Formal Circles

Using formal circles...

- Supports conflict resolution
- Promotes perspective taking
- Optimizes opportunity to repair harm
- Makes the teacher a participant

Implementation

Overview

Addressing issues that affect the entire learning community, from playground confrontations to student cheating schemes.
Trained professionals lead formal classroom circles, teachers are free to express their feelings and listen carefully to their students.
There must be the following expectations established.

Talking piece
“One Voice” a minder that one person is to speak at a time
“Listen with mind and heart” a reminder to actively consider what others have to say
“Safe space” a reminder to maintain confidentiality
“Make space” a reminder not to dominate the discussion or crowd out the voices of others.

Core Components

- Facilitated by someone trained in restorative conferencing
- Teacher should be allowed to participate
- Use of talking piece
- Norms established

Proactive Implementation

- Proactively establishing the ability to utilize formal circles requires a classroom enviorment that values community and voice. Using other structures such as panels, proactive circles, and restorative conversations supports formal circle use.

Responsive Implementation

- Formal circles are responsive. They occur by being in an outside trained facilitator in order to allow the supervising adult to be fully involved as part of the community.

Connection

If the need is connection then the supervising adult should be allowed to fully participate within the formal circle.

Skills Training

If the need is skill building then the participants should be allowed to brainstorm on what they can do to repair the harm caused.

Awareness

If the need is awareness then time must be allowed for all participants to share how the event impacted them personally.

Emotional Regulation

If the need is regulation then clear expecta

Consider Factors Prior to Start

Gender, race, function, topography, family dynamics, interpersonal relationships

Resource availability, classroom instruction, physical space, time, technology

Intensifying or Fading During

REMINDER

- Make a note to document when you're starting this intervention.
- After 10 consecutive school days of implementation, use collected data to determine the intervention's effectiveness.