Grand Conversations, Thoughtful Responses: A Unique Approach to Literature Circles

by Faye Brownlie

Grand Conversations,Thoughtful Responses provides the key to helping your students become enthusiastic, confident readers. In the author’s unique approach to Literature Circles, no roles are used and no limits are set on the amount students read. Students choose their books from an appropriate pre-arranged set, engage in meaningful conversations about their books with their peers, keep response journals, and work biweekly on a whole-class comprehension strategy. In this resource, you will find: steps for establishing Literature Circles in your classroom strategies and ideas for building purposeful discussion groups practical techniques that help students select books comprehensive book lists tips and criteria to help students write insightful personal responses suggestions for assessing and evaluating student work in Literature Circles

Genres: Education

112 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Jon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy Brownlie's approach to literature circles and liked the many new classroom stories added to the second version.

[Lyndsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really inspired by Brownlie's approach of letting students read at their own pace and moving fluidly between groups. Reading at least two of the texts from a collection changes the game, too. Lots of clear and easy ways to go about making thinking visible and building readers' proficiency with comprehension and metacognition.

[Lori Emilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoughtful, practical, and grounded in research, this book is an amazing must-read for ELA teachers!

[Ngaio · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is very much a how-to book with clear examples for multiple age groups. It may have been written with primarily elementary aged students in mind, but easily scale-able for secondary.

[Roxanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick, inviting read that offers big ideas and little ready to implement activities. Faye Brownlie always presents processes in an easy to access and visual way.

[Tanja · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved it! Literature circles during which students get to choose what they read and how much they read. Groups come together to share and further increase their understanding of the book, depending on the book they currently read. So groupings change all the time. The book comes with much practical advice and many ready-to-use comprehension activities and assessment tools. Having just had the opportunity to see it in action with our Grade 3s, I know it works. This book has joined my list of all-time favorite titles of professional literature. Highly recommended!

[Stacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't wait to try this out in my classroom next year!