Circulate = TLAC Technique 24, pages 183-187

To 'Circulate' is to move strategically around the classroom during all parts of the lesson

*Of course, we can only Circulate when allowed to do so in the future due to current movement restrictions when 'teaching from the front'*

• Teachers frequently talk about 'proximity' - getting near students to 1) stress accountability, 2) check for understanding (CFU) and 3) eliminate behavioural problems.
• But, we often expect proximity to magically work of it own accord. Teachers know to move towards trouble, but do not always know how to maximise the benefits of proximity or, what to do when they get there if proximity itself proves insufficient. 
• The following little techniques help overcome this issue.

Break the Plane

• The 'plane' of your classroom is the imaginary line that runs the width of your room parallel to and about 5 feet in front of the board, usually about where the first student desks start.
• Breaking this plane early in your lesson (first 5 minutes) makes it clear to the students that you own the room and that it is normal for you to go anywhere you want in the room at any time.
• The longer you take to Break the Plane, the less natural and normal it's likely to seem to students, and the more daunting the idea of wandering when you teach will seem to you.
• Breaking the Plane early plays a critical role in managing low-level behavioural situations and allowing those interactions to be private (eg: a Private Individual Correction in the 100% Cycle tab)
• However, if you only Break the Plane to deal with poor behaviour, students will pick up on this routine and it will potentially draw the attention of a number of students (meaning more students are distracted) creating a 'death spiral' situation.

Full Access Required

Not only must you Break the Plane, but you must have full access to the entire room

• You must be able to simply and naturally stand next to any student in your room at any time and be able to easily reach any part of the classroom without interrupting your teaching
• If getting between any two points requires the shuffling or dragging of desks, chairs or bags, you have already relinquished ownership.
• Keep passageways as wide as possible and clear from clutter.
• Ensure your desk arrangement (pairs, in 4s or 6s) allows you to stand directly next to any student at any time

Engage When You Circulate

It might be useful to mix and match these types of interactions as you Circulate:

1) Simple Walk-By

You walk by a student's desk slowly enough to show that you are monitoring what they are doing but without engaging more extensively.

2) Touch/Non-Verbal

A brief, unspoken interaction, perhaps just touching a student's desk as if to show you are glancing a bit more closely at their work or, a thumbs-up for good progress which is a travelling gesture for 'keep going'.

3) Basic Read/Review

You stop and make a point of reading what a student is working on. You might comment on what a student has written, but you do not have to. Reading a student's work, alone, is a powerful message.

4) Pick-up Read

You stop and pick up a student's work and red what they are working on, intimating an even greater level of interest when scrutinising their work.

Points 3 and 4 are particularly important. Reading a student's work in 'real-time' shows them you are interested in their work and want them to make progress. It also sets a tone of student accountability for the quality of their work.

Move Systematically

• As you move around the room, your goal is to be systematic - to cover all parts of the room and be aware of what's happening everywhere.
• Also, by regularly circulating systematically, you show your movements and interactions are just part of your normal class routine and natural.

Walking the Circuit

• If a student is displaying off-task behaviour (eg: not working, distracting others), if you choose to walk directly to the student, then this can cause other students to watch your interaction with the individual (potentially causing a death spiral).
• By taking a bit of a circuitous route to the student puts you in control of the interaction and, crucially, gives you a few more seconds to choose your words a bit more carefully before you arrive.
• Finally, systematic does not mean predictable. If you always follow the same route as you Circulate, students will know when you'll be likely to get to them so they can potentially time when  to be on-task or off-task.

Position for Power

• As you Circulate, your aim should be to remain facing as much of the class as possible (maintaining your 'Radar' and 'Be Seen Looking' capabilities).
• You can lift your eyes quickly and swivel from a student's work and then return to reading in a fraction of a second.
• Turning your back, by contrast, invites opportunistic behaviour.

Position for Power Examples

1. When lifting a student's work from the desk, think about reorienting yourself as you read so you can see the greatest percentage of your class as possible .

2. Leverage student blind spots. The most powerful position to stand in with another person is one where you can see him, he knows you can see him, and he can't see you. Standing just over a student's shoulder as you peruse his work or, standing at the back of the classroom as a class discusses a topic builds subtle control of the class in order to focus it on learning.

Videos

TLAC Clip 21: Position for Power & Engage When Circulating

TLAC Field Guide Clip 24: Circulate Strategically

TLAC Field Guide Clip 25: Circulating during Independent Practice

Circulate Compilation - teacher mainly Checking for Understanding

Original Blog: https://teachlikeachampion.com/blog/side-by-side-matthew-grays-check-for-understanding-compared-to-denarius-fraziers/ 

Mini-techniques on display:

1. Name the Lap
2. Tracking, Not Watching
3. Show Call
4. Apply the Learning