Significance of circle time

Pastoral Care in Education, 2014

This paper discusses the findings and implications of a semi-randomised control trial study on the effectiveness of circle time (CT) on primary school students' social and emotional learning, as well as classroom teachers' and students' experience of CT. A social and emotional learning programme was delivered through CT by trained classroom teachers across the years in one primary school, with other classrooms serving as control groups. The classroom teachers completed the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) at pre-and post-intervention, while the CT teachers also completed a questionnaire on their experience of implementing CT in the classroom. The CT students also completed a questionnaire on their own experience of CT. The SDQ scores suggest that CT students showed less internalised difficulties when compared to their control peers, while the qualitative data from both teachers and students suggest that the CT students also exhibited less behaviour problems and more prosocial behaviour. The study identifies various strengths and weaknesses of the programme and makes recommendations on how it could be organised more effectively in the classroom. The paper concludes that rather than taking CT as the default option for nurturing such values as student empowerment, inclusion and equity, there is a need for further rigorous studies on the impact of CT not only on students' social and emotional learning and behaviour but also on the classroom relationships and climate.

2016

The talking circle, which I have often experienced during my life with an Atikamekw Elder, Roger Echaquan, quickly appeared to me as essential in my teaching practice, whether in an Aboriginal environment or elsewhere. After a brief description of the talking circle, as experienced by Mr. Echaquan, I will present some themes to guide its application within the classroom or in other spheres of school. I will also outline some of the benefits in relation to teaching-learning and to group management. To conclude, I will stress some of the practical limitations of the circle within a school context.

Educators are increasingly aware that the efficacy of social and emotional learning (SEL) is dependent on implementation factors, not just program content. These include the philosophy underpinning an intervention, the beliefs as well as the skills of facilitators, and the classroom/whole school context in which the intervention takes place. This article outlines the philosophy and pedagogy of Circle Solutions and presents findings from research where 18 undergraduate students supported and developed 'Circle Time' in 8 Greater Western Sydney primary schools for a university module on community service. The study indicates that when there is full teacher participation within the principles of the Circle philosophy, together with active school support that promotes relational values, the learning outcomes for positive relationship building are more sustainable.

1993

2010

Department Head: Sue Pendell.2010 Summer.Includes bibliographical references (pages 74-81).The dialogue-centered program, Peace Circles, aims to foster connection between school community members by bringing them together to share stories from their lives. Advocates of Peace Circles contend that they help community members develop a greater understanding and appreciation for one another. The purpose of this study is to examine and evaluate two Peace Circles events that took place in April 2009 in northern Colorado high schools. More specifically, this study sought to determine the degree to which participation in Peace Circles affects students' and community members' perceptions of school connectedness. In addition, this study explored the reasons that participants would or would not participate in future Peace Circles. This study employed a survey-based methodology, asking participants to complete surveys both before and after partaking in Peace Circles. Results indicated t...

This article is concerned with a research undertaken in a middle school on the Chinese mainland and the implications of its findings. The research involved the introduction of an experiential pedagogy usually described as circle time. The article describes the contribution of circle time to affective education and its pedagogical nature. The historical and broader cultural context in which the research was undertaken and the significance of these are discussed. Aspects of the research and its findings are then presented. Though the impact of the intervention (i.e., circle time) on students' self-esteem was limited, it appeared to have some positive effects on their academic achievement. Data was collected using a range of methods. Both the students involved in the circle time and the teachers showing an interest responded positively. There were at least three important implications from the research: (a) an experiential approach developed in a Western context could be effectively transposed to an Eastern one; (b) based on the positive response from the students, it could have potential value for other students on the Chinese mainland; (c) young people have an affective need to which education in China is

Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2009

Circle time is a time for children to share their personal feelings and ideas about anything important to them. Encouraging children to express their feelings and making sincere choices help them to enhance self-esteem more effectively than a system of external rewards. Besides that, circle time activities are used to scaffold concept development, physical education, personal development, and emergent literacy. Although circle time has been widely used by western countries; Turkish pre-school program does not include circle time activities and its applications. This study aims to determine whether circle time activities will increase children's use of concepts.

Journal of Montessori research, 2023

Circle time is commonplace in traditional preschools, yet there are few references to the practice in Montessori's writings or in major Montessori organizations' teacher education standards. This article investigates whether circle time is frequent in Montessori 3-6-year-old classrooms using data from a widely distributed Qualtrics survey. The results, from 276 respondents spanning all 50 states, provide insight into the circle time practices of United States-based preschool Montessori teachers, also known in Montessori classrooms as guides. We present novel information regarding circle time duration and frequency, types of circle time activities, Montessori guides' circle time training and planning, whether children's circle time attendance is free choice or compulsory, and the nature of circle time in programs associated with Association Montessori Internationale versus American Montessori Society. Results revealed that 92% of survey participants have circle time every day or most days; most participants hold circle time for 20 minutes or less; the most common circle time events were show-and-tell, calendar work, vocabulary lessons, Grace and Courtesy lessons, read aloud discussions, dancing and movement, snack time, general conversation, read aloud (stories), and birthday celebrations. We found that many of the most frequent circle time activities do not align with children's preferences, teacher preferences, or Early Childhood best practices. Our work invites Montessorians to engage in the work of reconstructing the traditional practice of circle time to better align with Montessori hallmarks of choice, development of the will, and joyfulness.

1. Summarise the policies and procedures of the setting relevant to promoting children and young people's behaviour All adults who work within in a school environment have a responsibility to themselves and the school to model a high standard of behaviour, both in their dealings with the children and with every other adult within the school as their example of behaviour has a significant influence on the children's behaviour this is because as an adult in the setting we are role models. Good, strong teamwork between adults will encourage good behaviour throughout the school. Each school has a behaviour policy that staff should be aware of and adhere to, this is beneficial as then the children are clear where they stand. All new staff that enter a school should follow an induction programme to guarantee a dependable approach to behaviour management within their specific school, for Tinsley meadows there wasn't really an induction process but they made me well aware for all the policy's I needed to know. Classroom organization and teaching methods have a major influence on children's behaviour while in classroom environments children are aware of the degree to which they and their efforts are valued. A relationship between the teacher, teaching assistant, the children, the positive strategies that are used, together with classroom displays that the children have done by themselves all have a bearing on a child's behaviour, an example of this would be that if a child gets their work on the board they are rewarded so the majority of kids in our school try really hard to have their work put up. The whole behaviour policy and strategies in lesson at Tinsley Meadows is built around our emphasis on rewards that strengthen good behaviour this is done by showing children that they are highly valued as a pupil. By giving children praise, whether it is informal or formal, in groups or individually will reinforce their feeling of belonging to the school which in return produces good behaviour for the most part. The school rewards system at Tinsley consists of Positive and the appropriate praise, writing constructive and positive comments on children's work, Using the suitable stickers when needed, nominating two children a week for an award from each class, Awarding the Head Teachers award certificate and dojos plus green cards. These types of rewards are intended to increase the motivation in a child and by recognising their success will lead to their good behaviour and a positive work ethic. However, where there is praise there must also be limits for behaviour, with boundaries or sanctions this will teach children that unacceptable behaviour will not be accepted within school. An example of some unacceptable behaviour would be bullying, disrespect to adults, disruptive behaviour and racism, the use of sanctions in these instances are it is made clear to the child why they are receiving a verbal warning in order for them to understand what they are doing wrong, that change in their behaviour is required in order for further sanctions not to be used e.g. yellow and red cards, group sanctions are avoided whenever possible as they can breed dislike amongst a group of children, there is a clear difference made between minor and major offences and the focus is on the behaviour rather than the pupil as an individual. Some of the incidents at Tinsley Meadows School can be quite serious but can be dealt with through simple responses and communication, it is also important to remember that when using sanctions the sanction does not outweigh the actual offence. In school, we also have a set of cores values these are the school's codes of conduct and are designed to show children how they can achieve acceptable standards of behaviour, rules encourage children to behave in a thoughtful and considerate manner which will produce a positive learning environment. These rules are displayed throughout the school and are referred to continuously by staff and children equally, when dealing with some situations we try refer back to our core values to reinforce them. We also have class rules that have been developed by the children themselves and are a positive device for encouraging good behaviour, after these rules are developed all of the children in the class sign them as sort of a contract or 'behaviour agreement'. The children can then monitor their own behaviour as well as the behaviour of other children in the class. Attendance at school will also have a negative effect on the behaviour of children as they need the stability that a school offers. Not only do children learn and educate themselves at school but also learn to develop their social skills which are extremely important for making friends, these of a child's health, these are physical health, social and Emotional Development, Approaches to Learning, Thinking Abilities and General Knowledge and Communication, Language and Literacy, if one of these areas are effected it can have a highly adverse effect on a child's behaviour and other key stages of development. If a child does not attend school for long periods of time then both of these key attributes will suffer leading to bad behaviour both in and out of the classroom. In order to attain attendance at school, Tinsley has attendance passports,

2013

Educators are increasingly aware that the efficacy of social and emotional learning (SEL) is dependent on implementation factors, not j ust program content. These include the philosophy underpinning an intervention, the be liefs as well as the skills of facilitators, and the classroom/whole school contex t in which the intervention takes place. This article outlines the philosophy and ped agogy of Circle Solutions and presents findings from research where 18 undergraduate students supported and developed ‘Circle Time’ in 8 Greater Western Sydney primary schools for a university module on community service. The study indicates that when th ere is full teacher participation within the principles of the Circle philosophy, tog ether with active school support that promotes relational values, the learning outcomes f or positive relationship building are more sustainable.