When I was a child, I loved to read. I could easily dive into a book and not surface for air until it was over. After I began to read the first few pages, I magically entered a new world that opened so many doors for me. Each new book allowed me to learn and look into different worlds that I never knew about. But it was a solo endeavor for me. Sadly, the one aspect of reading that was missing for me was the deep exploration that you get from learning with peers. In my elementary school, the teachers didn't seem willing and/or we were never given the opportunity for interaction of exploring what classmates were thinking about or hearing the opinions of how the "stuff" that certain books made us feel. (My definition of "stuff" is the feelings that certain words or themes bring up when you are reading.)
That was the 1980s. Maybe we weren't in touch with ourselves as much as we are now. In 2012, language arts programs are much more robust, fluid programs that are child centered by design yet structured to offer many different portals for students to connect to when it comes to language arts. Literature circles is one aspect of a comprehensive language arts program that I have truly come to appreciate for many reasons.
As I was doing some research for this blog post, I came across a few different websites that talk about lit circles (as they are affectionally known). There was one website that I especially enjoyed reading about the practice of lit circles (www.litcircles.org). In its simplest form, lit circles are when groups of students get together to discuss a piece of shared literature. Students are directed by a teacher to look at a certain aspect of the book.
The website that I perused broke literature circles into "are/are not" categories. I thought I'd investigate the "ares" below.
Literature circles are...reading response centered. Walk into a 4th or 5th grade classroom here and you see students engaged with different books of their choosing. Students respond to literature in many different ways, why not allow them to really delve deep with their own feelings and thoughts. Literature circles allow for this type of thinking.
Literature circles are...part of a balanced literacy program. Lit circles are not meant to replace standard reading groups or grade-wide novels. At LGA, we often have two grades come together allowing for more choices for students and greater interaction between students.
Literature circles are...groups formed by book choice. Students choose from a list of three or four books and teachers divide students up according to interest. At times, I have seen books similar in topic being chosen so that whole class discussions can be generated. Students can also share different aspects of any one topic. This adds an interesting layer to discussions and often sparks interest in reading other books that are based on the same subject.
Literature circles are...structured for student independence, responsibility and ownership. Now some of you may have deduced that if there are four different groups going on in any one classroom how can one or two teachers monitor and be a part of all of the groups all of the time. The answer is that the teachers aren't there all the time and this is really OK. I have walked into a 5th grade classroom where students were having a lively debate and there wasn't a teacher around them to monitor. There was respect and a lively discussion filled with different opinions. Students have to take ownership of their part. Since we assume that students picked the books because they are interested this usually leads to the type of student behaviors that are looked upon favorably.
Literature circles are...guided primarily by student insights and questions. Teachers at LGA often give conversation starters but then the students take it to the next level. Lit circles often spark an interest in a student that no one could have anticipated. Students generate good questions about the books. Interesting conversation takes over.
Literature circles are...intended as a context in which to apply reading and writing skills. So think of the opposite here. It is not intended to do skills work. A child isn't going to necessarily learn new skills because of lit circles. Students need to take what they have learned and apply it to this one specific aspect of our language arts program. We are asking students to articulate feelings, think deeply, and contextualize reasoning when it comes to reading. Not always an easy task especially for a 3rd grader but when we take away the pressure of skill building, we see great results.
Literature circles are...flexible and fluid; never look the same twice. This speaks for itself. There are so many reasons for this.
One of the most beneficial aspects of literature circles is that they require our students to go beyond the words in the book. This was a gift that I was never given as a young student. The opportunity to challenge ones thinking is a skill that has to be nurtured from a young age. As students approach middle and high school, they are expected to analyze a piece of text and form an opinion very quickly. Literature circles allow for this to happen.
In the end, I have highlighted three aspects of our vibrant language arts curriculum that I believe speak to what a 21st century learner needs to succeed in school. When we see how our students respond to text, we know that we are going down the right path.
No comments:
Post a Comment