My reading
club voted to read The Tale of Despereaux by Kate
DiCamillo. Our club meets after school and has thirteen members.
Because all the students wanted to read this selection we
decided to use a modified format for our literature circle.
Students took turns with the different roles, and some roles
(word wizard, illustrator) were shared so all students could
participate. This worked out well, and the larger group size
gave students an opportunity to verbalize content, listen to
other modes of thinking and hear their classmates’ perspectives.
The students interacted in the media center’s comfortable
environment and were able to express their ideas and opinions
freely.
We have had
many opportunities for extension projects. We participated in a
moderated online author’s chat with
Kate DiCamillo. The
effect of chatting with the award winning author of the book
they were reading lasted for many reading club meetings.
For the
Literature Circle Extension Project my students, based on their
particular learning styles and interests formed groups. They
brainstormed and came up with the following projects to share
with you:
Our next
selection is The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg.
We have begun researching the life cycle of turtles and are
planning a tea party to celebrate the end of the school year. |