L I T E R A T U R E

C I R C L E S
W O R K B O O K
 Discussion Director
Tasks: Lead the discussion and introduce the section of text to be discussed.
Share your insights with your group and make sure everyone participates.

You must:
Keep the group on task.
Keep the discussion going.
Invite each person to take their turn.
Make sure that everyone participates.
Help people talk over the big ideas in the
readings.

The Discussion Director should come up with 3 – 4 solid points or

questions for discussion AND share their favourite passage from the
readings.

Sample topics:
Choose a passage & discuss
characterization (direct & indirect) or other
literary terms, such as conflict, point of view,
etc.
Look at the character’s motivation for
something: Does it make sense? Is it in line
with who the character is? What motivates
the character to make those choices?
Analyze a specific passage or share your
favourite passage from the reading
Discuss a confusing passage or event
Analyze a recurring image, phrase, event,
etc.
You may come up with your own topic
 Name Date

My points:

Favourite/Interesting passage:

Other notes:

Rate your participation:

I read the required pages. 123456
My questions led the discussion. 123456
I kept the other members on task. 123456
I allowed group members time to speak. 123456
I participated in the discussion. 123456

Comments:
Summarizer
Your job is to prepare a
brief summary of today’s
reading.
The other members of your
group will be counting on
you to give a quick (one- or
two-minute) statement that
conveys:
the gist
the key points
the main highlights
the essence of today’s
reading assignment.
If there are several main
ideas or events to
remember, you can use
numbered slots.
 Name Date

Write 7-10 points that sum up the events in pages 174-192

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Write down the key points that come up in your group’s discussion:

Key points:
1.____________________________________________________________

2._____________________________________________________________

3._____________________________________________________________

4._____________________________________________________________

Rate your participation:

I read the required pages. 123456

My questions led the discussion. 123456
I kept the other members on task. 123456
I allowed group members time to speak. 123456
I participated in the discussion. 123456

Comments:
 Connector
Your job is to find connections between the book your group is reading
and the world outside. You should relate the passage to your own life, to
other books/movies/shows etc. or to other people or problems that you
are reminded of. The reading will make people think of different things. All
your connections are worth sharing.

Find something in the text that you can relate to:

1. your own life or experiences
2. happenings at school or in the community
3. similar events at other times and places
4. other people or problems that you are reminded of
5. other writings on the same topic or by the same
author
1.____________________________
____________________________
2.___________________________
____________________________
3.___________________________
____________________________
4.___________________________
____________________________
5.___________________________
____________________________
 Name Date

You will also be asked to find literary devices used by the author
to build meaning or make the text more interesting to read.

You may look at:

literary elements (conflict, narration, rising action, climax, etc.)
figurative language (simile, metaphor, imagery, etc.)

1._____________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

2._____________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

Rate your participation:

I read the required pages. 123456

My questions led the discussion. 123456
I kept the other members on task. 123456
I allowed group members time to speak. 123456
I participated in the discussion. 123456

Comments:
 Literary Luminary
Your job is to locate a few special sections of the text (3 – 4) that your
group would like to hear read aloud. The idea is to help people
remember some interesting, powerful, funny, puzzling, or important
sections of the text. As you decide which passages or paragraphs are
worth going back to, make a note of why you picked each one and
consider a plan for how they should be shared. Remember, the purpose is
to suggest material for discussion.

You can read passages aloud yourself, ask someone

else to read them, or have people read them silently
and then discuss.

Possible reasons for picking a passage to be

shared:
important
surprising
funny
confusing
controversial
well-written
thought-provoking
informative

When looking at the plan for

discussion below, think about how you
will share each passage with the
group, what you’d like to bring up, or
what it shows us.
 Name Date

Page # and Paragraph Reason for picking Plan for Discussion

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Rate your participation:

I read the required pages. 123456

My questions led the discussion. 123456
I kept the other members on task. 123456
I allowed group members time to speak. 123456
I participated in the discussion. 123456

Comments: