book review

Setting Up a Classroom Book Club Meeting

You may have read my “Why I don’t do literature circles and what I do instead” post, and now you want to try my classroom book clubs method. But you have some questions: What does it look like inside a “book club” meeting? What types of activities do you do? What questions do you ask students? What do you discuss and how? How do you keep it all organized? In this blog post, I hope to shed a little more light on the anatomy of my book club meetings. If you haven’t already read my first blog post about the concept or structure in general, click here. If you are ready to dive in and build your own classroom book club, keep reading!

1) Summarizing: Summarizing is a critical part of reading comprehension, so lately, I’ve been starting book clubs out with a short summary exercise. I like to use SWBST, and I have a teaching pack available if you’d like to give that method a try. It comes with materials you can use with any text including Twitter summaries and these new SWBST Sketch Notes for any text. I usually have students doing that as their bell ringer, and it only takes about 2-3 minutes, then we share out for another 2-3 minutes. I usually type some examples on the board as they share.

2) Engaging, dissecting, and enjoying content from the week’s assigned pages: This part, to me, is the “fun” part of reading a novel. There are so many activities and creative projects and paired reading tasks that you can do to “make literature come alive” for the students. I always start the meeting off with one of these little bite-sized nuggets that relates specifically to something covered in the pages we read. I like to start with this “fun” piece because it sets the tone, and I really want students to enjoy reading!

For example, during our book club meeting for Chapter 2 of Lord of the Flies, my students created a 3D map of the island using textual evidence. An activity like this requires students to go back and review those chapters and dig for details, while having fun. I played a little island music while they worked, and they had a good time.

After reading Chapter 2 of The Great Gatsby, I feel it’s always important to discuss domestic violence. We close read that section of the chapter highlighting details like the cause of the conflict and the disparity between the men’s and women’s reactions. We set up a KWL chart, and I found a really great TED talk on the topic that we watched. (BTW: My The Great Gatsby Complete Unit is coming late 2019! You can get my The Great Gatsby video viewing guide here now!)

When I design literature units, I try include something “creative” or a “paired text/close reading task” for each chapter or section. I mostly turn to those for this part of the book club meeting. Every now and then, there won’t be something specific for the chapter we’ve read, or I’ll just be in the mood for something different. In that case, I’ll use a quick activity from my “Response to Literature: Making Literature Come Alive” bundle. These are short, little activities that pack a big punch. Each activity is text-based, so it’s a purposeful use of your time. Some require students to take on real-world role create something: T-Shirt Designer, QVC Sells Person, Sports Broadcaster, Crime Scene Reporter.

Others are derived from social media: Twitter Subtweeting, Cell Phone Conversations, Character Song Lists, Making Memes. Plus, every time I think of something new, I add it to the bundle, so you get those updates for free!

3) Small-group discussion: There are several ways you can go about this portion, and you also need to decide if it’s something you think your students need or not. I started small-group discussions as a precursor to large-group when I had a group of lower-level/reluctant readers because they would come to large group discussion with nothing to say, their thoughts weren’t organized, or they were too embarrassed to speak up. Once I started doing it, it just stuck for every group I had. Now, even with my most advanced groups, we almost always have a small-group discussion. They even ask for it, so they can get their thoughts together in a smaller, safer setting.

One method I use is the 3,2,1 approach. This method allows for more open-ended discussion. Students just take a blank sheet of paper out and jot 3 questions about the section/chapter, 2 comments, and 1 connection or key quote. Sometimes they can answer their own questions in the small group, and I love that. They are always going back and digging through the pages to look for info and answers. Depending on time, I give anywhere from 5-10 minutes in small group for 3-2-1. Since they are reading out-of-class, several of them bring questions and comments with them to class, and I love to see them bubbling and wanting to talk about books! Then, they bring that list to large group.

Another approach for small group is a guided focus. After reading Chapters 1-3 of The Great Gatsby, I wanted students to discuss findings from the color tracker sheet they had done in their “packets” for that section. The idea of color symbolism hadn’t gelled with them quite yet, so I felt it necessary to break them up into groups and have them discuss. I had them discuss all the colors on the chart, and then I just gave each group one color to be the “experts” on, and they led the discussion for that color. In that case I set up a specific framework and topic for their small-group discussion.

Another way to guide small group discussion is with literary analysis task cards. You could even use task cards for large group, too. It’s totally flexible. Task cards are perfect to differentiate different levels of readers or just to mix up what students look for and discuss. My Response to Literature Literary Analysis Task Cards come in my “Response to Literature: Making Literature Come Alive” bundle. The task cards come in both printable and digital format. Read more about using task cards in this blog post.

My literature worksheets that come digital and printable in the pack are also a good way to focus small-group discussion if there’s something specific you want to students to note or focus on for a certain set of pages or chapter. These would also work really well for the out-of-class packets you could assign students, especially if you are building your own book clubs or your unit needs more meat. (More on the packets below.)

4) Large-group discussion: In large group, I have us sit in a circle when we can. I usually just let anyone start with a question from 3-2-1, and we go from there. I encourage them to answer each other’s questions and go back to the text where necessary. I model that often. I only interject if I think they are off-base, if they ask a question I know will be answered in a later chapter, or when a little prompting could lead them to a much deeper discussion. Large-group discussion can last anywhere from 15-30 minutes, depending on what else you have done that day and how much time you have. I have had groups that skip small group entirely, and we go outside on a nice day and discuss for the majority of the class period.

In the case that students are reluctant to speak up or if you have students who dominate (especially if you are hosting longer discussions) I require every student to say something. I also made cute emoji puppets for discussion. Those work really well for younger students. Here’s a quick video where I explain a bit more about the accountable talk emoji puppets.

Here’s a quick video tutorial where I explain large-group discussions a bit more.

5) Assessment: Since my students are reading out-of-class, they do take a quick quiz at the end of the book club meeting because I do want to hold them accountable. They are also working through packets as they read alone as well. Those are for a grade, too, and include comprehension questions, figurative language, grammar work, journal topics – just whatever I’ve created for the unit plan that would work to guide students through the reading and enrich learning. Every student completes every page in the “workbook” on his or her own. These packets replace the old-fashioned literature circle sheets students do that can be arbitrary or vacuous if not done correctly or managed correctly. I even think when done as well as possible, they don’t always teach students to really dig in and analyze a text. Here’s a link to a short IG story that shows a glimpse of a Lord of the Flies packet I put together.

I have 75-minute periods, so we have to keep it moving. We do all the above steps in that time period and always on Fridays, but if you have shorter periods, you might want to consider doing a two-part book club meeting each week. Every now and then I’ll do that, especially when I have a bigger project in mind. We might start on Thursday or end on Monday. Everyone’s schedule is different, so it’s hard for me to predict what might work best for your timeline. One thing that I’ve starting doing this year is making a slide show (PPT) for the meeting, so that students can see where we are going, and we can keep up with progress more easily. It also gives them a visual because I add pictures, but it’s also helpful for differentiation purposes to meet various learning styles. I’ve also had admin drop in for pop evaluations during book club meetings, and it helps them see at-a-glance what we are working on. I just make one slide per “segment” of the class (see 1-5 above), plus a “Daily Objective” slide at the beginning.

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Feb 2019

A Movie Review of HBO’s Fahrenheit 451 from a High School English Teacher

Finally… the moment my students and I have been wishing and waiting for – an updated movie remake of one of our favorite novels: Fahrenheit 451. We always have a little fun playing the role of director, choosing which of our favorite actors and actresses should play Montag, Beatty, Mildred, Clarisse, and all the other memorable characters. However, we do always wonder… would Bradbury actually approve of any screen adaptation of his magnum opus? I had so many questions before watching HBO’s hot, new adaptation: Who would play Montag? Would it capture the theme accurately? What would be removed or added? And most importantly… would it be a good fit for using in class? Keep reading for the answers. WARNING: There are spoilers.

1) Characters/Characterization: Not everything about the characters was 100% spot on, but that is to be expected, I suppose. So what works and what doesn’t?

Beatty – Captain Beatty is our resident manipulative, maniacal manager of the fire. He’s the villain through and through, loving to control the narrative and burn anything that gets in his way. Right. Right? Well, maybe not. Beatty’s ambiguity is what makes him so compelling, confusing, and complex. In my opinion, the film does a nice job of painting a picture of Beatty of which Bradbury would approve.

Faber/Granger – These fiction-loving fellas aren’t named characters in the film, but their archetype is certainly present. In fact, they play a huge role in the film in terms of propelling the conflict. In the novel, the bulk of the conflict is driven by Montag’s internal struggle, but the film really hinges on both the person v. person and person v. society conflict with the “Eels” to move the plot. I suppose that’s a pretty decent substitution.
Montag – I’m not sure anybody can really live up to our Guy Montag. He’s always the hardest one to pinpoint and agree upon when we do our exercise in class of picking the actors/actresses. Everyone just always has a different idea of who he should be. He fumbles through most of the book trying to figure himself out, so maybe that’s why he is so hard to pinpoint. HBO’s Montag experiences a similar struggle, but I am still not quite satisfied for some reason. Montag the confused – yes, I can get on board with that. Montag the superstar – nah, I’ll pass on that interpretation. Maybe my hopes were too high. That said, I would give Michael B. Jordan a B+.
Ms. Blake – What a powerful scene. Glad she – and it – was included. Enough said.

Mildred – Initially, I was bothered by the fact that Mildred wasn’t included. The more I think on it, though, I can accept the choice. Bradbury needed a vessel to paint the picture society’s bad behaviors, etc. On the big screen and with today’s special effects, it is possible to just make it evident in other ways. Figuratively, too, it speaks to the whole idea of how little she actually contributed anything to Montag or society at all and how truly forgettable she was. Gone like a freight train (puns are intended), gone like yesterday. Wait, who was Millie again?
Clarisse – Clarisse provides the most mystery in the book, and the kids always love her. Bradbury is even quoted as saying he is Clarisse in the book: full of wonder and curiosity. It’s with Clarisse that the film falls of the wagon in the characters/characterization category. Clarisse is supposed to be light and airy and a picture of innocence, but in the film, she is too dark and brooding for my liking. And then there’s the whole spark between Montag and Clarisse. Not. My. Favorite. My students always think they’ve “picked up” on something between Montag and Clarisse when they read the scenes with her, and I always stress how incorrect that reading is. Clarisse is a catalyst for Montag’s path toward the truth. In that that way – and only in that way – might she serve as a femme fatale, luring him to the light. Am I surprised “Hollywood” used her character as a way to provide some on-screen romance? No, but it’s just textually inaccurate. As an aside here: My students didn’t like her in the film either.

2) Setting: So much of what Bradbury penned was futuristic – and dare I say prophetic – in the 1950s. Today, though, just about every bit of it has come to fruition, and what hasn’t can be computer generated for the movies. I was pleased to see the infusion of the large screens; they are, in fact, everywhere: in homes, in streets, and even on the skyscrapers. Bradbury’s biggest fear was the detrimental effects of people’s over consumption of and obsession with television. However, I’m not so certain the intended dystopian city that Bradbury envisioned really seemed “all that bad” in HBO’s version. The setting, for me, kinda fizzled out.

3) OMNIS: This is a massive change from the book, but it may just be this detail that shows us – 2018 watchers of the film – how close we might actually be to Bradbury’s dystopian future. OMNIS holds every piece of literature, art, and history in a DNA strand, preserving the long forgotten culture that the firemen tried to erase. While there are underground members of society, like Granger and his “railroad” crew that memorize entire books in order to preserve them, it is this OMNIS that they work to protect and preserve. Once the OMNIS is introduced into the plot, it becomes the major source of the conflict, as it is the focus of the firemen’s revenge. The twist is that this DNA strand has been implanted in a bird. After some thought, I decided I might be satisfied with this change as I see connections with it and the prominent role of the Phoenix in the novel. OMNIS becomes a symbol of hope in a bleak, literature-loathing society that hints at the emergence of a better future. It’s a reminder that it doesn’t matter how much “graffiti” (books) the firemen decide to burn, there’s still hope out there for a free-thinking future — much like the Phoenix that is burned but rises again.

4) Theme: Ultimately, Bradbury wants readers to put themselves in the characters’ shoes: What role would you have played in this dystopian universe: perpetuator, bystander, fighter? Would you see the truth like Montag, or continue to fumble your way through the pursuit for ~~emptiness~~ happiness like Mildred. Would you fight to manipulate and cover the truth like Beatty or use truth to lead others to it like Faber or Granger? It is the growth from within that he wants – that really can bring the change that this culture needs. Truth, knowledge, morality — all erased and replaced with what people see rather than what they think. The movie does a good job of making that clear — maybe a little too clear (some points didn’t leave much to the imagination), but in order to bridge the gap to “modern audiences,” I can see the need. Maybe that’s a tad ironic, and telling, in and of itself. Nonetheless, tons of lines from the book are woven throughout, and I enjoyed hearing Bradbury’s voice.

5) The Ending: Bradbury’s ending is open, or so many of my students say, and most really do hate that. I always pose the question to them, though, Is it really open ended? Throughout the entire book, Bradbury wants readers to realize that the value of books is to provide information, but more importantly to make people think. On one hand, the open ending forces readers to do that. On the other hand, maybe the ending so open at all. Montag did figure out his purpose, and if you read it that way, then what else was there? Either way, the movie definitely provides us with Bahrani’s idea of what he thought should be Montag’s purpose: keep the “books” alive. But die? I could see a case for his death in the book, but die at the hand of Beatty. That idea should be torched. In the movie, the books “rise from the ashes” to live on and that offers some hope, but having Beatty kill Montag gives the villain way too much power, and erases hope that the books — and future — will really be safe. To link in another once “hot” film, President Snow said, “Hope, it is the only thing stronger than fear. A little hope is effective, a lot of hope is dangerous. A spark is fine, as long as it’s contained.” (Sidebar: Does anybody else see the HG connections? I can’t unsee it.) If Bahrani intended to remove that hope, that’s dark and maybe it’s a little too dark. But perhaps that’s just me trying to look on the bright side.

Final thoughts: Is it appropriate for class? HBO rated the film TV-MA for violence and language. That said, just about any novel we pick up is going to have violence and language or worse. I am not a fan of it either, and I don’t want to convey that at all. Otherwise, it’s pretty benign. All in all, I did think it was time well spent showing it to my students. It brought up so many conversations; and we really did decide that the book is better. It doesn’t get much better for my little English-teacher heart. In my school, anytime we show a film, we have to get our principal to approve it. So, I did that, and I wrote a parent letter and created a set of questions student would answer during the viewing. He was fine with that, and I had zero parents ask for an alternative assignment. I do have older students, but if you cover your bases this way you should be fine. (See my Teacher Talk Video on Facebook here about dealing with novels with difficult content.)

Get the letter I drafted and the questions HERE for free!

If you teach Fahrenheit 451 as a novel unit, stop over to my teacherspayteachers store and take a look at my complete unit plan. Also, did you enjoy the memes above? I have to brag on my students. Those were all their original work, and I have to admit, I laughed out loud at most of them.

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Books Without Movies Your Students Will Want to Read… Anyway

With so many books being turned into money-making movie franchises, it might be hard to get your students to read something that hasn’t been recreated on the big screen. While I’m not opposed to the book-turned-movie selections (my Netflix queue is full and waiting for me to binge a few), I’ve always sought out books for my students that weren’t as popular. I’ll chalk it up to erring on the side of wanting to be different. Either way, the five books I’ve taught below haven’t hit the box office yet, and the fact that there’s some fiction and nonfiction on the list that leave my students begging to keep reading makes my nerdy English teacher heart happy.

1. Columbine by Dave Cullen – This is a nonfiction piece that reads like fiction. It was ten years in development and research by journalist Dave Cullen. In it, he dispels the myths that surrounded the tragedy with facts, evidence, and quotes – all while maintaining a safe distance from giving Eric and Dylan the credit and accolades they craved. Its detailed characterization draws my students in from page one, and its complex structure challenges them while keeping students engaged from beginning to end. My unit guide for a high school English class is available in my store.

Columbine Literature Guide, Unit Plan, Nonfiction, Dave Cullen

2. Bleachers by John Grisham – John Grisham, in my opinion, is an author with timeless appeal. He’s in that space between modern and on-the-way to classic. Bleachers uses the complex structure of flashback to tell the story of how a couple of stuck-in-the-past high school football stars have to embrace forgiveness in order to move on and realize that if you make high school your life, life after high school is a hard place to navigate. The complete unit guide is available in my store now.

Bleachers Literature Guide, Unit Plan, John Grisham's Foot

3. Mergers by Steven Layne – This science fiction flick would be perfect for 7th-9th graders who are obsessed with everything dystopian. Inspired by a visit to a school one day where he saw a couple of kids picking on another kid because of skin color, Layne explores the idea of what it would be like if all races were erased. I don’t think this text could be any timelier given current events, and a fellow teacher of mine is paring it this year with the classic To Kill a Mockingbird. A complete unit guide is on my to-do list, and the author provides a short free one on his website. You could pair that with my literature analysis task cards and have some very interesting book clubs!

4. The Children of Willesden Lane by Mona Golabek – I was hooked on this true memoir the moment I found it, covered in dust, on the bottom shelf of the supply closet – and so were
my students. Perfect for grades 7th-9th, The Children of Willesden Lane is the true story of Lisa Jura, a young girl who escapes Nazi persecution on the eve of World War II. Mona Golabek, in authentic voice, tells the story of her mother’s real-life struggles through this time in history, and your students will immediately identify with the protagonist. Music and relationships weave together this beautiful plot. A complete unit guide is on my to-do list as well, and the author provides some music clips and teaching tips on the book’s website. I love to pair it with my no-prep, modern Making Literature Come Alive Creative Activities Pack for some fun work with this text, too!

5. Peeled by Joan Bauer – I used this novel with my high school yearbook class once our book was finished. It’s perfect for piquing their interested in mystery, and it ties perfectly in with our journalism class. A reporter for her high school newspaper, Hildy Biddle is just waiting for a chance to prove herself as a real journalist. Not content just covering school issues, Hildy’s drawn to the town’s big story–the haunted old Ludlow house. It’s a fun, quick tale that you won’t have to beg your students to read. I’ll be putting together some of the materials I used for it soon!

… And a couple of other excellent picks that my students love with movies that are so bad, they might as well be in the category of those without movies because there’s no way they’d be worth giving class time for them are Macbeth and Fahrenheit 451. I have complete, modern unit plans for both of these in my store now!

What can you add to the list? Comment below.