Conversation is a basis for critical thinking. It is the thread that ties together cognitive strategies and provides students with the practice that becomes the foundation for reading, writing, and thinking. In recent years, proficient reader research has yielded information about what good readers do as they comprehend text. This article provides…

Examines three ways (whole class, cooperative small groups, and individuals) to organize classrooms to meet the goals of content area instruction. Uses the experiences of students to illustrate how different grouping arrangements foster particular kinds of learning. (MG)

Describes how the authors have facilitated student-led literature discussions in their second- and third-grade classrooms. Outlines the basic organizational structure that fosters response-driven conversations about books. Illustrates the various ways students speak meaningfully with each other about the literature (including inferential…

In this study, the author adapted reciprocal teaching strategies for use with her kindergarten students. Using puppets to help model strategies, she implemented a series of lessons that showed students how to retell, ask questions, and predict what would happen in a story that was read aloud. The purpose was to provide students with comprehension…

In many literacy classrooms, teachers provide instruction in comprehension by helping students to practice explicit comprehension strategy use when they encounter difficult texts. In many of those same literacy classrooms, students are placed in peer-led groups to discuss literary texts as a way to increase their engagement with difficult reading.…

Offers experiences with collaborative book discussions that stemmed from literature circles or communities of book talkers. Shows what collaboration looks like when discussants come together around a book as in the Book Club approach. Illustrates how teachers can lead students to apply what is learned in literature to their own lives, both inside…

Literature discussion groups have become a popular instructional alternative to traditional reading groups. Yet, literature discussion does not happen naturally in the classroom, and some teachers find it particularly difficult to implement with primary-grade students. This article explores how two teachers used a balance of explicit teaching and…

Discusses how book clubs can function as a professional development tool for teachers, and offers advice on how a book club can become a reality. (SR)

Describes ways to enable fifth-grade students to lead discussions about provocative books without an adult and to enjoy discussions as much as they enjoy simple retellings. Describes preparing for, setting up, and ending the discussion. (SR)

This article details what happened when, after endless hours of teaching and explaining how literature circles work, the authors were dismayed at how their students still struggled to have positive social interactions during book discussions. Book discussions often deteriorated into tension filled discussions marred by class inequities, bullying,…

Suggests methods for teaching gifted children to read that will not bore them or make them repeat skills they have already mastered. (MKM)

Describes an elementary school book club with 12 elementary teachers, their principal, and 2 university teachers reading the same piece of contemporary multicultural fiction and keeping response journals. Describes how their discussions were studied and how the literature discussions changed their classroom practices. (SR)

Discusses the major benefits that emerge for students and teachers when groups of six students discuss a book they are reading without teacher questions to structure and guide their interactions. Shows that books mixing narrative and exposition have the greatest potential to enhance student discussion. (SR)

Focuses on the author's desire to create student-led discussion groups, instead of teacher-led groups. Considers specific research questions for student-led groups. Inquires what kinds of writing and discussion students would engage in if given the opportunity to make their own writing/discussion choices. Indicates that students do engage in…