Task#3 Circle Time :

Task#3 Circle Time :
I liked the video and it was inspiring as I kept thinking about my classroom while watching it.

Benefits of having a circle time:
I believe it will make students feel relaxed in class and get ready for the learning part. While some students will be able to get out some of their energy so that they are more disciplined later in class, others who are usually shy and participating less in class will get a chance to communicate confidently and feel more active later. It's also a very good opportunity to practice speaking through a free communicative task which can also be fun.
I like the sentence shared by a teacher in the video; "I listened to what they shared at the beginning, so they'll be ready to listen to what I will share now" .
I remember when I used mats in my class one day, all my students were so excited and were ready to do anything to keep working on the mat. They saw it as a different kind of activity and having the teacher joining their circle will help a lot build a relationship of trust, which is very important when teaching young learners.

Challenges :
- Some students might find it a chance to chat with friends and waste time (though I think a bit of chatting is ok esp. when it's monitored by the teacher and using English) !
- Some weak students might need some process language or modelling from the teacher, otherwise they might keep silent and miss the goal of the circle time.
- What kind of language, topic or discussion questions to use in a circle time should be chosen carefully and should appeal to students (maybe get students to choose what they want to take about)!! Resources such as a mat might not be available in some schools. Also it might be difficult in big classes.

Comments

  1. Juan UribeApril 14, 2016 at 12:31 PM

    Hi Ayat! 

    I also like the concept we saw in the video of listening first to be listened later, specially because students get motivated to talk and share when they are truly listened. 

    I love the idea of deciding with students what to do during circle time and to come up with rules for quality circle time. 

    Having a quiet moment to live the moment before it happens empowers us to be ready for the possible challenges that might arise. Then we might come up with some of strategies you have mentioned such as pre-teaching, modelling, monitoring, and trying different formats. 

    Last but not least, our presence in the moment is essential for quick decision making. The more we live it, the wider our repertoire of possible solutions is. 

    Loved thinking about circle time with you, Ayat.

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