Classroom Circles

Last year, I introduced Restorative Practices to our school and formed a Professional Learning Community of teachers who studied along with me. These teachers used these practices in their own classrooms and the results were incredible.

 Click Here to Learn More About Restorative Practices

I really focused in on the Restorative component of community circles. I started using community circles in every guidance lesson. Of course, I enjoyed doing lessons this way, but more importantly, the kids enjoyed it. I asked 5th graders to take an anonymous survey at the end of the year about their experiences with circles and these are just a few of my favorite comments...

"I feel like I can express myself without judgment."

""Everybody gets to talk instead of the teacher calling on the same person over and over."

"They make me feel safe for telling my concerns."

"They are AWESOME! We used to just sit at our desk and Ms. Bulino would read a book to us and we would talk about it but when we do the circle we get to answer questions and express our feelings."

All the feels for that last comment. Engaging, student-centered learning that builds social-emotional wellness...in other words, a counselor's dream. 

This year during Professional Development,  I presented more information about Classroom Circles and everyone got to participate in a circle. The response was AMAZING! I have never had such an enthusiastic response after presenting at 1:30 on a Friday! 

I have seen circles all over the building and heard some amazing conversations. Here are just a few so you can get a sneak peek into our world...

Mrs. Schnitzer's Class
 2nd Grade
They were working on their class motto. They brainstormed ideas in small groups, and then came up with a collaborative statement. They will repeat this statement at the beginning of each circle as a reminder to be respectful and kind.

She also had a quote of the week and children connected their world to it. They talked about having a fresh start and new beginnings. It was really very special and sweet.   

Ms. Kirkman's Class
 Kindergarten

Ms. Kirkman asked why we need to be unique. One of the students said, "So we can tell who we really are." Ok, that's pretty good coming from a 5-year-old on the fourth day of school. Then she asked, "What if we all looked the same?" and another student answered, "I think we would be really confused and it wouldn't be fun." You could tell they were really thinking and using their imaginations to wonder. It was precious and inspiring all at the same time.

Mrs. O'Kelley's Class
Second Grade

Mrs. O'Kelley had her students connect their curriculum to the circle by using critical thinking skills. All in about 20 minutes she asked the students to compare two stories,  make a personal connection, and give advice to the main character to help solve a problem. Text-to-text, text-to-self, text-to-world, like a BOSS! She also made sure they were speaking in complete sentences which builds vocabulary and language skills. 

Mr. Porter's Music Class
1st and 3rd Grades
Mr. Porter is even incorporating circles into his music classes and WOW!!!! He began by asking how music made them feel and then asked how they felt when they were about to perform on stage. They said things like,

"I feel embarrassed."

"I feel nervous and happy."

"I'm excited."

"For me, I feel like I'm swept off my feet when I jump off the stage to see my family."

Identifying feelings, sharing them with the group, and being vulnerable during the first week of school is hard, but Mr. Porter made his room a safe place and reminded them that he is here to help and make them love music.
I love that he used an instrument as his talking piece.

I can't wait to see more circles next week and to share our amazing progress with you. Have a great Friday! 

  

Student-Centered Classrooms

Student-centered learning has been trending in the education world. At Beverly, it has become more than just a trend...it's our new way of thinking. ISTE states,

 "Student-centered learning moves students from passive receivers of information to active participants in their own discovery process. What students learn, how they learn it and how their learning is assessed are all driven by each individual student’s needs and abilities". 

There are many components of student-centered learning, but today I want to focus on the classroom environment. Students spend approximately 1200 hours in school each year. Teachers are transforming their spaces so that students can feel comfortable learning, taking risks, and staying engaged during instructional time. Here are just a few images of our student-centered rooms...

Kindergarten

Just look at those cozy little chairs, the curtains, the tree. I want to curl up in this corner and read a book all day. It's perfect for encouraging our littlest Bobcats to develop a love of reading and learning. 

First Grade

Look closely and you can see that the bench says "Safe Place". This is a place where students can talk out problems, cool down, or just take a moment to gather their thoughts. What a great reminder that it is OK and often necessary to do all of those things. 

Second Grade

Students love sitting on this bench to read! 

See those crates with bouncy balls? These are part of "flexible seating". Students can choose where they want to work in the classroom. Giving choices is the key to success in student-centered learning. They discover what they like or don't like and what works best for them.

Third Grade

I think I'd like to spend a day in third grade just reading in all of these cozy nooks. 

Fourth Grade

I love this faux brick wall/reading area! And how about those fonts on the Classroom Crew board.  

Fifth Grade

Flexible seating, cozy reading area, lots of choices...love it!

Specialists

Even though these are not classroom teachers, they are incorporating these ideas into their small groups.  

I have seen our Instructional Specialist on the floor with her students in this area reading and enjoying learning together. 

Flexible Seating in ESL

Library Makeover including a lego wall that was installed last year. 

Makerspace filled with STEM activities. Students can come to the library during recess for "Tinker Time" where they get to explore these fun materials. 

Ok, this is my office. My guidance classrooms are way more student-centered, but this was all cleaned up for our "Meet the Teacher" event so I felt the need to document.  

Mind Shift Monday: Restorative Practices- Circle Keeping

Happy Monday! This blog focuses on the elements of a circle that keep it peaceful and organized. These components are extremely important in setting up a risk-free environment where discussions based out of trust can take place. 

The center of the circle is used to focus the group and remind them to be present in the conversation. I like using a circular rug in the middle of my circles to help my students stay in a circle instead of a "squircle" (square circle :)). I actually found these two towels on Jane.com for about $9 each. 

Some other teachers at my school went on Amazon.com and found their own circle rugs. 

One of our third grade teachers found this fun one...

And one of our Kinder teachers uses something like this and calls it Purple Circle Time. So catchy and fun! 

You can decorate the center of the circle in any way you want. These are some images I found online...

 

I like to take a more student-centered approach by having students choose the items...

Check out this video of a student explaining her selections to the group...

The guidelines are basic rules to keep peace and order in the circle. This is the copy that most people use and you can find it by Google searching "circle guidelines".

I love the idea behind these guidelines but wanted to simplify this for our Kinder-2nd students, so I created this poster... 

I really like the guidelines as a starting point for creating agreements on respect and appropriate behaviors, because it really covers so much with just a few words.  

If you saw this video...

Then you can see why students think the Talking Piece is so important. It really keeps order within the circle. You can use anything as a talking piece. Last year, Kimmie and I let each of her students choose a ribbon to represent them and then tied it on a stick they found outside...

I know, the stick kind of looks like a hot mess, but they really loved it! 

I have also used all of these items as the talking piece...

Circles can start in many different ways (short stories, quotes, proverbs, anecdotes, etc.), but I like to start off by posing a question. Because my time is limited, I usually skip the fun/silly questions and jump right into something that connects with my lesson that week. The questions are usually pretty broad, but they allow for creativity and thought in the student's responses. I know it is often difficult to think of questions that are interesting and yet fun to answer, so I created a resource to help my staff come up with some good questions for starting circles. There are 9 categories and it includes 180 questions. Each category has a list of the questions but also has a set of matching question cards that can be put on a flip ring and used all year long.