Roald Dahl’s Magic Finger Literature Circle with Third Grade Students

This literature circle of gifted third graders was formed when it was felt their needs were not being met in the regular classroom. They are currently compacting the curriculum of our reading series and spending the gained time in literature circle. The goal was to build the students’ skills in thinking about what they have read and understanding the different types of questions. Our first book was Magic Finger by Roald Dahl. It was one chosen by the students from a list recommended by their regular classroom teacher. I felt it was a good length for introducing literature circles to the group of five.

As an extension project the group decided to determine key scenes from the story, create a diorama based on the scene, and write a paragraph describing the scene and its importance. The dioramas were shared with the students’ classmates.

Grading was done through a simple rubric. After a discussion on the rubric the students graded themselves; as did I. The group has been very excited and can’t wait to start their next book by Roald Dahl, Matilda. Hopefully comparisons between books and a discussion of Dahl’s style will enter the literature circles during our next round.

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