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How do I deal with stories that are difficult?
How do I deal with stories that are long?
Should I conduct a Shared Inquiry Discussion on parts of the story as we go?
Why aren't prediction questions used in JGB?
Shouldn't I tell my students about the author before they read the story?
How do I help students deal with challenging vocabulary?
Why shouldn't I praise my students for giving good answers?
How do I handle students who won't speak?
How do I get my students to respond to each other in discussion?
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How do I deal with stories that are difficult?
If most of the stories are difficult, you might want to consider using a lower series, especially if you have limited class time or want students to prepare for Shared Inquiry Discussion on their own.
If you wish to go ahead with a story you know will be difficult for your students to read:
- An effective Text Opener can be very helpful. If students see from the beginning that the story will speak to issues and concerns of importance, they will be more likely to work through the reading difficulties.
- Read the story aloud or play the audiotape for the first reading.
- Do not be as concerned with whether students understand the words, but whether they understand the story, what is happening and to whom.
- Acting out parts of the story can be a good way for students to make sense of what is happening.
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How do I deal with stories that are long?
Longer selections may need a different approach. Many of the longer selections in the Junior Great Books program have already been broken into two parts, but even these may be longer than desirable.
Whenever a selection cannot be read in its entirety in one session, you have to be concerned with the continuity of the reading experience.
- An effective Text Opener can often give students a clear focus that will help them through a longer selection.
When you've decided to read the selection in parts:
- Respect natural divisions, such as chapters and paragraphs.
- Each part should include a significant event or action.
- Allow students to articulate responses after every section. Turning these responses into questions can build and maintain a momentum of curiosity and interest.
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Should I conduct a Shared Inquiry Discussion on parts of the story as we go?
For the selections that are already divided ("The Wind in the Willows," "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," "The Jungle Books," "A Christmas Carol," and "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn"), we recommend that you conduct a Shared Inquiry Discussion on each portion.
For other selections:
Unless you are certain that a portion will support a Shared Inquiry Discussion, you are probably better off waiting until the end. You might consider extending the informal sharing of responses after a section if you think some time spent talking and trying to make sense of what has happened so far will help students continue through the selection.
Always conduct a Shared Inquiry Discussion of the whole selection. Even if you are satisfied with the discussing students have done while working through the story, it almost always helps to step back and consider the meaning of the work as a whole. In fact, you might want to intentionally choose questions that draw from all across the story.
If you do decide to conduct a Shared Inquiry Discussion on a portion of a story, make sure that the question(s) you choose can be answered from just that portion. You should also consider whether the conclusions students draw at that point can be smoothly incorporated into an interpretation of the text as a whole.
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Why aren't prediction questions used in JGB?
When presented with a challenging work of literature, all good readers naturally wonder how the story will turn out. However, it is more valuable to encourage this wondering, the questions, than to spend time forming a variety of predictions that will more often than not turn out incorrect.
The wondering is valuable because it is the reader's attempt to understand the story.
For example, in the middle of "Jack and the Beanstalk," one might wonder whether Jack will get caught if he goes back up the beanstalk after getting the hen. Whether a student guesses that Jack will or will not go back up the beanstalk or will or will not be caught does not matter. The focus should never be on whether a student's prediction is correct. What matters is that the student is trying to make sense out of Jack's motives and character, and what the story is saying about Jack.
Rather than asking, "Do you think he will go back again?" or "Do you think he will be caught by the Ogre?" which puts the focus on "getting it right," this same curiosity can be expressed with questions like "Why did Jack go back after getting a bag of gold?" and "Is the story making Jack's risk taking look foolish?" These questions shift the focus away from guessing what will happen, which are facts that the story will provide, to the emerging meaning and interpretation the student draws from the facts.
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Shouldn't I tell my students about the author before they read the story?
You can, but we don't recommend it.
First, the information given in brief biographical accounts is generally of little use in developing a sound interpretation of the story.
Second, when you do provide biographical information, you step out of your role as leader and co-learner and into a role of authority. Students may see you as "giving answers," or think that you are telling them "why" the author wrote the story. Providing such information rarely fits smoothly into students' own efforts to make sense of the story and can often get in the way of these efforts.
Of course, students may need help in establishing a context for the work they are about to read. The Text Openers and prereading questions designed for this purpose help students create such a context by fitting the story and its themes into a broader inquiry into the meaning of life rather than into the limiting context of facts.
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How do I help students deal with challenging vocabulary?
Working with vocabulary is most effective when it is a natural part of the inquiry into the meaning of the story.
- Let students raise questions about vocabulary they find interesting, unusual, or confusing.
- Avoid the role of answer giver. Occasionally the most expedient course may be to simply give students a definition when they request one. This can help maintain the focus on interpretation. But whenever possible, let the students try to make sense out of the word from the context.
- Use vocabulary questions to further interpretive inquiry. Often students will ask about the vocabulary they need in order to make sense of the story. They have stopped at this word because it is crucial for their developing interpretation. When a student does ask about the meaning of a word, the process should not end when she gets the definition. The more important work is to put that definition to use. How does it affect the meaning of the passage? Does it help make things more or less clear?
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Why shouldn't I praise my students for giving good answers?
As a leader of Shared Inquiry Discussion, you do give positive reinforcement, but not in the specific form of praise. To state, "Good idea, Jeremy" or "That's good thinking, Tasha" can easily be taken as a signal that theirs is the "right" answer. This can have the effect of shutting down that student's own thinking and stifling other ideas that might be different.
On the other hand, when you listen carefully to a students' idea and ask a question about that idea, you show that you are interested and that their idea is valuable and important. This form of positive reinforcement, asking follow-up questions, will further the inquiry.
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How do I handle students who won't speak?
The most important thing you can do is create an environment that is safe and welcoming, where students feel comfortable taking risks and thinking out loud. This can take time, and it can take time for students to come to trust this environment. Some things you can do to help make it easier for students to speak up:
- Give ample opportunity for all. This means not stopping discussion after one or two answers, and giving plenty of wait time. Always assume that there are different ideas out there.
- Make sure the question you pose is clear. You can even give students an opportunity to ask you about it before discussion begins.
- Asking students to write their ideas down on the Building Your Answer form can ensure that everyone has ample time to respond to the initial question. Then you can always ask students to read their answers. It is a good idea to collect these forms and respond in writing to those who didn't speak in discussion.
- Your attitude in asking follow-up questions is, nevertheless, the single most influential factor in students feeling comfortable to speak in discussion. Students who are used to finding the "right" answer, and figuring out what the teacher wants them to say, will only slowly come to believe they can speak their own mind if they see that divergent opinions are welcomed and treated with respect.
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How do I get my students to respond to each other in discussion?
It is natural for students to direct their comments to you in discussion; after all, you were the one asking the question. However, you do want discussion to become genuinely interactive.
- Before discussion invite students to talk directly to one another.
- During discussion ask students to direct their comments to each other.
"Does Hannah's answer make sense to you, Ian?" "Hannah, can you explain your idea to Ian?" or "Ian, can you tell Hannah why you disagree with her answer?"
- Ask students to work with each other's ideas. "Stefan, can you help Eric find evidence for his answer?" "Are there other reasons that anyone can give to support Roberto's answer?"
- Be careful that you are not getting in the way of interaction. Sometimes students come to expect the leader to respond and so they don't ask questions or say anything. Forcing yourself to be quieter can often encourage students to speak to one another. Be careful not to get into the habit of repeating students' answers and ideas. This can teach students that if an idea is important, you will repeat it and that they don't have to listen to each other.
- After your group has become comfortable with the process, you can ask them to assume facets of the leader's role. Very often students naturally begin to ask each other for evidence. If they don't, you can instruct them at the beginning, "Today, if you hear an idea you want to understand better, ask that student for evidence." Or, "Sylvia, can you make sure that everyone gets a chance to speak today?"
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Getting Started with Great Books in the Classroom
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