Speak

Explore the connections between your text and the classic hero’s journey.

Theme: •    Did any characters change during the course of the book?  How did they change?  What forces caused the change? •    Did the book end the way you thought it would?  What clues did the author give that made you think that? •    What is  “big picture” category that the story is about?  Friendship?  Survival?  Injustice?  How does the author convey the theme?

Literature: •    What are your favorite lines or quotes?  Copy them in your blog and explain why you like them. •    What clues did the author use to help you predict what was going to happen later? •    What were some of the events that created conflict in the story? •    Would you like to read more books by this author?  Why or why not?

Learnings: •    What have you learned from reading this book? •    How have you changed (possibly your outlook or understanding) from reading this book? •    Is there an idea in the book that made you stop and think or prompts questions? •    What do you know now that you didn’t know before?

Connections: •    Are there any connections between this book and your own life?  Explain. •    Are there any connections between this book and another book you’ve read or story you’ve heard? •    Is the main character or situation he/she is in similar to you or anyone you know?  Does a character remind you of another you’ve encountered in a different book? •    What do you think of a particular character’s actions?  Are they right or wrong?  Why?

The Literature Circle Blog is a place for you to share your thoughts, insights, reactions, and learnings about a book you are reading with others who are reading the same book. The Blog entries should be at least two paragraphs long.  Your entries may tell what you felt when you read a book, and why.  They may comment on what you noticed about the author’s style of writing, and why you think he or she wrote that way.  You may observe what you liked or didn’t like about a book, and why.   In the course of the book you’re reading, you need to post at least two original entries (from two different categories – see below) that include text and page numbers (paraphrase or quote a meaningful passage) and respond at least twice to others’ posts. Connections: • Are there any connections between this book and your own life? Explain. • Are there any connections between this book and another book you’ve read or story you’ve heard? • Is the main character or sit...