Concentric Circles
Table of Contents
Bloom's Level
Use
Setting
Activity
Technology
Related Strategies
Description
Concentric circles is a discussion strategy that gives everyone an opportunity to speak and listen. Students form two concentric circles, an outer and an inner circle. Students in the outer circle face a corresponding student in the inner circle to form pairs for discussion. The teacher poses a discussion question, and each pair of students takes turns sharing their responses to the question and actively listening to their partner. The teacher may provide structure to the activity by giving a set amount of time for students to share and then additional time for students to engage in active discussion, including asking follow-up questions, comparing ideas, or providing evidence for their argument. After students have engaged in discussion, the teacher will instruct students to shift left or right one or more spaces to pair with a different student. The teacher provides a new discussion question for this pair, and the activity repeats.
When To Use It
As a learning strategy, use concentric circles when you want students to:
- practice peer-to-peer communication skills
- review information with a partner
- discuss topics and concepts before or after engaging with learning material
- work collaboratively with a partner to solve problems or receive peer support
As an instructional strategy, use concentric circles when you want to:
- structure peer-to-peer conversations
- introduce a new topic by having students activate prior knowledge or experiences through discussion
- partner students for collaborative learning or peer support
- use a kinesthetic activity to facilitate discussion or debrief a reading or multimedia presentation
How To Use It
Advance Prep
Preparation time for concentric circles is typically minimal, especially if your students are familiar with the structure of the activity. This strategy can be implemented on the fly or as part of planned activities. If this is your first time implementing concentric circles, consider the following steps:
- Determine a question(s) that students will address in the discussion or partner activity. You may decide to have students discuss the same question with multiple partners for various perspectives, or you may have students discuss a new question each time they shift to a new partner in the circle. Students may stand or sit in chairs (with or without desks) depending on the nature of the activity.
- Concentric circles are structured discussions, so consider the following as you plan:
- How much time will students have to think about their response before discussing it with a partner?
- How much time will each partner have to share?
- How much time will students have to ask and answer follow-up questions?
- Will sentence stems be needed to support students with generating their responses or asking follow-up questions? If so, prepare them for students to reference.
- Will you strategically pair students for the initial discussion or partner activity?
- Will you allow students to pose their own questions to partners for discussion?
Implementation
- Present the question or problem for students to address. Allow time for students to think about their responses. You may have students jot down some ideas to gather their thoughts before the discussion.
- Divide the class in half and determine which students will form the inner and outer circles. If you do not have an even number of students, you may need to partner with one student during each round of discussion or have one group of three students (not ideal).
- Instruct students to stand (or sit) in two concentric circles. Students in the inner circle should face students in the outer circle.
- If your classroom space cannot accommodate two circles, students may form two lines facing each other. When you shift students to the left or right to form new partners, the student on the end of the shifting line will go to the beginning of that line.
- After students are in place, explain that they will take turns sharing and listening. Tell them how much time each partner has to share (typically 1-2 minutes) before they discuss their ideas further by commenting on responses and asking and answering follow-up questions. Give them a specific timeframe for discussion (typically 1-3 minutes).
*You may want to use a timer to keep track of time. - After the allotted time for discussion, instruct students in the outer circle to move one or more spaces to the left or right to form a new pair.
- Have students share their responses to the same question with their new partner, or present a new question for students to discuss. If desired, allow time for students to collect their thoughts about the new question before they begin sharing.
- There is value in having students repeat the same question with new partners. The repetition can build fluency and confidence in speaking, and, based on their previous discussion of the same question, they may also have new and improved ideas that they can elaborate on with their new partner.
- Repeat the process for each new question or discussion round. As students become comfortable with the activity, consider allowing them to pose their own question(s) during one or more rounds.
Pros
- Students who are reluctant to speak might feel more comfortable engaging in discussion with a partner in the circle, rather than with the larger group.
- All students have an opportunity to share their ideas with at least one other person.
- Teachers can easily monitor the conversations by either standing in the center of the circle or walking along the outer circle.
Cons
- Multiple conversations occurring at the same time can create a noisy atmosphere which might be distracting for some students.
- Time must be monitored closely to ensure that all students have adequate time to share and discuss their ideas.
- Forming concentric circles may be a challenge if classroom space is limited.
Culturally Responsive Application
Teachers can use concentric circles to introduce culturally relevant topics that can help students make meaningful connections to the related instructional content. Like the Socratic seminar, students are empowered to take ownership of their communication by sharing their thoughts and generating questions to deepen their understanding of other perspectives. With concentric circles, students experience the value of engaging with others and being influenced by multiple viewpoints that can help them expand their own ideas.
Emerging English Language Support
It provides every learner in the class an equal opportunity to speak, which helps to practice listening and speaking in English
Students with Disabilities Support
It can be used to help students get to know one another and to engage in discussion on a selected topic
Subjects
1.1 Literature, 1.2 Informational texts, 1.5 Speaking and listening, 1.7 Reading in science & technical subjects, 1.8 Reading in history & social studies, 2.1 K-8 mathematics, 2.2 High school number & quantity, 2.3 High school algebra, 2.4 High school functions, 2.5 High school geometry, 2.6 High school statistics & probability, 3.1 Earth and space science, 3.2 Life science, 3.3 Physical science, 3.4 Engineering, technology, and application of science, 4.1 Civics, 4.2 Economics, 4.3 Geography, 4.4 History, 5.5 Impacts of computing
Why It Works
Concentric circles arrangement encouraged students to talk directly to each other during class discussion (REF36) Concentric circle provide a secure and containing forum where people can come together, listen to each other and take necessary time and space to think together in a problematic situation.(REF37)