Why should we use Literature Circles in our reading classes? 

When I was a student, we used to retell to each other different chapters of books in Reading classes. Sure, retelling as an effective reading comprehension strategy for young ESL learners. But if you are doing the same thing over and over in one class, not only students but also teachers get exhausted. 

So, when I became a teacher and it was my turn to teach I decided to use various reading strategies to keep the class awake, alive, and responsible through the Literature Circles. 

As for main reasons my students and me enjoy using Literature Circles in our Reading Class:

• They provide opportunities to read, write, speak, and listen. 

• Students interact in groups and are held accountable for individual roles. 

• They are student directed. 

• They are engaging.

First, before starting reading the book, we conduct a survey and find out which book is the most interesting for them. Most of my students are not interested in love novels, but rather adventurous, mysterious stories where you can’t predict an ending and solve the problems instantly. 

If you start searching for “Literature Circles” you should definitely find a big amount of information about them. Teachers all over the globe suggest different roles for Literature Circles. Personally, we use these four roles in our Reading classes:

• Super Summarizer

• Discussion Director

• Creative Connector

• Word Wizard

Summarizer’s job is to prepare a brief summary of certain book chapters. Discussion Director should develop a list of questions that his/her group might want to discuss about specific parts of the book. Connector needs to find connections between the book his/her group is reading and the world outside. Word Wizard has to be on the lookout for a few especially important words.

After assigning the roles, I give them the Literature Circle Role sheets and self-assessment papers to make sure they understand their roles and requirements they need to meet. 

What I love most about this strategy is that using it each student speaks up and contribute to the group discussion by sharing his/her ideas. They realize they have a voice and may lead the discussion in a very productive and engaging way.