Literacy Matters - Vol 21 - Winter 2021

2002). To ensure active participation and promote dialogue while encouraging a sense of autonomy in these groups, students are often asked to prepare by keeping a response log, jotting discussion ideas on notes, or filling out “role sheets” that help readers compile and organize their responses while reading (Daniels, 2002). The circles meet regularly, and students use their notes to discuss. Upon finishing a book, each circle typically reports the highlights of their discussion to the whole class or applies what they have learned by creating a project-based project that shares their learning (Daniels & Steinecke, 2003). Literature circles have been an effective way to support students’ interpretation and analysis of literature, providing them an open forum for authentic talk, sharing experiences, and raising questions in a small and cooperative group setting (Johnson & Giorgis 2007). Students are the center of the discussion as they lead the groups and not the educator, even though the educator may provide some direction or guidance on the discussions’ focus. Literature circles also encompass a sense of relevancy within readers’ lives as they engage critically with the text. As a result, this furthers student engagement and motivation within reading (Avci & Yüksel, 2011; Batchelor, 2012). Literature circles should provide a realistic scenario for students to reflect on texts and how they mirror society or sociopolitical issues. By facilitating engaging discussions, literature circles increase students’ comprehension and multicultural awareness while also building community and creating a safe space to have conversations about controversial topics. Simply put, literature circles are discussions based on a text read by a group of people to come together and discuss key themes in the book. Students need to be given ample opportunity for sharing their insights and thoughts and encouraged to react to others’ thoughts and perspectives. Literature circles allow students to embrace differences (in opinions, perspectives, ideas, etc.), collaborate and consult with each other on decisions, and most importantly, openly interpret and analyze a text beyond basic comprehension in a safe environment (Avci & Yüksel, 2011; Batchelor, 2012). In the case of literature circles, students are given books to choose from (see Table 1). These titles promote targeted discussions, and intentional reflection about race and social justice, particularly as those concepts are situated in school and society. Literature circles can be used K-12 and even in higher education settings. Daniels (2002) suggests that for high school students, readers keep response logs instead of role sheets, which are typically assigned in literature circles, which can result in rote participation and may not encourage authentic conversations. Daniels (2002) states, “Each group meeting is aimed to be open, natural conversations so personal connections, digressions, and open-ended questions are welcome” (p. 17). Suppose educators will have students read books and begin discussions on difficult issues of power, race, gender, and class. In that case, they want to be sure conversations are also held that empower them to make changes and be a part of the solution and not the problem. After reading the assigned text (typically texts assigned based on the students’ independent reading levels, the follow-up activity should allow students

to develop an action plan that gets them directly involved in important current issues. For example, young readers can help collect items to donate, participate in clean-ups and food drives, and partner with diverse groups, while third graders can begin letter-writing campaigns to support a cause. This can also be a way to promote and encourage family engagement. The books that the author shares in Figure 1 were written as a response to the shifts in the sociopolitical circumstances of Black people. The death of Trayvon Martin in 2012 was one of those social and political shifts, bringing to the forefront of public consciousness how African American people in the United States are perceived by society. His death and the resulting movement also provided the catalyst for several young adult authors, mostly African American, to write novels reflecting those events. For young people who want to have conversations about race and racism, these novels serve as a way to have these conversations through literacy instead of as an outright conversation. The young adult (YA) novels written about police violence and its effect on African American communities are a type of story“necessary to counteract the existing literary and popular culture images of African American children and families”(Bishop, 2007, p. 242). Several of the authors mentioned in Table 1 — Jason Reynolds, Brendan Kiely, and Angie Thomas, demonstrate the variety of Black lives through their narratives about the effects of police violence on Black families and communities. Consequently, All American Boys (Reynolds & Kiely, 2015) and The Hate U Give (Thomas, 2017) reveal the potential of this literature to facilitate or scaffold difficult conversations about racism, discrimination, and police violence against African American teens. Engaging with YA through a critical lens helps students develop critical literacy skills and provides opportunities for youth reflection of their own experiences (Curwood, 2013). Multicultural YA is a powerful way for students to reflect on the experiences of those who live at different intersections of identity and examine their implicit biases about those identities. For this article’s purpose, the author posted some books (See Table 1) for high school age students, and a follow-up activity using critical literacy stems from engaging students in conversations (See Figure 1) that can be used after the literature circle sessions are complete. Figure 2 consists of a sample lesson plan for All American Boys that can be modified as educators see fit. Conclusion In an English Language Arts classroomwhere racial literacy is being embedded into the curriculum, rather than indoctrinating a particular set of beliefs informed by their positionalities, educators must engage students in questioning the beliefs they already hold. Rather than telling students who they should be or what stance they should take, educators must encourage them to reflect upon who they already are and how their values, beliefs, and ideologies have shaped their identity. Students still need to critically analyze a text and develop an ethical and social understanding of themselves and the world (Rosenblatt, 1995). As students engage in a text, they must ensure their response considers the source of such a response, allowing each literary experience to build on each other. This is supported by critical literacy, an approach that

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