This unit introduces book clubs/literature circles to lower elementary classes, but could be adapted to higher grades. It outlines the anticipatory activity that includes a WebQuest, a discussion to clarify questions about the unit,...

Role sheets clearly define expectations of all group members in this introduction to literature circles. By using a variety of picture books or short texts, readers can practice roles while the teacher circulates to each group observing...

Tired of those blank stares after your class reads a particularly complex passage from a Shakespearean play? Help high schoolers untangle that prose with a literature circle activity. Ten different roles prompt class members to focus on...

Introduce literature circles with Roland Smith's novels. Your seventh graders will see the activity modeled as you read The Three Little Pigs together and apply the format to a Roland Smith novel of their choice. The lesson includes...

Make reading more enjoyable and interactive with literature circles! Here you'll find detailed lessons to begin the literature circle process. Ten lessons introduce each role learners take on. Literature circle roles include...

Have you always wanted to try Literature Circles in your ELD class, but couldn't find a good way to start? This lesson is made for you, your middle-school readers and ideally, your SMARTboard (though the lesson could function without...

Get learners excited about reading with literature circles! Small groups discuss the day's reading in various roles, including Discussion Director, Summarizer, Word Wizard, Literary Luminary, Travel Tracer, Connector, and Fact Finder,...

Keeping readers focused during literature discussion circles can sometimes be a challenge. Check out this worksheet that ensures accountability by establishing six very specific, very different roles for group members: facilitator,...

Here is a literature circle worksheet for students to plan an effective group meeting. Instructions are given to answer 10 questions. This form may be used for every book the group reads.

Using ichat or Edmodo 4th -6th graders participate in an inter-school literature circle. Students from two different schools pair up online through ichat and use a blog to conduct a book circle. This lesson is wonderful; it fully...

Family and Friends is the theme of a unit consisting of English language development lessons. Reinforce language proficiency, particularly in family vocabulary, basic needs, feelings, short vowel sounds, blending, reading high frequency...

Looking to set up literature circles in your class? Use these materials to support pupils when they meet in groups. Pupils take on various roles over the course of reading and meet with their groups to share the work they have done on...

Explore the impact a narrator's point of view has on a story with a reading of the children's book, Voices in the Park by Anthony Browne. Written in four different voices, the story is told and retold from different perspectives to...

Teach the importance of context and perspective with a unit focused on Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin. The first lesson considers the role of female characters and readers, including the gender expectations of the time. The...

Talk about a menu! Who would have thought SAT prep could be so delicious? Treat your class to a full course of SAT words with a timed activity that asks groups to create clues for dishes on their bill of fare. Distained veggies anyone?...

Your plane has crashed in the Sahara desert. What do you do? Explore the possibilities with a role-playing activity based on Antoine de Saint Éxupery's The Little Prince. In groups, kids decide whether they would walk to find help...

Mr. Wormwood, one of the characters in Roald Dahl's Matilda, is not the most trustworthy of characters. Have student groups take on the roles of car salespeople and play a game to see who can make the most profit by selling...

Two lessons promote social awareness and build relationship skills. In lesson one, scholars define bullying and role-play coping strategies. Lesson two challenges learners to diffuse a bullying situation using their knowledge of...

Put an end to wasted instructional time with this lesson on responsibility and preparedness. After completing this series of activities students will learn the importance of these social skills not only in the classroom, but at...

Transform your class into a team with a lesson about thinking and working interdependently. As they reflect on important roles for a group, elementary and middle schoolers learn to work together and think of ways that compliment...

Mr. and Mrs. Twit do not treat each other very nicely. The sixth lesson in an 11-part unit designed to accompany The Twits by Roald Dahl explores the way the characters talk to and treat one another. Role play and writing activities...

Sometimes beginning a conversation isn't the hard part—it's ending the conversation that can be challenging. Autistic and mainstream learners alike can benefit from a resource that provides a reference handout with ways to end a...

Historical fiction can be a valuable asset when learning about the past. Integrate several novels written about the Civil War into your social studies unit, with groups of four working collaboratively to comprehend the novel from...

Can you do better than a robot? Teams write instructions for a hypothetical robot to build a structure. They test their instructions by acting them out to see if they produce the desired structure.