Literature Circle Discussion Guide

Name: ____________ Date:________ Book: _________________________

Discussion Director
1. __________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
2. __________________________________________________________
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Literary Luminary
Pg./Par: ______________ Reader: _________________
This event was important/ descriptive because:
___________________________________________________________
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Pg./Par: ______________ Reader: _________________
This event was important/ descriptive because:
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
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Vocabulary Enricher
(synonym, antonym, sentence, draw it, act it out, give an example, context clues)
Pg./Para: __________ Word: ______________ Plan: ___________________
Definition: ____________________________________________________
Pg./Para: __________ Word: ______________ Plan: ___________________
Definition: ____________________________________________________

Summarize the important events from the pages read.

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Illustration of an event that is important from the pages that you read. This event is
important to the story because
___________________________________________________________
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Discussion was:

Excellent

Good

Not good

Terrible

Worst part of discussion was:_______________________________________

Best part of discussion was:_________________________________________
Ill do better next time by __________________________________________

Discussion Director
Name: ______________ Book: ___________________________________
Date:_______________ Assignment: pg. ________ - pg. ___________
Possible questions or topics for today:
1. _______________________________________________________
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2. _______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
3. _______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
4. _______________________________________________________
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5. _______________________________________________________
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6. _______________________________________________________
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7. _______________________________________________________
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8. _______________________________________________________
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Characteristics of Good Questions:

Are not easily answered make you think

Have more than one possible answer
Lead to different opinions/viewpoints
Make people interpret why something happens or a character
does something
Make you predict the ending or future problems
Pose comparisons
Get you emotionally involved
Make you fill in the details from your imagination
Bring up controversial ideas
Make you notice something in a different way
Help you understand the book better
Pull different parts of the book together
Make you put yourself in the characters shoes
Lead to more follow- up questions
Connect the book with personal experiences
Focus on important parts of the story
Are interesting and get attention

Characteristics of Bad Questions:

Have a yes or no answer

You can easily find the answer
Ask for one specific detail not much to talk about
Nothing to disagree or argue about
Only one opinion is possible
Ask about something that isnt important to the story
Dont help people understand the book better
Make it hard to think of followup questions
Dont make you go back to the book
Have obvious answers; dont take much thinking
Dont connect with other parts of the story
Dont make members solve a problem or use imagination
Have nothing to do with the book
Are too vague, too general

Literary Luminary
Name: ______________ Book: ___________________________________
Date:_______________ Assignment: pg. ________ - pg. ___________
The literary luminary locates 4 sections of text to share with the group and states the
reasons for choosing the selections.
Possible reasons for picking a passage to be shared aloud:
Good dialogue
Well written
Confusing

Surprising
Figurative language
Sets a mood

Tells about characters

Funny
Thought-provoking

Passage #1
Page: ________ Paragraphs: _______Starts with: (3 words) ________________
Why did you pick this passage? _____________________________________
___________________________________________________________
Passage #2
Page: ________ Paragraphs: _______Starts with: (3 words) ________________
Why did you pick this passage? _____________________________________
___________________________________________________________
Passage #3
Page: ________ Paragraphs: _______Starts with: (3 words) ________________
Why did you pick this passage? _____________________________________
___________________________________________________________
Passage #4
Page: ________ Paragraphs: _______Starts with: (3 words) ________________
Why did you pick this passage? _____________________________________
___________________________________________________________

Illustrator
Name: ______________ Book: ___________________________________
Date:_______________ Assignment: pg. ________ - pg. ___________
The illustrator draws some kind of picture relating to the reading. It can be a sketch,
cartoon, diagram, flow chart or scene. You can draw a picture of something thats
discussed specifically on the pages that you read for today, or something that the
reading reminded you of, or a picture that conveys any idea or feeling you got from the
reading. Create your illustration on the back of this paper.
Presentation Plan: When the Discussion Director invites your participation, you
may show your picture without comment to the others in the group. One at a time, they
get to speculate what your picture means, to connect the drawing to their own ideas
about the reading. After everyone has had a say, you get the final word: Tell them what
your picture means, where it came from, or what it represents to you.
What did you draw?
___________________________________________________________
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Why did you draw it?
___________________________________________________________
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What did todays reading remind you of?
___________________________________________________________
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Summarizer
Name: ______________ Book: ___________________________________
Date:_______________ Assignment: pg. ________ - pg. ___________
The summarizers job is to prepare a brief summary of todays reading. Your group
discussion will start with your 1-2 minute statement that covers the key words (please
circle these), main highlights, general idea and essence of todays reading assignment.
Summary:
___________________________________________________________
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Most important paragraph and why:
(Include page # and paragraph #)
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
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What did todays reading remind you of?

___________________________________________________________
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Vocabulary Enricher
Name: _____________ Book: _______________________Date:______ Assignment: pg. ___ - pg. ____
The vocabulary enricher clarifies word meanings and pronunciations. In this role, the person writes how the word
was used in the story and looks up each word in the dictionary. This person would also find the correct definition of
the word.
Page#
Paragraph#

Word

Sentence starts
with

Plans:
1. Group finds words and figures out meaning form context.
2. Group chooses correct definition from dictionary.
3. Group uses word in a sentence.
4. Group chooses finds a synonym and antonym for the word.
5. Group illustrates the meaning of the word.
6. Group act out the definition.

Definition

Plan
number

Scene Setter
Name: _____________ Book: _______________________Date:______ Assignment: pg. ___ - pg. ____
What was the most important scene in the pages that you read? Draw or write about the scene that you chose.

Explain why you picked this scene to your group. Do they agree with you?

_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________

Progress Processor
Name: ______________ Book: ___________________________________
Date:_______________ Assignment: pg. _________ - pg. ___________
The progress-processor is to assess the process and progress of the literature circle
group and its discussion. Your evaluation will not be used when determining group
members grades. Instead, the assessment sheet below should give a snapshot of how
your group did in terms of discussing the book and working cooperatively.
The most important thing we talked about in todays discussion was _____
___________________________________________________________
Our plans for our next group discussion are ________________________
___________________________________________________________
Y= Yes

N=No

Name: __________________________ Role: ________________________

_____ Came to the discussion completely prepared (pages and role sheet done)
_____ Contributed to the groups discussion yet encouraged others to contribute also
_____ Remained focused on the discussion (no distracting/inappropriate behavior)
Name: __________________________ Role: ________________________
_____ Came to the discussion completely prepared (pages and role sheet done)
_____ Contributed to the groups discussion yet encouraged others to contribute also
_____ Remained focused on the discussion (no distracting/inappropriate behavior)
Name: __________________________ Role: ________________________
_____ Came to the discussion completely prepared (pages and role sheet done)
_____ Contributed to the groups discussion yet encouraged others to contribute also
_____ Remained focused on the discussion (no distracting/inappropriate behavior)
Name: __________________________ Role: ________________________
_____ Came to the discussion completely prepared (pages and role sheet done)
_____ Contributed to the groups discussion yet encouraged others to contribute also
_____ Remained focused on the discussion (no distracting/inappropriate behavior)
The best/worst thing that happened in our discussion today was ________
___________________________________________________________

Literature Circles Roles and Responsibilities

Discussion Director - Yellow
Prepares 5-8 questions about the assignment to use in discussion
o Questions are good when they:
Dont analyze small details
Come from your own thoughts and feelings
Ask you why, not what
Need more than a one word answer
Ask for support from the reading
Require drawing conclusions or making predictions
Ask about cause or effect
Require comparing, analyzing, interpreting or classifying
Are different kinds of questions that cover the entire reading
Calls group to order
Asks each question clearly
Allows time for discussion
Makes sure only one student speaks at a time
Literary Luminary Blue
Selects 3-5 passages for reading aloud or silently with group
o Thoughtful choices include:
Dialogue between characters
Unusual description
Similie, idiom, personification or metaphor
An exciting or funny part
A selection which creates a mood or feeling
The idea is to help people remember important parts of the text
Directs the group in sharing the parts of the book orally
Vocabulary Enricher/ Scene Setter Gold
Prepares a list of 6 words which are:
o Unfamiliar, but have good context clues
o Unfamiliar, and need defining/explaining
o Familiar, but are used in an unusual way
o Difficult to pronounce or foreign
o Repeated
Plans how to share each word:
o Use context clues
o Use a dictionary or thesaurus
o Illustrate it
Describes the most important scene in the assignment through either drawing or
writing

Literature Circles Roles and Responsibilities

Illustrator/Checker Pink
Draws some kind of picture related to the reading
Any kind of drawing is okay:
o Sketch
o Cartoon
o Diagram or map
Presents illustration to the group
Fills in check sheet
o Announces next reading, assigns next jobs and distributes role sheets
Summarizer Green
Prepares a summary of the reading
Identifies 4 key points
Makes connections from the reading to:
o The real-world, news events
o Other types of media, other books, movies, tv shows
o School events
Shares with the group

Remember:
Roles rotate daily
Next assignment must be clearly set at the end of each meeting
Role sheets and participation in group discussions will determine your
grade
Failure to work cooperatively within group will lead to removal
MAKE GOOD CHOICES!