Literature Circle Roles for Science Vocabulary

The study of science is often vocabulary intensive. An analysis of high school chemistry, biology, physics, and Earth science textbooks showed that approximately 1,000 to 3,000 novel science terms are contained in each (Groves 1995). Given the shear magnitude of terms, science vocabulary is problematic for many science teachers and learners. To provide students with meaningful experiences with science vocabulary, we group students into literature circles. This article describes how we have modified traditional literature circle roles to help students learn science vocabulary. What are literature circles? Literature circles are small, temporary discussion groups in which everyone in the group has chosen to read the same story, poem, article, or book (Daniels 1994). While reading, each member prepares for specific responsibilities in the upcoming discussion, and members come to their small, group discussions with notes needed to perform these tasks. The specific responsibilities in literature circles are typically called literature circle roles (Figure 1). Traditionally, discussion groups hold regular meetings, with members rotating roles each session. Upon completing their selected reading, groups share their interpretations of the text with classmates. If another round of literature circles is to occur, groups then trade members, select a new text, and begin the new cycle. While the standard literature circle roles usually remain the same, there is room for creative adaptation of roles and even production of completely novel roles to fit different needs. Within science, for example, roles have been created to help students focus on the nature of science as presented by historical nonfiction (Straits and Nichols Forthcoming). Along this line, we adapted literature circle roles to help our students learn science vocabulary. Getting started For the first step in our literature circle-based process, the teacher must select terms to be studied. Often, curriculum guides and end-of-chapter word lists are comprehensive; not all of the terms listed will actually be illuminated through classroom activities and lessons. From these extensive lists, teachers should select the terms that are appropriate for the unit of study being developed. Once identified, the terms should be grouped into broad conceptual categories (e.g., properties of minerals, organelles). Each student should be assigned two or three closely related terms from a single category, such as hardness and luster (for the properties of minerals category) or chloroplasts, ribosomes, and mitochondria (for the organelles category). For each term received, the student should find three or four definitions of the term, using sources such as a textbook glossary, dictionary, encyclopedia, and the internet. The student then uses these multiple definitions to complete various tasks based on literature circle roles. For our vocabulary lessons we integrate multiple roles into a single worksheet (Figure 2); each student is thereby responsible for performing several vocabulary tasks for each term assigned. Student roles Different roles perform different functions, but generally they are designed to aid students in either generating their own, in-depth understanding of a concept or expanding and drawing connections to the concept. Most of the roles used in our process have been adapted from Daniels (1994); however, we developed two additional roles--Webmaster and Scientist Seeker. Any combination of roles can be included on students' vocabulary worksheets. For example, the worksheet provided in Figure 2 uses the first four of the following: * Word Wizard: Student uses the definitions from various sources to create an original definition representing his or her own understanding of the concept. * Illustrator: Student uses three to four definitions from various sources to create a visual representation (e. …