QUESTIONS FOR CHECKING-IN, CIRCLES

[TwoKidsTwoCats]

These are examples and can be built upon. The idea is to create open-ended questions that do not place moral judgment or condemnation. Our questioning should invite reflection and expression.

PROACTIVE – PERSONAL

Name a Thorn and Rose from [time frame]

Personal weather report (ex: “There was some fog this morning but the sun is coming out”)

In one word, describe                      (how you’re feeling about this year, what you think about this weekend, etc.) 

What are some personal goals you have for this year? For the next 5 years?

What do you do in your time outside of class? Name your three favorite activities.

Who is one of your biggest role models? Why?

Name three characteristics you look for in a best friend.

Name a valuable lesson you learned from your parents while growing up.

Name your favorite moment with a sibling or cousin.

What is one specific goal for yourself for this week that will help you to better a relationship with a friend or family member?

What are three of your strengths?

What are three things you want to be your strengths? What can you do to make these your strengths?

What are things that overwhelm you in your life?

How do you relieve stress?

How do you respond when you feel (overwhelmed, scared, sad, happy, etc.) in life?

Name one of the happiest moments you've had in your life.

Name one of the moments that you remember as being the hardest in your life.

How do you show loved ones that you care about them?

If you could do anything, without having to worry about money, what would you do?

If you could travel anywhere, without having to worry about money, where would you go? Why?

What is one thing you will NEVER do?

If you could have one superpower what would it be?

What is a personal weather report for how you are feeling right now? (Ex: cloudy with a chance of rain, fog clearing for sun, etc.)

What do you think we all have in common?

What is your favorite meal prepared by a family member or other significant person in your life?

What kind of career or field of practice do you think you would like to pursue?

If you could take one movie with you on a mission to Mars, what would it be?

List of >100 Questions (students can choose by number): http://tinyurl.com/SBUSDQuestions

 

 PROACTIVE – ACADEMIC

What has been your favorite high school class and why?

What has been your least favorite high school class and why?

What characteristics make a teacher your favorite?

What characteristics make a teacher your least favorite?

Name a time when you were a fantastic student. How did that affect you? Others?

Name a time when you weren't the best student. What could you have done differently?

What do you need in a(n)                      class to be successful?

What can teachers do to better help you learn?

What can friends do to better help you learn?

What can you do to help your friends be successful in class?

Think about some positive learning experiences you have had. What did they have in common?

Think about some negative learning experiences you have had. What did they have in common?

What are some academic goals you have for this year? For the next 5 years?

What is one specific goal for yourself for this week that will help you to do better in class?

What is one specific goal for yourself for this week that will help you to have a better relationship with your teacher?

Name one of your favorite moments in high school. Why?

What are things that overwhelm you at school?

What are three of your academic strengths?

How do you respond when you feel  (overwhelmed, scared, sad, happy, etc.) at school?

How do you show important people to you at school that you appreciate them?

What is one thing you want to accomplish this school year?

What is one thing you wish you would have done differently last school year?

What makes a class successful?

What makes an unsuccessful class unsuccessful?

How do you want to be treated by your peers in class?

How do you think your peers want to be treated in class?

How do you think your teacher (or adults on campus) want to be treated?

What are your social goals this year?

What extracurricular clubs or activities have you thought about joining?

What do you expect from your teachers?

What do you expect from your administrators?

What do you think makes a good teacher?

What do you think makes a good school?

If you could write one review question from today’s lesson, what would it be?

If someone had a different viewpoint than you, what is a strategy you could use to work with them?        

What is one thing you need to leave at the door today (physically or metaphorically) so you can focus in class?       
 

PROACTIVE- CYBERBULLYING

CYBERBULLYING DEFINITION: 

Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior among school aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time. Bullying includes actions such as making threats, spreading rumors, attacking someone physically or verbally, and excluding someone from a group on purpose.

Cyberbullying is bullying that takes place using electronic technology. Electronic technology includes devices and equipment such as cell phones, computers, and tablets as well as communication tools including social media sites, text messages, chat, and websites.

What does it feel like to be bullied online or through texting or email?

What actions or words make you feel bullied? Is this different online than in person?

Remember a time when you saw someone else being bullied online. How did that feel?

What could you do the next time you see someone being bullied online?

What are some strategies you use to be healthy with your social media and texting use?

What are some other ways you can communicate with friends or activities you can do with friends besides social media or texting?

What are you taking away from this circle that could help you or someone else in the future?

 

PROACTIVE- DIGITAL LITERACY

PURPOSE:

What devices do you usually use to access the internet?

What do you primarily use your devices for? Social media? Texting? Gaming? All of the above?

For how many hours each day do you estimate you spend time online or on a device? Do you think this amount of time is healthy or unhealthy?

What place do you feel your parents have in your social media and online activity? Do you think they can be and should be involved?

Life moments and memories are an integral part of our lives. Do we want them to be viewed by everyone? Will they expose us to risk?

What is the intent and focus of social media communication?

Do you think you can be more authentic when you are online-can you be more who you really are-or do you think people like to be someone else and play around with their identity?

Imagine if someone could view all of your online participation - what would it say about you?

Do you think the way you treat others online would be considered ethical?

Does your participation on line demonstrate an ability to use online environments for learning?

What values would your online interactions demonstrate? 

 

COMMUNICATION:

Have you ever had something shared with you online before that shouldn’t have been? What did you do?

What do you do when someone tries to contact you online that you don’t know? How do you know if you can trust the person or not?

Communication may be evolving, but being a quality communicator will remain a critical success factor. How is the use of social media shaping communication skills?

 

SAFETY & EFFECTS:

How do you know you are being safe online?

Do you think that people should put photos of their friends on the internet? If so, under what circumstances?

How private is the information you post on the internet? Who can see it?

How do you think your social media activity can affect your future? College admissions? Potential employers? What type of digital footprint are you creating? How might it impact users today and in the future? Think about social media as an evolving personal resume that is not easily edited.

What do you do if a friend is looking at online sites at school that are not allowed or inappropriate?

Secondary grades: Have you seen sexual images or remarks in a text, online, or in social media profiles? What did you do?

Teasing, lying, gossiping, threatening, harassing, and spreading rumors, can all be forms of or lead to bullying. If these things occur online, are they perceived as less “harming”? Has anyone done this to you?

If you were asked to “disconnect” (no cell phones or internet) for a period of two weeks, how easy or hard would it be for you and why?

Do you have tech-free time at home? What times and areas are a part of this time?

Do you know how to protect yourself and others online?

SOURCES:

Some questions taken from http://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/ipractice/2015/01/12/what-are-the-right-questions-for-digital-literacy/

 

REACTIVE

What happened?

How are you?

What’s going on?

How did we get here?

What do you need?

How are you feeling now?

What are two words to describe your feelings right now?

How are the others involved feeling?

Who are the others involved?

What part did you play?

If you could press rewind, how would you have reacted differently?

Where do you think we need to go from here?

What do you need from me?

How can I help?

What part of this can you own?

What are you willing to accept responsibility for?

How do we make this right?

What is the harm, and how should it be repaired?

What do you think you need to do now?

Name one behavior you have witnessed in class that you would like to stop, or that you think is inappropriate?

How do you feel when these behaviors persist?

What is one thing you can do to SHOW that you are working to make amends?

If I were walking by your class, what would I see that could prove to me that you were working to make things better?

How can we put this issue to rest, and show everyone else that we have made peace?

What do you need from your classmates to be successful this year?

 

SPECIFIC SCENARIO CIRCLE QUESTIONS:

PROACTIVE - BEFORE A CLASS HAS A SUBSTITUTE/GUEST TEACHER

What would you like our guest teacher to remember about our class?

What are your expectations for the class while a guest teacher is here?

(Teacher should write these down and follow up after the sub)

What is one expectation you think I have for this class with a sub tomorrow?

What would you want your sub to say about you on Facebook at the end of the day?

What would your day look like to make your sub want to come back?

What is your responsibility as a student in assisting the guest teacher?

If you were a visiting teacher what would you like to see? How would you like to be treated?

When you’re in a new environment, what makes you feel comfortable/accepted/safe?

What could you do to make a guest feel welcome in our classroom?

What is one individual goal for yourself you can set while there is a sub here?

What can you do, personally, to create a positive experience for the sub?

What is something I, as the teacher, can do to best prepare for the sub?

  

   

 

REACTIVE - DISRESPECTFUL WITH SUBSTITUTE/GUEST TEACHER

What worked well while the sub was here?

What didn’t work well?

What could I as the teacher have done to better prepare the sub?

What impression do you think the sub took away from this class? What will he or she remember about our class?

What could the class have done better while we had a guest teacher?

What could you individually have done better while we had a guest teacher?

What is your responsibility as a student in assisting the guest teacher?

When you’re in a new environment, what makes you feel comfortable/accepted/safe?

What can you do next time to make our guest feel welcome in our classroom?

What was your responsibility as a student in assisting the guest teacher? 

Did you or did you not accomplish this?

If you were a visiting teacher what would you have liked to see? How would you have liked to be treated?

What is one individual goal for yourself you can set for the next time there is a sub here?

Next time, what can you do, personally, to create a positive experience for the sub?

 

 

REACTIVE - CLASSROOM MAINTENANCE

What is one thing you can do to help the class run more smoothly?

What is one thing I, as the teacher, can do to help the class run more smoothly?

How do friends best help you learn?

How are you feeling about your opportunity to learn in this class?

What have you noticed has changed in this classroom, if anything?

What is the reputation of this class right now?

What reputation would you like us to have?

Why is it important for a teacher and a student to have a positive relationship?

What is your ideal learning environment?

If someone could observe our class from afar, how would they describe our class?

How can we reward positive behavior in our classroom?

What behaviors prevent you from learning?

How would you rate our class’ behavior on a scale from 1-10?

What could we do to make things function more effectively? 

What can we do, as school staff, to help you improve your behavior?

What triggers you to misbehave in class?

What can you do to prevent this if you know it happens?

What can your peers do to help you maintain better behavior in class? To help you learn?

Why do we have classroom norms?

Are they adequate to address classroom behaviors? Should we revisit?

 What is one specific goal for yourself personally for this next _____ (week, month, semester, etc.) to contribute to a positive classroom environment?

What is one thing you need to leave at the door today (physically or metaphorically) so you can focus in class?

 

REACTIVE - STUDENTS AREN’T COMPLETING HOMEWORK

If you have homework that you don’t understand, what can you do?

Where is your place and time for homework?

Where would you rate yourself on your homework 1-10? What goal do you have to get better? What can contribute to your success? What tips do you have for others?

What barriers exist at home that prevent you from doing your homework?

Do you feel that homework helps you be a better student? Why or why not?

What supports help you to complete your homework?

What is the value/purpose of homework?

What motivates you to do your homework?

If you did your homework all week how would you reward yourself? How would you feel?

What’s one challenge you have with homework?

What’s one tool or resource you need to be successful?

What can we do at school to help you complete and turn in your homework?

If I only knew ____________, then I could complete my homework more regularly.

What positive experiences have you had when you’ve successfully completed your homework? 

 

REACTIVE - STUDENTS PLAGIARIZE

What happened?

Why did you plagiarize on this assignment?

Who was affected by your actions?

How were you affected by plagiarizing? 

What could you have done differently throughout the process?

What are the consequences for plagiarism in high school? College? In a professional job?

What can you do to fix this?

How can you make this right with your teacher/group/partner/etc?

Next time you have an assignment, what could you do proactively to prevent feeling like you need to plagiarize?

What have you learned from this experience?

 

OTHER QUESTION RESOURCES

 

https://storycorps.org/great-questions/#anyone