Speaking Volumes : How to Get Students Discussing Books--And Much More

 

In Speaking Volumes, Gilmore offers accessible, classroom-tested, and matter-of-fact techniques grounded in the idea that literary conversations thrive when students can connect their interests and beliefs to what they're reading. Gilmore's ideas for new, unusual, and original models for engaged discussion are easy to reproduce and use, and they get results. Speaking Volumes includes:

• numerous sample activities based on commonly taught literature
• quotations, prompts, and reproducible surveys to help you open, focus, or plan a discussion
• teacher-friendly uses for technology that stimulate conversations
• activities that connect ideas from books to current events and issues
• detailed follow-ups to help you assess what a book discussion has contributed to students' understanding.

Barry Gilmore, Ed.D., taught English and social studies for over 15 years before becoming a middle school principal in Memphis, TN. Barry was a National Board Certified teacher and Past-President of the Tennessee Council of Teachers of English. He was the author of seven books for teachers and numerous articles on topics ranging from the common core to plagiarism and classroom discussion methods. Gilmore received numerous honors for his teaching, including the NCTE's Outstanding High School Educator Award, the U.S. Department of Education's American Star of Teaching Award, and the Tennessee Holocaust Commission's Educator of the Year.