[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-1-en-105":3,"doc-seo-163292-105":53,"doc-detail-163292-en":127},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,14,19,24,29,34,39,44,49],{"id":8,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":11,"show_sort_weight":12,"slug":13},11,1,"Template","Presentations",90,"presentations",{"id":15,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":16,"show_sort_weight":17,"slug":18},12,"Resumes",80,"resumes",{"id":20,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":21,"show_sort_weight":22,"slug":23},14,"Invoices",70,"invoices",{"id":25,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":26,"show_sort_weight":27,"slug":28},15,"Posters",60,"posters",{"id":30,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":31,"show_sort_weight":32,"slug":33},16,"Social Media",50,"social-media",{"id":35,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":36,"show_sort_weight":37,"slug":38},17,"Forms",40,"forms",{"id":40,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":41,"show_sort_weight":42,"slug":43},18,"Letters",30,"letters",{"id":45,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":46,"show_sort_weight":47,"slug":48},21,"Paper Templates",5,"papers-templates",{"id":50,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":51,"show_sort_weight":4,"slug":52},158,"General","general-158",{"code":4,"msg":54,"data":55},"ok",{"site_id":56,"language":57,"slug":58,"title":59,"keywords":60,"description":61,"schema_data":62,"social_meta":120,"head_meta":122,"extra_data":124,"updated_unix":126},105,"en","community-building-circles-planning-tool-and-facilitation-guide","Community-Building Circles - Planning Tool and Facilitation Guide","","A planning tool for implementing community-building circles in middle and high school classrooms. It supports belonging, trust, communication skills, equitable voice, and SEL development, while also helping educators introduce academic content, connect to students’ backgrounds, process current events, and set shared learning goals. Includes key planning considerations, consistent scheduling guidance, space and facilitation setup, a materials checklist, and supporting resource recommendations for new circle facilitators.",{"@graph":63,"@context":119},[64,80,102],{"@type":65,"itemListElement":66},"BreadcrumbList",[67,71,74,77],{"item":68,"name":69,"@type":70,"position":9},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":72,"name":10,"@type":70,"position":73},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/",2,{"item":75,"name":11,"@type":70,"position":76},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/presentations/",3,{"item":78,"name":59,"@type":70,"position":79},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/community-building-circles-planning-tool-and-facilitation-guide/163292/",4,{"url":78,"name":59,"@type":81,"image":82,"author":87,"headline":59,"publisher":90,"fileFormat":93,"inLanguage":57,"description":61,"dateModified":94,"datePublished":95,"encodingFormat":93,"isAccessibleForFree":96,"interactionStatistic":97},"DigitalDocument",{"url":83,"@type":84,"width":85,"height":86},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/community-building-circles-planning-tool-and-facilitation-guide/163292.png","ImageObject",442,249,{"name":88,"@type":89},"Lucas Vance","Person",{"url":68,"name":91,"@type":92},"DocShare","Organization","application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document","2026-09-28","2026-08-31",true,{"@type":98,"interactionType":99,"userInteractionCount":101},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":100},"ViewAction",7,{"@type":103,"mainEntity":104},"FAQPage",[105,111,115],{"name":106,"@type":107,"acceptedAnswer":108},"What goals can community-building circles serve in classrooms?","Question",{"text":109,"@type":110},"Circles can build belonging and trusting relationships, strengthen communication and SEL skills, process events and ideas connected to students’ lives, address classroom issues, and deepen academic learning.","Answer",{"name":112,"@type":107,"acceptedAnswer":113},"How should teachers plan when and how often to hold circles?",{"text":114,"@type":110},"Hold circles at meaningful moments such as the beginning of a semester, after breaks, between units, during advisory periods or clubs, or when processing current events. Use consistent scheduling weekly, bi-weekly, or at least monthly to grow trust and skills.",{"name":116,"@type":107,"acceptedAnswer":117},"What materials and setup are recommended for running circles?",{"text":118,"@type":110},"Prepare a signal, a talking piece, and a centerpiece, co-create or reference a norms poster, and have activity materials ready. Arrange seating in a circle so participants can see one another and remove barriers between students.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":78,"og:type":121,"og:title":59,"og:site_name":91,"og:description":61},"article",{"robots":123,"canonical":78},"index,follow",{"doc_id":125,"site_id":56},163292,1788140907,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":128},{"doc_id":125,"user_id":129,"nickname":88,"user_avatar":130,"doc_module":9,"category_id":8,"category_name":11,"doc_title":59,"doc_description":61,"doc_content":131,"file_id":132,"file_url":133,"file_type":134,"file_size":135,"view_count":101,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":9,"is_downloadable":9,"audit_status":9,"page_count":136,"language":137,"language_code":57,"site_id":56,"html_lang":57,"table_of_contents":138,"faqs":139,"seo_title":140,"seo_description":61,"update_tm":126,"read_time":76},549768064622,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_6f874abed73319feea01a86fa6f0fab8","Community-Building Circles\nPurpose: Use this tool to plan community-building circles for middle and high school classrooms.\u0003\u0004\u0003\u0004\u0003\u0004 Circles can be used to build a sense of belonging and trusting relationships, strengthen communication skills and support equity of voice, or as a way to introduce academic content, access students’ background knowledge, and collectively set goals for learning. Consider leading circles at the beginning of a semester, after a break from school, to begin or end a unit, during advisory periods or extracurricular club meetings, or to process current events.\nThis tool includes:\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"bookmark=id.gjdgxs\" \\h \u0014Planning considerations\u0015\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"bookmark=id.30j0zll\" \\h \u0014Set up checklist\u0015\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"bookmark=id.1fob9te\" \\h \u0014Circle Process\u0015\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"bookmark=id.3znysh7\" \\h \u0014Planning template\u0015\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"bookmark=id.2et92p0\" \\h \u0014Sample Circle Scripts\u0015\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"bookmark=id.tyjcwt\" \\h \u0014Additional Resources \u0015\nPlanning considerations:\nUnderstand your students’ needs: \u0003\u0004Consider what you know about adolescent development and the needs of your students.  Do they have any particular social, emotional, cognitive,  learning  or language needs?  What events in school or in their community are impacting them?\nPurpose/Goals of Circle: What would you like to achieve with this circle?   Build community in your classroom, strengthen students’ SEL skills, process events and ideas connected to their lives, address a classroom issue, or deepen academic learning?   Keep the purpose in mind when planning activities and questions for your circle.\nConsistency: Building circles into your schedule on a consistent basis will increase the power of the circle by building on the trust and skills that are developed each time students participate.  Consider holding circles weekly, bi-weekly or at least monthly. Depending on the context, they may take as little as 15 minutes or up to an entire class period.\nLocation: Circles work best when the physical space has an open feeling with no barriers between participants. How can you rearrange your classroom to create space for your circles? If your classroom or the furniture does not support this, consider another semi-private, comfortable place in the building where you can go for your circles.\nFacilitation:  Start by facilitating circles to model the process. Over time, transfer responsibilities (e.g., gathering supplies, preparing prompts, or taking over facilitation) to students and coach them as they take on leadership and develop their skills.\nSet up checklist:\nPrepare the following materials before holding the circle. Consider the cultural implications for these objects and materials. For example, rotating talking pieces and centerpieces provide an opportunity to learn about students' culture and traditions.\nSignal - used to announce the official opening and closing of the circle. Examples: chime, singing bowl, or rain stick.\nTalking Piece - meaningful object that is easily passed from one student to another to signal who is talking. Some classes make or adopt a talking piece and use it for every circle. Examples: objects found in nature (e.g., feathers, pine cone, driftwood, stones, seashells), a soft or squishy ball, animal figures, or another sensory object.\nCenterpiece - something placed in the center of the circle to provide a place to focus, a sense of warmth and calm, or a sense of connection.   Examples: a colorful piece of fabric or small rug with a few small items such as flowers, feathers, LED candles, a bowl of smooth stones, a plant, or a piece of art that all students have contributed to.\n\u0003\u0004Norms Poster - a poster of the norms, shared agreements, or charter that has been co-created by the class, to be referenced at the beginning of each circle.  Put this in a spot where students can see them.\nActivity Materials - any printed activities, questions, poems, paper, pens and markers.\nSeating - Move chairs into a circle so that everyone can s","cbCaivIhlQGKDZja","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaivIhlQGKDZja","docx",62528,8,"English","# Planning considerations\n## Purpose/Goals of Circle\n## Consistency\n## Location\n## Facilitation\n# Set up checklist\n## Signal, Talking Piece, Centerpiece\n## Norms Poster and Activity Materials\n## Seating\n# Additional Resources","[{\"question\":\"What goals can community-building circles serve in classrooms?\",\"answer\":\"Circles can build belonging and trusting relationships, strengthen communication and SEL skills, process events and ideas connected to students’ lives, address classroom issues, and deepen academic learning.\"},{\"question\":\"How should teachers plan when and how often to hold circles?\",\"answer\":\"Hold circles at meaningful moments such as the beginning of a semester, after breaks, between units, during advisory periods or clubs, or when processing current events. Use consistent scheduling weekly, bi-weekly, or at least monthly to grow trust and skills.\"},{\"question\":\"What materials and setup are recommended for running circles?\",\"answer\":\"Prepare a signal, a talking piece, and a centerpiece, co-create or reference a norms poster, and have activity materials ready. Arrange seating in a circle so participants can see one another and remove barriers between students.\"}]","Community-Building Circles - Planning Tool and Facilitation Guide | DOCX"]