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Literature Circle Models

Overview of Literature Circle Models

I've had success with all the models below, but all models haven't been successful with all groups of students. Read through the various descriptions and find something that feels right to you. Please do not try to implement all of the ideas at once or you will become overwhelmed! After you have read through the materials, you might find it helpful to print the handout Design Your Own Literature Circle Program to assist you in planning your book discussion group! By the way, all the files handouts and files listed at the bottom of the page are in PDF format. You'll need to have Adobe Acrobat installed to view and print them. If you have problems, go to my Adobe Help Page. Note: All blackline masters and worksheets described below can be located by clicking on the link or visiting the Literature Circle Printables page.

Basic Literature Circle Model

I love this model because it's a very flexible approach. Here are the basic steps:

  1. Choose 3 or 4 books (easy, average, and challenging) and obtain multiple copies of each title. You'll need 6 to 8 copies of each depending on your class size.
  2. Present the books to students and allow them to write their preferences in order on an index card. Use that information and your knowledge of their reading skills to create reading groups.
  3. Make a response journal for each student or have them bring in a notebook for this purpose. It's fun to let the kids create their own mini response journals using the booklet pages. Duplicate the pages (double-sided) and have kids fold them in half. They can make a cover from construction paper and glue a copy of the Response Journal Prompts on the inside.
  4. Students read alone, with a partner, or in small groups. Instead of me assigning a certain number of pages per week, I've been really successful with having the kids set their own daily page goals. Each day they get together for a few minutes to check on how everyone's doing and to decide how many more pages they want to read for the next day.
  5. As students read, they mark discussion points in their books with sticky notes or write in response journals, and they bring their notes and questions to the meeting with them. Once a week, they write a full response in their mini journal. They use the Response Journal Prompts glued inside their covers to guide them.
  6. On the Literature Circle meeting day I meet with one group at a time, or move from group to group as they meet simultaneously. At that time they read from their response journals and reference the sticky notes they've used to mark passages. Sometimes they are involved in an activity such as creating a graphic organizer or finding examples of imagery in their books. The Literature Circle Format sheet can be used to guide the discussion.
  7. When a group finishes a book, they evaluate their participation by using the Literature Circle Reflection Form or some other evaluation form. I collect their journals and the forms, and I use them in assigning a grade for that round of Literature Circles.

Getting Started With Literature Circles is a terrific resource for this model. The book has a companion resource called Literature Circles Resource Guide which is very useful. In fact, the Literature Circle Reflection Form I use to evaluate my students is adapted from a form I found in this book. The resource guide also comes with a CD-Rom that contains a huge database of books which is searchable by author, title, theme, genre, etc. You can find more information at the Literature Circles Resource Center.

Talking Sticks Literature Circle

This model is a slight variation of basic Literature Circles. Students read their books independently for several days, completing a Response Bookmark each day. Also, throughout the week they jot down questions that they want to discuss on their Literature Circle meeting day (Fridays work well for me as a meeting day). Just before meeting with the group, the teacher posts a journal prompt and each person writes a response in their journal. Possible questions include:

After students write their responses, put them in groups of 3 or 4 students. Choose a leader for each group, and give the leader a copy of the Talking Sticks Literature Circle directions. You'll need a plastic cup and 2 popsicle sticks or craft sticks for each team member. Ask the leaders to read the directions aloud so the group can follow them. The Talking Sticks feature is a discussion regulator. When a group member wants to add to the discussion, he or she holds out a stick and puts it in the cup. When they run out of sticks, they have to be quiet until everyone else uses their sticks. When that happens, the leader passes out the sticks again and the discussion continues. Note: Remind students not to tap the sticks or play with them during the meeting. The sticks stay on the table until the student wants to contribute to the discussion.

As the students meet to discuss the book, circulate through the room to observe their discussions and interactions. When each group appears to be finished, check in with them as they decide how many pages to read before the next meeting. In 5th grade, I encourage them to set their goals for about 15 to 20 pages a day. Any more than that and kids start falling behind. Reading less than 15 to 20 pages will result in boredom for most of the group. 

Mini Literature Circles

Are you required to use a basal reading program in your classroom? Many programs have leveled readers that can be used as a way of introducing Literature Circles. Leveled readers are thin paperback stories or nonfiction selections, and they are written on a variety of reading levels. A Mini Literature Circle can be done in one or two days depending on the time allowed. Assign 3 or 4 students to a leveled reader based on their reading level. Alternatively, allow students to browse through the selection and choose the group they want to join. If you have 6 or 7 copies of each book, split the group in half for the Literature Circle discussion since the groups seem to work best with 3 or 4 students. Give class time for students to read the leveled reader alone, with a partner, or with audio support. Then provide a Journal Prompt such as the ones described in the section above. Allow class time to write a response, then form discussion groups. Print out the Mini Literature Circle directions, and give to one person in each group who will serve as the discussion leader. Each person will need 2 popsicle sticks or craft sticks for the Talking Sticks discussion method used in this activity. As the students meet to discuss the book, circulate through the room to observe their discussions and interactions.

 Modified Literature Circles

After using Literature Circles for many years, I dedcided to modify the structure a bit to better meet the needs of my slow learners. They just couldn't keep up with the longer reading assignments and large homework packet. They invariably left their materials at home, procrastinated, and finally got left out of the meeting due to not being prepared. My new format for this group (about 1/3 of my class) requires the help of a teacher assistant, student teacher, or tutor to work best, but teachers without assistants may be able to find a way to make it work. 

In the modified format, we use easier, shorter books and do about one book per week. Boxcar Children books work well with this if you can get multiple copies. The students meet every single day with my assistant or in some cases a parent volunteer if the assistant is not available. They do some Roundrobin reading aloud for a chapter or two, and stop to discuss ideas and word meanings as needed. After the meeting, the assistant assigns a few chapters to read for homework and gives them a Response Slip. You may recognize this as the Lunch Bunch format! It's quick and easy and doesn't involve a lot of work. On the back of the slip they have to write a one or two sentence summary of the chapters they read. Then they meet again the very next day. The kids have really enjoyed this format, and they all finished their book and scored at least an 80 on the AR test. What a breakthrough!

I designed an evaluation form to use with this new type of Literature Circle since I don't get a packet of work from the students. It provides a place to record notes on participation and preparation. At the end of the week, you can assign a grade based on the scores recorded each day. I also count their AR test grade as a comprehension grade in reading. 

Literature Circles with Roles

Some students enjoy having roles within their Literature Circles. These roles rotate for each meeting. One way to use roles is to use the full Literature Packet or the more simple Literature Circles Preparation Form. Give students a copy of the Literature Circle Role Descriptions. Make one Role Finder Dial per team. Assign each person on the team one role and have them prepare their assignment as described. On the day of the meeting, all students complete their worksheet during the meeting itself. For the next meeting, turn the dial one place to see the new role assignments. Students keep rotating roles until they finish their book. You might want to be aware that many teachers are moving away from Literature Circles with roles to less structured approaches. Sometimes the use of roles prevents deeper discussion of the book.

Nonfiction Literature Circles

Eventually, I began to do Literature Circles with nonfiction books, and at first I used the same basic format as my fiction circles. Then I realized that nonfiction books are different and the meeting structure could benefit from some tweaking. First of all, I developed some Nonfiction Response Questions for their Reading Response Logs. Then I decided to allow students to read together every day since the text is generally more difficult for them. They don't do well with reading on their own when the vocabulary is so challenging. They also seem to like to talk about all the new things they are learning. So now we have what we call "reading days" and what we call "meeting days." On the reading days they simply read together and take notes on what they are reading. They may stop and discuss the material, but they shouldn't get bogged down for too long. When they finish the book, we schedule a Meeting Day. They have to write a response in their Response Log prior to the meeting. On the day of the meeting they read their responses and discuss what they thought of the book. I try to meet with each group for a few minutes, and I generally have Discussion Cards that they discuss together. I prepare a different set of question cards for each book, and the questions guide them through some of the more important points of the book. (See sample - Whales and Dolphins). Finally, they take their AR test on the book and complete the Nonfiction Reflection Form.

Structured Literature Circles

This method is a very structured approach to Literature Circles. It does not involve roles or having teams meet simultaneously. This method requires each group to meet once a week with the teacher in a small group setting. The other students use this time to independently read and prepare for their own Literature Circle meetings. The entire process takes about a month. I give out the books during Week 1, and each group has one Literature Circle meeting a week for the next 3 weeks.

Materials: In order to best understand this method, you should print out the following files: Literature Circle Packet, Literature Circle Assignment Dates, Character Map,  Reading Response Questions, Venn Diagram, and the Story Plot Flow Map. You'll also need How to Lead a Literature Circle.

Skills to Introduce Prior to Literature Circles

Prior to implementing Literature Circles, you will want to introduce the skills that students will be expected to use in completing the Literature Packet. Use your basal reader, a class novel, or a read-aloud novel to introduce the following skills:

Structured Literature Packet Assembly:

Assemble one Literature Packet for each student by placing the pages in the order described below. Each lesson consists of the same 2 pages plus a different graphic organizer. The graphic organizers listed below are just suggestions. You can use any graphic organizers that seem appropriate for the book. This packet will last them the entire month. I run off the whole packet and staple it together. I punch 3 holes in the packet and my students put their packets in pocket folders.

Structured Literature Circle Steps:
  1. Choose three books for which you can find multiple copies. If you have 24 students, you will need approximately 8 copies of each book, plus one of each for yourself. It's best to choose a challenging book, an average book, and an easy book to meet the needs of different students in your class.
  2. Allow students to choose which book circle they would like to join. You can post a sign-up sheet or have the kids write their choices on slips of paper for you to assign. Students generally choose the level that's right for them. If a student chooses a book that's too difficult, I pull the student aside and have them read a page of the book aloud to me. If they aren't convinced, I point out that they will have to read many more pages a week than the other groups. If they still want the book, I let them give it a try. (I allow them to switch books before the first meeting date if I have enough copies.)
  3. Divide each book into 3 sections, always ending at the end of a chapter. Decide which day of the week you will meet with each group. I try to keep the same day of the week for the for each group. (I generally avoid having meetings on Monday. Many children seem to forget their assignments over the weekend and come to class unprepared.) 
  4. For each book, fill out one section of the Literature Circle Assignment Dates form. Duplicate 9 or 10 copies and cut them apart. The students use these as bookmarks to help remind them of their assignment dates.
  5. Give each student one Literature Packet and the novel they chose. Have them transfer the meeting date information into the front of the packet in case they lose their Assignment slip. Allow some class time for silent reading and independent preparation of the first lesson (3 pages in the packet.) Explain that on the Question page, the students should write 3 of their own questions and answer them. You will give them the Teacher Question right before they sit down to have their circle meeting. (This is your chance to assess whether or not they really read the section!)
  6. For each Literature Circle Meeting, follow the steps outlined in How to Lead a Literature Circle Meeting.
  7. Prior to the last meeting, have students illustrate their favorite part of the book and write a caption to go with the picture. Allow them to share their illustrations during the final Literature Circle Meeting.

Management Ideas:


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