Restorative Practices
"Relationships are at the root of everything we do"
Why Restorative Practices?
Consider this...
"If a child doesn't know how to read, we teach,
if a child doesn't know how to swim, we teach,
if a child doesn't know how to multiply, we teach,
if a child doesn't know how to drive, we teach,
if a child doesn't know how to behave we,
Teach? Or punish?"
What is it doing for the student?
"It is building an understanding of one's own actions, the impact they have on others, and learning from them"
"So owning the behavior and accepting responsibility"
Sometimes we forget....
Too often we forget that discipline really means to teach, not to punish. A disciple is a student, not a recipient of behavioral consequences. ~Dr. Dan Siegel, The Whole-Brain Child
So what does RP look like...
3 types: Peace circles, family group conferencing, and community conferencing.
3 targets: victim reparation, communities of care reconciliation, and offender responsibility.
Script
7 questions that change school discipline:
1. What happened?
2. How did it happen?
3. What part did you play in it?
4. How were you affected by what you did?
5. Who else was affected by what you did?
6. What can you do to repair the harm?
7. What do you need to make it right?
Things to remember when conducting a RP conference:
1. Listen first - be quiet, what is the story behind the story?
2. Don't tell what you can ask?
3. Think about outcomes before deciding on strategy - consequence should teach what we want the child to learn, must be designed to build social capital.
4. Develop empathy by helping them to understand what harm has been done.
5. Work on making things right rather than punishment.
6. Contact parents early to ask for their support, i.e. what they want for their child.
7. Kids brains are a work in progress.
8. Don't assume all children come to school with the ability to de code value systems.
9. Never make home wrong.
Never forget...
"Relationships are at the root of everything we do"
"Respect : it can be given, it can be earned, but it can't be bought, forced or demanded."