Before the pandemic and before I had my own classroom, I worked as an instructional coach. I worked with and admired a fabulous teacher who made hot chocolate for students on Fridays to enjoy during their small-group book talk discussions. She turned off her overhead lights and lit the room with lamps. There was a quiet hum as kids told each other about their independent reading books, sharing quotes and insights.
I remember those lovely Friday mornings when I visited my friend’s class and have been thinking about how to create a similar experience with my students—an experience where they have conversations about their independent reading lives even though they aren’t reading the same book.
There are many strong elements of our culture of readers. Students have independent reading books, we read every day, we have reading conferences, and we have a status of the class. Students practice giving book talks to the class. I support them in planning their book talks, and they sign up to share after silent reading. It was time to find a way to teach my students how to engage in a small-group discussion about their independent reading books.
These discussions are different from our book club discussions. For book club discussions, my goal is for them to go deeper with a shared reading. For a small-group conversation about their independent books, my goal is for students to share books with each other and to add a little bit of conversation so it isn’t only each of them taking turns to present their book talks to their small group. My intention is for them to listen and interact with each other, take turns talking, and potentially find a book they’d like to add to their list of books to read. Students need to practice engaging in conversation.
With these goals in mind, I developed a framework to help students think about how they might respond to someone sharing about a book they’ve yet to read.
Getting Organized
I thought first about what I envisioned the discussion could look like.
- Students gathered in small groups
- Students holding up their book to give a book talk
- Students responding to the book talk—chatting about the book, making connections, asking questions
With a vision, I now needed a way to give students scaffolding to support them as they learned how to do this and also a little accountability so I would be able to have a record of their engagement afterward. I find that I’m able to be more present as I watch them and circulate to listen in if I can trust that I’ve given them what they need to be successful independently.
I did a search for discussion protocols online and found one that would work for me. It was shared by Jenni Donohoo and is called ICQ. It prompts students to find something interesting, make a connection, or ask a question. I created a handout for students with columns to record their response in one of these ways next to the name of the reader and their book.
Launching ICQ Book Discussions
When it was time to launch our small-group book talks using ICQ, I introduced the protocol, shared an example of how to fill it out, and then did a fishbowl to model what it would look like.
I displayed my sample on the board and asked students to fill out the first row as they watched our fishbowl. I sat at tables with three students with all the others standing around us. I gave my book talk, and right away, one of the students sitting in the fishbowl with me raised their hand. This was a perfect opportunity for me to talk to them about turn taking.
“Since we’re having a discussion, you don’t have to raise your hand. You’ll have to practice noticing a pause and taking your turn,” I explained. “This is a really important skill, because as you get older, you’ll need to know how to jump into a conversation without raising your hand and without interrupting people.”
Students listened as the group took turns commenting using ICQ. I responded to them, and we had a brief discussion before one of their students moved on to their book talk. Then I released students to have them try it on their own.
Student Independence
Before class, I create groups for book discussions. I display the groups on the board and students move to sit with their groups. Each person is expected to have their ICQ handout, something to write with, and their book.
I ask students to choose one way to interact with the reader who is sharing their book, but some kids fill out all the columns. They can listen and share something interesting, make a connection, or ask a question. They don’t have to do all three unless they want to.
Then, I circulate and listen to the discussions. I often have a co-teacher in the room with me or do this when we visit the library so our librarian can listen in as well. It’s helpful to watch and listen in and then to coach as needed to make sure everyone is responding to the book talk and every student takes a turn to book talk.
The discussions have been great, and students are able to engage in the discussions and sustain them on their own. Even students who hesitate to participate know they are accountable to share their book talk and to respond to others. The best part is that I’ve noticed more students passing books to each other after they finish them. Although I love giving book talks and connecting students with books to read, it’s a great feeling to empower them to share books with each other and to be building their discussion skills at the same time.
Download
Click here to download a copy of the ICQ small-group book talk guide.
