Reflection On Wonder By R. J Palacio

Literacy circles are student lead discussions about quality literature. Students in a group lead each other through finishing and discussing a book. The purpose of literacy circles is to turn students onto reading, to deepen their understanding of books, and to discover themselves as readers. These are all developed through being part of a literacy circle. Students are turned onto reading through literacy circles by having the power to choose their own reading. This motivates students. Many times students aren’t able to choose their readings in school, being allowed to turns students on and intrigues them to read the book for pleasure. Students are able to deepen their understanding of books by listening to members of their group share opinions …show more content…
I admit at first, I was not looking forward to reading a book and then having to talk about it in small groups. However, once I was read an introduction to the book Wonder by R.J Palacio I was immediately intrigued. Being able to have an option of the book I wanted to read was a new experience for me. I am used to being told what to read and when to have it done by. In my experience students were able to pick which book out of the two options and were also able to decide how much the literacy circle would read before our next meeting. I was shocked when I was actually enjoying the reading. I wasn’t thinking of it as schoolwork. I was actually reading for pleasure. For me this is new. I was not a reader before; I really would only read because I was required. I was surprised with myself when I actually wanted to go to literacy circles to be able to talk about what was happening in the book, to be able to get it off my chest. I learned a lot by being part of a literacy circle. The power of choice can really influence students and motivate them to read for pleasure. Additionally, it brings students together and develops a sense of community by allowing students to make their pace together, ask questions, and hear different opinions. One thing that stood out to me in my own literacy circle group was that we were all able to have different opinions and it deepened our own understandings by hearing different …show more content…
I will tell students that I am not going to sit with them and listen to their conversations. I would prefer not to have students use the temporary training devices or role-play sheets. I believe that literacy circles should be casual and not formal. To me using worksheets or scripts make it unnatural. My instructions to students will be to bring the book to every literacy circle meeting, read the student decided pages, and have something written down. I will tell students that they can write down anything they want. I will use examples such as their feelings, confusions, or something that stood out. It can be anything they want to share with the group. An important thing to discuss during this introductory discussion is what I would call ‘literacy circle etiquette’. I want students to know that when discussing in literacy circles we need to be mindful and respectful of other students who want to share. I will tell students that we will go around in our circles and say talk about one idea, question, opinion, etc. Not one student should talk about a few different things and leave the other students with nothing to talk about. I will tell students that for literacy circles to run smoothly we need to focus on our ‘literacy circle