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1. Set the circle. Make sure everyonecan see each others faces. Makesure there is nothing in the way ofeach other. Dont let students hidebehind desks or bags.

2. set the tone. Make sure everyone

understands what listening is.Show them what not listening lookslike. Show them what not listeningfeels like to those talking.

3. set up active listening. Show themhow to sit when they are listening.Show them how to use theirbodies- point both hips at thetalker. Watch the talkers mouth,internalize their words- make themrepeat silently with their lips whatthe talker is saying.

4. have a talking stick. They can only

talk when they hold it. No ifs or

buts. They will have 30seconds to speak, whenthey are holding it. Andtalking out of turn is badlistening. Sanctions arerisky here.

5. When they have learntthese skills give them abreak. Make sure theyhave at least a minuteoutside the circle. Thenfor the last ten secondsmake them walk in the circleand count down from ten. When

you have reached 1 they must beseated. At this point they should bemixed up again. Tell them how longeach section will last. Activelistening is hard work and they willneed to break often to maintainconcentration. (dont run a circletime for more than 7 minutes at atime MAXIMUM)

6. the learning objective of circletime is to get them used to theprocess: roughly this might be:Illustrate a problem- sharealternative perspectives on this

issue and form some sort ofclosure at the end.

7. start with open ended questions.

what was the best thing about-what did you like about- whatexperience did you find the mostrewarding during- get them used tothe talking stick. Go in anydirection. First break.

8. after the break make sure youhighlight good listeners and thingsthat need work on. Use the 1-10sagain if it worked or move theminto particular seats.

9. next move into challenges- make

sure they are impersonal- clearlyask them to take out all propernouns. Questions like, whatchallenges did you face during-what problems would you havedealt with differently- where youmade to feel uncomfortable byanything during the experience-what was it

10. when students have started toidentify a concern- take a breakwhen you feel the temperaturerising. This might be subtle- thekids might start shifting about-

they might get very stillinstead. Eyes might startlocking. Or people mightstart whispering. Thecircle time rules apply.Reinforce them afteryou have...

11. another break- makesure they are in newseats (use the 10-1)

place an item in themiddle of the floor. And

illustrate the bicyclespokes theory. For every

problem there is a range ofdifferent ways of looking at it. Atwo sided item with two differentcolours helps. For a what colour isthe.. question. Or a mug/ cup witha handle.

12. choose the challenge that willengage the students- and one theyall may have experienced and askthe circle to contribute alternativeways of resolving the problem.Limit their time here. Andreconsider the proper nounsadvice. Look for eye contact withinthe groups.

13. If it becomes to challenging anatmosphere. Point it out. Ask themwhy they think it is. And if you can,move on. Take a break if you needit. But persevere. Dont leave thispart broken down. Check the timenow- from a difficult point you aregoing to need 20 minutes beforethe end of the lesson.

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14. sit them back down if you havestood them up because youneeded to and redefine the rules.Ask for someone to say somethingpositive if needs be. Use sentencestarters like If I could make thiscircle time better I would if I

could trust you all to understandwhat I was saying I would tell youthat If I had a wish for how thissession would end it would be

15. allow students to direct questionsand observations at each other-positive ones. (you can try criticalones also but it will might getmessy if you dont close theparameters of what they mightsay) sentence starters couldinclude I think what you saidtoday was really brave because,I really admire you because, it

must have been difficult to say16. head for home now, we are going

for closure. A consensus. I like todo this by a gesture and not words.I like the human thermometer. A nobeing positioning their body asclose to the floor as possible, a yesbeing as close to the ceiling(standing on chairs if needs be)most of them will want to stand ontheir chair anyways. Closure can bedirectly related (if you agree with[students name] then), if you findtodays circle time useful, or even ifyou are looking forward to letthem into position. Let them lookaround and then fix the room.

17. when the room is restored and theyare about to leave one lastcomment. The circle is a sacredspace/ a discreet session.Information shared in the circle isbest kept within the circle. This isnot a request for privacy its just arecommendation for discretion.

18. make a cup of tea