Grand Conversations (Updated Edition): Literature Groups in Action Review

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Grand Conversations (Updated Edition): Literature Groups in Action ReviewPeterson, Ralph and Maryann Eeds. 1990. GRAND CONVERSATIONS: LITERATURE GROUPS IN ACTION. New York: Scholastic.
GRAND CONVERSATIONS: LITERATURE GROUPS IN ACTION starts with explaining the difference between teaching with textbooks and "real" books. Peterson and Eeds breaks this method of teaching using "real" books into five sections (Teaching with real books, A literature-based reading program, Beliefs and practices, Literary Elements, and Teachers at work) with a reference list and book list at the end.
Chapter two outlines the four components needed for this type of program to be successful. The first component is the stories in the home and is a key in the language development. It is stated that "all homes have stories. While in some families a rich oral exchange of narratives has primacy, in others there is an equal emphasis on reading to children from storybooks" (p. 8). The second component is sharing stories "from all kinds of books, by many different authors, about all kinds of subjects" (p. 8) to anchor the sounds of language, promote joy, create a sense of belonging to the group, become aware of many forms of writing and ways of thinking about stories. The third component is providing time for children to read extensively without having to follow through on an assignment over the material read. The fourth component is intensive reading which is "aimed at giving deliberate thought to the literary experience" (p. 12).
Chapter three reflects on the four basic beliefs Peterson and Eeds hold concerning working with literature: stories are journeys through the human life experience, students will gain true meaning in literature when they take ownership of the story by interpreting within their own life experiences, students will learn to construct meaning best through dialogue with peers and the teacher, and teachers need to be willing to accept all interpretations and to enter into the dialogue without an agenda to be followed. Peterson and Eeds state that these beliefs are fundamental in creating a successful literature-based reading program.
Chapter four discusses the indirect teaching of literary elements by letting stories that have multiple layers of action and meaning taking place teach concepts such as story structure and characters. This chapter gives examples of how to move from surface teaching to students using literature to create their own meaning of concepts such as plot, character, place, point of view, time, mood, and symbolism.
Chapter five discusses putting literature studies into action in your own classroom with ideas and real-life examples on involving the parents, reading aloud, extensive reading (choosing, keeping track of, and sharing the books read), intensive reading, reading/dialog plans, and evaluation methods. Several organizational forms are provides as a starting point in the process of making the literature study unique to the teachers' individual student and classroom needs.
The reference list contains the bibliography of the children's books that the text highlights and additional professional books that are referenced in the text or are recommended as further reading.
The Booklist at the back of the book gives titles of recommended books to use when implementing these ideas into the classroom. The list is broken down into sections for Kindergarten/first grade, Second/third grade, Third/fourth grade, and Fifth/sixth grade. As the book has a copyright date of 1990, the list is lacking in current titles of interest to students today. Peterson and Eeds also recommends looking for these "real" books in yearly booklists from locations such as Booklist, Hornbook, and School Library Journal.
This book on using conversation and literature in the classroom is an excellent resource for teachers in grades two to six, however a reading teacher in seventh or eight grades would also find this information useful. This book would be beneficial, not only to the language arts and reading teacher, but would be a good read for science and social studies teachers looking to integrate content-based literature into their curriculum in place of the textbook traditionally used. The most useful section in the book is the last chapter, "Teachers at Work" shares many practical examples of ways to make this idea work in a real classroom setting.
-K Ellis, Advanced Children's Literature, TWUGrand Conversations (Updated Edition): Literature Groups in Action OverviewThis updated edition of a 1990 classic advocates the use of real books in a classroom context that places children's enjoyment and interpretation of literature at the center. New material includes a foreword by Shelley Harwayne and tributes to the book's influence by Stephanie Harvey, Lester Laminack, Frank Serafini, and Mary Glover. In addition to illuminating the powerful components of a literature-based reading program, the authors provide a number of assessment tools. For use with Grades 2–6.

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