperative learning. Students help each other understand a
text and make sense of it. Lit circles teach kids how to use each
other as resources and become independent learners. Of course, in
order for them to be an effective structure for cooperative
learning, the teacher needs to intentionally develop them as such.
Without guidance, modeling and support, they aren't automatically
places of collaboration.
Reason #2: Literature circles allow students to
make choices about their learning. Students are usually given the
opportunity to select one of several books that they'd like to
read. They can also have a say about who to be with in a book
group. All children desperately need more opportunities to make
choices in school. Choice leads to deeper engagement, increased
intrinsic motivation, and an opportunity for guided-decision
making.
Reason #3: Literature circles are fun, in part
because they are social experiences. Students are expected
to talk a lot, (in contrast to the rest of their time at school) to
debate and argue their ideas. Students are invited to bring their
experiences and feelings into the classroom and to share them.
Reading has to be fun some of the time; if we don't make
the experience enjoyable, our students are not likely to continue
it once they're released from our grip.
Furthermore, when we experience joy or pleasure, we feel more
connected to a place, and to the people in that place. It was an
imperative that my middle school students felt connected to school
and had positive academic interactions with their classmates. As in
many urban districts, the drop out rate in Oakland, California is
terribly high; research reveals that students drop out primarily
because they don't feel connected to a place or its people.
Therefore I'll argue that a structure like literature circles,
when functioning as a place of connection and fun, can serve to
anchor our kids in school. Our students will not master standards
and perform on exams if we cannot keep them in our classrooms; lit
circles can help do that.
Reason #4: Finally, because they are fun,
because students have choice, and because they are a cooperative
learning structure, literature circles are powerful experiences for
reluctant and/or struggling readers. Literature circles have to be
differentiated; by nature each group will read books at different
levels on different topics. Struggling readers can select a text at
their level; the teacher can provide direct support to that group
or can include a couple of higher-readers.
One important note (now moving into the details): students
should be offered many genres -- "literature circles" does not
imply only fiction. My struggling readers (often boys) wanted
mostly non-fiction. (A fascinating book on this topic is Reading Don't Fix No Chevys: Literacy in the
Lives of Young Men.)
Resources for the "Who, What, When, and Where"
Of course, in order for lit circles to be fun places where
students learn cooperatively, there's a lot that a teacher needs to
do. Fortunately, there are many resources for creating
high-functioning literature circles. To start with, try checking
out these resources:
I'm off to cook up some green soup for my son's first book club
meeting. They're starting with a classic: Green Eggs and
Ham. My son plans to debate the ethics of eating animals. I
can't wait to hide in the hallway and listen.