Restorative Justice (RJ) is a form of restorative practice and a problem-solving approach that focuses on relationships and building community. It is an approach to justice that focuses on the needs of the victims and the offenders, as well as the involved community, instead of satisfying abstract principles or punishing the offender. Restorative practices counter …
Use reframing to defuse anger and keep dialogue open and positive. To reframe, take a negative statement and remove the emotionally-charged, damaging, and accusatory words, thus changing the statement to be solution-focused. This also applies to self-talk, in which youth can be taught to replace critical comments with supportive ones. For example, instead of saying …
When an incident occurs, youth can spend time in reflection by writing and identifying: a) what happened; b) what was my role in the problem?; c) what could I have done differently?; d) how was the other person/people feeling?; and e) what should I do now? Then they re-enter into a problem-solving process together. For …
In more diverse classrooms or other groups, have youth share their cultural heritage through music, food, literature, language, art and so on. Have each of the observers identify in these presentations: a) something they recognize or find familiar, b) something that surprised them or something new that they learned (absorb), and c) something that they …
Puzzles are a good way to encourage critical thinking with all ages of youth. In order to successfully complete a puzzle, they must work with both individual, disconnected parts, and a picture of the whole. Puzzles also require collaboration if done with a partner. They teach patience and persistence. In addition, puzzles are a great …
Break up a writing task into the following components: Pre-Write; First Draft; Mini Lesson; Peer Share; Revise; Edit; Publish. To Pre-Write, youth research, brainstorm, and outline their ideas. Then they write their First Draft. The teacher then delivers a Mini Lesson based on common grammatical or other writing errors. Youth then read each other’s work …
A great way to foster collaboration and validate the opinions of all people in a discussion. Try this: With a partner, choose a topic to discuss or a decision to be made, such as where to travel on a vacation. Person A states their idea, and person B responds with, “Yes, BUT….” and this continues, …
The bystander is one of the most critical, if not the most critical person in a conflict. Teaching youth how to successfully and confidently intervene when appropriate is very important. If intervening is not a good idea, they need to know how to get help. Role playing, watching videos, and brainstorming together what might work …
Structure a small group activity to create a picture or diagram that shows how youth are linked in a way that they cannot succeed without the participation of all. Positive Interdependence can be understood by getting them to talk about mutual goals, joint rewards, shared materials, and assigned roles. All individuals must work together as …
Have a public bowl where everyone has his or her own (identified) stone. There should also be a few unidentified stones. All stones are set next to the bowl. If someone has an issue they need to discuss, they put their stone in the bowl. Teachers, parents, and youth then know that there is an …