The Literature Circles Resource Center is designed to support teachers as they plan and use literature circles in their elementary and middle school classrooms.   The site supplements two books on literature circles: Getting Started with Literature Circles by Katherine L. Schlick Noe and Nancy J. Johnson (Christopher-Gordon, 1999) and Literature Circles in Middle School: One Teacher's Journey by Bonnie Campbell Hill, Katherine L. Schlick Noe, and Janine A. King (Christopher-Gordon, 2003).  However, the Literature Circles Resource Center is also designed to stand on its own -- teachers can look through the entire site before beginning or can simply concentrate on one area at a time.

To begin, click below to get an overview of the site's organization -- or go directly to key questions answered by this site.  Clicking on a component (in Organization) or a question (in Key Questions) will take you directly to the related place in this site.

Organization

Key Questions

    The site is organized by the components of literature circles:

Overview:  Explanation of the purpose of literature circles and how they fit into a balanced literacy curriciulum in grades 1 - 8.

Structure:  Teachers explain how they organize literature circles at primary grades and intermediate grades/middle school

Choosing Books:  Suggestions for selecting books for literature circles, and process for students to choose books to read.  Includes good books for varying grade levels, abilities, interests, and classroom instructional focus.

Discussion:  Guiding students to learn the fine art of conversation.

Written Response:  Using written response to encourage engagement with literature, as well as to foster personal connection and deepen comprehension.

Extension Projects:  Encouraging artistic response to extend students' understanding of and engagement with literature.

Contact Us: Talk with other teachers whose classrooms and ideas appear in this site!

Teacher Resources:  Suggestions for additional resources on literature circles.

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Key Questions

    This site attempts to answer some of the burning questions that stand in the way of getting started (or persevering) with literature circles.  You may want to start with your most pressing questions and go directly to the related sections of this site.

    To find an answer, click on the  next to a question.
 
Questions

        ... about the "big picture":
   What are literature circles, and how do they fit into a balanced literacy program?
  How long will each literature circle unit last in primary grades?
  How long will each literature circle unit last in intermediate grades/middle school?
    How many literature circle units should I plan in a year?

        ... about structuring groups:
    How many groups should I have?
    How do I form groups?
    How do I make sure the groups are workable and as many students as possible get their first choice book?
    Do students have to have roles?
    Do the groups need a facilitator or leader?  And do I need to do that?

        ... about books:
    What makes a good literature circle book?
    What books do I start with?
    How do I get multiple copies?
    How do I find books to fit a range of reading abilities and interests?
    How can I find out about good book lists?

        ... about challenged readers?
    What about my students who aren't strong readers?  Can they still participate in literature circles?
    What about my ESL students?

        ... about discussions:
    How do I help students prepare for discussions?
    How can we develop discussion guidelines together?
    How can I foster quality discussions?
    What should I look for (and help students look for) in their discussions?
    How can I record my observations of discussions?

        ... about written response:
    What do journals look like?
    What do students write about?
    How many entries do students write a week?
    How much time should I allow for journal responses?
    Should students write in their journals before they discuss or after or does it matter?
    Do students use their journals in their discussion?  If so, how?
    How do I get more than one-sentence responses?
    How do I respond to all the entries?
    What should I look for (and help students look for) in their written response?

        ... about focus lessons:
    Where can I get a list of focus lesson topics I might want to/need to teach?
    How will I know if they're comprehending the books if I'm not asking questions?

        ... about extension projects:
    What is the purpose of an extension project?
    How do I help students plan their projects?
    How can I make sure students revisit the book through their extension project?
    How can I  foster quality artistic responses?
    What should I look for (and help students look for) in their extension projects?

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