What about the Circle Time model and staff?
Q: We have used 'Circle Time' for several years and have gradually developed a whole school attitude based on this. However we have not really focused on the adults. What would you suggest as a first step?
Jenny: Interestingly, it puts staff ‘off’ if any manager says ‘we are now going to do staff Circle Times!’ It sets all the alarm bells going. I think the best first step is to share teachers best practise in a circle. Each member of staff is asked to bring a favourite game or an activity to a staff meeting and explain how they use it with the pupils. In this way everyone has a good laugh as they have to play the games. It gives people a ‘party bag’ of ideas to take away. There are some Circle Time sessions in our book ‘Turn Your School Round’ which have some interesting handouts and enable staff to reflect more deeply on the needs of pupils. I looked at these again just now, prior to answering your question and realised that they are very sedentary meetings. I now, years later, use an opening game…half way through I would use a lifting activity…and then a closing game. The books that really offer exciting new games are called ‘101 Games for Self Esteem’ and ‘101 Games for Social Skills’. It would be a good idea to ask three different members of staff to take a new game from the book and try it out, as a non-expert, with the rest of the staff. If this didn’t work it might be a good idea to bring in an outside facilitator. Some schools bring in a juggler or a yoga teacher. The fun and warmth that these people generate then convinces staff that it is safe to be in a circle with each other. Once emotional safety is established it is possible to move onto deeper issues such as staff using its forum to ask for help with trying to understand certain unhappy children. In Circle Time this is called step 3. it’s vital that staff meetings end on a positive note. Some schools end with a round of ‘one thing that well this week’, some end on a success story where one member of staff has been asked to talk about a successful project or a successful strategy with a troubled child. I do hope that some of these ideas act as a good way in. Good luck.
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