Special Education Circle Time: A Self-Contained Classroom Example
A finished morning circle for a self-contained K-2 room: the same six segments daily, AAC responses counted equally, and the day board walk that previews the whole schedule.
- Circle Time
- Ages 5-8
- 20 minutes
- 2 pages
- Free printable PDF
Page 1 of 2. Page 2 is the per-student response grid.
What’s inside this circle time plan
Objective: Every student answers one directed question with their own AAC support during the circle.
The goal it serves: During morning circle, the student will answer one directed question using a core board, device, or sign, in 4 of 5 consecutive circles.
- 3 min Greeting Song
- 4 min Who's Here
- 3 min Calendar & Weather
- 3 min Movement
- 5 min Focus Activity
- 2 min Story & Close
6 students in the circle, initials only, each with their response mode. Page 2 is the per-student response grid: one row per student, one cell per segment, with the mark key printed underneath, plus the response-mode key that makes verbal, AAC, pointing, and signed answers count the same, the reset strip, and the notes box for the next circle. For a printable core board to model on, the free AAC Core Board Maker on this site pairs naturally with this plan.
Frequently asked questions
- How is circle time different in a self-contained classroom?
- The structure matters more than the content: the same six segments run in the same order daily, the visuals do the talking, and every response mode counts. This example builds the whole circle around the day board so the routine itself previews the schedule.
- How do AAC users participate in circle time?
- Each student's mode is written on the response grid: device, core board, sign, or speech. The hello song, attendance, and the day board walk each create a turn the student answers in their own mode, and the plan says modeling happens on the board without taking it away.
- What data should I take during circle time?
- One mark per student per segment: independent, prompted at the level you gave, or absent. Two anchor segments, attendance and the focus activity, are enough to show an IEP team whether whole-group responding is growing.
- Can I use this plan with a different theme?
- Yes. The six segments are the constant; the theme rides inside the focus activity and the story. Swap the day board walk for any focus that creates one response per student, and the grid still works unchanged.
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