Appendix
A:
Virtual
Literature Circles Definitions
Welcome to the virtual literature
circle, the place where the majority of your work will be completed
on-line! This, by the way, is going to be fun--so much fun that you‘ll
almost forget this is even school!
What is a Virtual Literature
Circle?
Virtual literature circles
are small groups consisting of four to five students, that read the
same book and discuss it with each other. They also work together
on a big project that shows the rest of the class what the group knows
about the book. Doesn’t seem much different that small group
reading, does it? Well, it’s not--except for the fact that your
discussion will be online!
How does it work?
You will choose a book
to read. Up to four other people in your block will also read the
same book. During class, or at home, or during advisory time, or after
school--it really doesn’t matter when or where--you are going
to go to an on-line discussion board and discuss your reading.
The discussion board will be the record of all the discussion you
do about your book. Remember that you should be using the following
techniques to read your books:
- Thoughts, Opinions
& Feelings
- Questions
- Inferences
- Predictions
- Visualizations
- Clarifications (summarizing
and clarifying)
- Connections: Text-to-text,
Text-to-self, Text-to-World
These techniques also give
you things to talk (write) about as well as help you better understand
what you read. I will give you space to free-write about your reading,
as well as space to answer a prompt. You will have class time to work
on your responses and your reading.
Socratic Seminar
Once everyone has finished
the book, we will conduct a Socratic Seminar in class. In order to
be admitted to this seminar, you will have to complete your entrance
ticket on the discussion board.
Appendix
B: Virtual
Literature Circle Procedures
During class I will:
- Have my novel with me
at all times during every class while this project is going on.
- Work on reading my novel,
completing my on-line discussion entries, or work on my culminating
project.
- Give this project all
I’ve got. (No cheap last-minute posters to show Mr. W what my
group has learned about our book!).
- Follow the reading schedule
as closely as I possibly can, so that I will contribute to others,
and they will in turn contribute to me.
- NOT WORK ON ANY OTHER
PROJECT BUT THIS ONE IN CLASS!
- Use stickies (post-it)
notes to record my thoughts, opinions, feelings, questions, predictions,
visualizations, text-text/text-self/text-to-world connections, and
summary/clarifications. I will then use the alphasmart 3000s to write
out my formal ideas and send them to the computer via the online discussion
board.
On the On-line Message Board,
I will:
- Daily record at least
one entry about my reading as well as at least three other replies
to others in my reading circle.
- Seeing as how this site
is open to anyone in the world who wants to visit it and seeing as
how I really don’t want to be embarrassed by my own public sloppiness,
I will use the best English I know (grammar, spelling, capitalization
and punctuation).
- (Knowing that Mr. W can
trace my comments, block me and delete my posts, I will never make
rude, impertinent, irrelevant or mean comments on any discussion board
entry.
- Only, only, only use my
first name and last initial to identify myself when I post my replies.
This keeps me safe!
- Make sure my replies are
a minimum of around fifty words each.
Appendix
C: Survey Questions
Pre-seminar Survey Questions
- Do you like to read?
Yes or no?
- When you do read, what
kind of reading materials do you most enjoy ?
Magazines
Comics
Graphic novels
Poems
Short stories
Mysteries
Realistic fiction
Fantasy
Historical fiction
Other
- On a scale of 1-10 how
much do you enjoy literature circles?
- On a scale of 1-10 how
would you rank your reading skills? (1 being the lowest, 10 highest)
- How important to you
is each of the following benefits of literature circles?
Freedom to read the book at your own pace
Freedom to choose the book you want to read
Not having the teacher tell you what your book means
Time to meet with your friends
The fact that the teacher allows you to do projects for your test
grade
The fact that your grade is dependent on the group’s grade
- On a scale of 1-10 rank
how much each of the following things bother you about literature
circles:
Not everyone reads the book
You feel you do more work than others in the group
It’s too loud and noisy
You don’t understand the book and no one else does either
It’s hard to get the teacher’s attention
You feel like you didn’t learn anything
You would rather work by yourself
People are too serious about the work
People aren’t serious enough about the work
You don’t know what the teacher expects from you
- Do you think group interaction
helps you better understand and enjoy the books you read? Yes or no?
- Do you feel that it is
your responsibility to help other students around you understand what
you all are reading?
- Do you think literature
circles have a positive, neutral or negative effect on how much you
enjoy the book you choose? Positive, negative, or neutral?
- What do you think would
make literature circles better for all classes?
Open response
- Do you think you have
a really good understanding of how plots work?
- What mostly do you think
makes a book really good to read?
The writer doesn’t confuse me with big words and long sentences
The story has a lot of exciting action
The characters seem real and believable
The characters seem a lot like me
The story has a lot of really nice descriptions
The story makes me feel like I am there.
Post-seminar Survey Questions
- On a scale of 1-10 how
much did you enjoy Louis Sachar’s book Holes?
- Is this the kind of book
you would naturally pick up and read on your own?
- What did you like most
about the book?
(plot) The way the story fit together like a puzzle
(character) The way the characters seemed real
(style) The way the story sounded natural and simple
(setting) The way the story helped you see where it takes place
(theme) What the book was about
- How much do you think
our seminar discussion questions helped you better understand the
book?
A whole lot, a lot, some, a little, none
- How much do you think
the seminars helped you see things about the book you didn’t
see before?
A whole lot, a lot, some, a little, none
- How much do you think
the book Holes helped you better understand how plot works?
A whole lot, a lot, some, a little, none
- How much do you think
you contributed in a meaningful way to the seminar discussions?
A whole lot, a lot, some, a little, none
- How much do you think
you learned from reading the book Holes?
A whole lot, a lot, some, a little, none
- Overall, rate how helpful
the seminars were to your understanding the book.
Extremely helpful, helpful, somewhat helpful, a little helpful, not
helpful at all
- Would you read other
books if they were similar to Holes?
- What did you like most
about the seminars?
Open response
Appendix
D: Handouts
Holes Socratic Seminar Questions
[pdf format] [rtf format]
Pre- and Post-Seminar Survey
Questions [pdf
format] [rtf format]
Status of the Class [pdf
format] [rtf format]
Virtual Literature Circle
Bookmarks [pdf format] [rtf
format]
Socratic Seminar Positive
Points [pdf format] [rtf
format]
Socratic Seminar Negative
Points [pdf format] [rtf
format]
Socratic Seminar Exit Ticket
[pdf format] [rtf format]
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