Technology-Enhanced Literature Circles

Technology-Enhanced Literature Circle

            Literature circles are great to have in the classroom to enhance reading comprehension.  Literature circles allow students to “take roles” reading a book and can have a variety of roles.  The typical roles of a literature circle are discussion director, illustrator, word wizard, and summarizer.  Other roles can be introduced in the circle such as researcher or connector.  Literature circles can be fun if the book is engaging for the students; however, if the book is not engaging, students will view literature circles as a chore.  Thus, literature circles can be enhanced with technology integration. 

            The three main components of a literature circles include communication, a common text, and an activity.  Technology can be infused with all of these components.  The communication piece can include a variety of methods and activities such as voice recording for others to hear and reflect on, having pen pals to exchange ideas about the books, using meeting platforms such as Illuminate or Face Time, and possibly instant messaging.  Although these are not typical methods of communication, these are great activities for alternative literature circles.

            In regards to having a paper text, students can use a tablet, desktop, or laptop to use an electronic book for reading.  This way, teachers can have multiple copies of books without having to obtain them from a library or bookstore.  A teacher can use free e-book websites such as wegivebooks.org or books from the Guttenberg Project website.

            Finally, many activities related to the group’s reading can be done with the use of technology.  For example, students can use programs such as Microsoft Power Point or the paint program to create a representation based on the reading.  Additionally, students can use a program such as Movie Maker on the ipad to film a scene from the book or shoot a news report.  Of course, all of this takes times for the teacher to be as effective with technology and class room instruction, but with enough practice, anything process can be close to perfection.