What is a restorative practice in education?

Restorative practices in education are relationship-focused strategies that build community, teach social-emotional skills, and repair harm, serving as an alternative to traditional punitive discipline like suspensions. Instead of removing students, they bring affected parties together to talk, understand impacts, and find solutions, fostering empathy, accountability, and stronger connections for a more inclusive, equitable, and positive school culture.

What is restorative practices in education?

Dr. Marilyn Armour defines Restorative Practices as “A relational approach to building school climate and addressing student behavior that fosters belonging over exclusion, social engagement over control and meaningful accountability over punishment.”

What is the definition of restorative practice?

Restorative practice is a way of working with conflict that puts the focus on repairing the harm that has been done. It is an approach to conflict resolution that includes all of the parties involved.

What are restorative practice examples?

Restorative practices may include affective statements, affective questions, impromptu conferences/conversations, cogenerative (cogen) groups, tier 1 & 2 circle practice and tier 3 conferences.

What are the 4 pillars of restorative practice?

The 4 pillars are: the Social Discipline Window, Fair Process, the Science of Affect, and the Continuum of Restorative Practices. The fundamental hypothesis refers to the Social Discipline Window, which is considered the “Cornerstone” of Restorative Practices.

What is Restorative Practices in schools? 5 minute description

What are the 5 R's of restorative practices?

The 5 Rs of restorative justice are foundational principles focusing on healing relationships after harm: Relationship (mending connections), Respect (deep listening, safe space), Responsibility (accountability for actions), Repair (making things right), and Reintegration (welcoming back transformed individuals). These principles guide restorative practices by emphasizing accountability and community healing over punishment, centering the needs of those harmed.
 

What are the six principles of restorative practice?

According to the Restorative Justice Council, there are six principles of restorative practice: restoration, voluntarism, impartiality, safety, accessibility, and empowerment. Harm reduction aligns with each of these principles in meaningful ways.

What skills are needed for restorative practice?

The best, and most practical way, to implement restorative practices in the classroom is to start small with some basic restorative skills that can be practiced in your classroom, and even in your life outside of school. These skills are listening, affective communication, and curiosity questions.

What are some restorative activities?

Restorative breaks should focus on activities that nourish the mind and body. For some, this may mean physical activity like yoga or hiking; for others, it could involve quiet reflection, reading, or connecting with loved ones.

What are the 5 R's of classroom management?

The 5 Rs of classroom management provide a framework for a positive learning environment, typically focusing on Rights, Responsibilities, Rules, Routines, and Relationships, which establish clear expectations, build strong connections, and foster student ownership for a structured, respectful, and engaging classroom. While variations exist (like Respect, Responsibility, Resilience, Reasoning), the core idea is creating a predictable and supportive space where students understand boundaries and feel valued. 

What is another name for restorative practices?

Restorative practice is known by many other terms, including restitu- tion, restorative justice, community justice, transformative justice, peacemaking criminology, relational justice, (McCluskey, 2008a), restitution restructuring (Gossen, 1998), and restorative measures (Shaw, 2007).

What are the steps of restorative practice?

In this model, the 5 Steps of Restorative Practices are Calm Self, Calm Other, Reflect, Repair, and Plan. Each step has a short menu of options that provides choices to the teacher/support staff/social worker/administrator navigating a situation.

What are the two major purposes of restorative practices?

Restorative practices include ways of creating community that honors the importance of relationships amongst all members in the community; as well as practices to repair relationships when harm has been caused.

What is the aim of restorative practices?

Restorative practices are a range of techniques and processes that help to build community, resolve disputes and manage conflict. Restorative practice conversations and meetings can help members of a community establish, maintain, deepen and -where necessary- repair relationships when there has been harm.

What are the 5 R's of managing behavior?

The "5 Rs" in behavior management offer different frameworks, most commonly focusing on creating positive environments with Rights, Responsibilities, Rules, Routines, & Relationships for structure, or a restorative approach with Relationship, Respect, Responsibility, Repair, & Reintegration for healing. Other versions emphasize learning skills like Resilience, Resourcefulness, while some parenting models use Regulating, Recognizing, Responding to build positive discipline. 

Who created restorative practices in schools?

Howard Zehr. Widely known as “the grandfather of restorative justice,” Zehr began as a practitioner and theorist in restorative justice in the late 1970s at the foundational stage of the field.

What are examples of restorative practices in schools?

Instead of punishment, restorative practices address school discipline by focusing on developing communication strategies and building relationships. Among restorative practices are classroom meetings, community building circles, and conflict resolution strategies that all adults and students use.

What are 5 examples of activities?

Five varied activities could be reading a book, going for a walk, cooking a meal, playing a board game, and spending time with family or friends, covering relaxation, physical health, creativity, and social connection for overall well-being. 

What is the 5-3-1 rule?

The 5-3-1 rule, created by social scientist Kasley Killam, is a guideline for social health: spend time with 5 different people weekly, nurture 3 close relationships, and aim for 1 hour of quality daily social interaction to combat loneliness and improve well-being. It's a flexible framework to balance diverse connections with deep intimacy, focusing on intentional social engagement for overall health. 

What are the 5 R's of restorative practices in schools?

Restorative Practices are built on the 5 R's of Relationship, Respect, Responsibility, Repair, and Reintegration. These 5 R's provide a structural and behavioral model implemented in the classroom to restore and rebuild community when a disruption has occurred.

What types of exercises are commonly used in restorative care?

Different forms of restorative therapy include traditional physical therapy, therapeutic exercise, adaptive equipment, occupational therapy, massage therapy, relaxation techniques, yoga, acupuncture, and tai chi. All of these modalities can be used in combination to achieve optimal results.

What are the five restorative questions?

RJ Questions I – For those who caused harm

• What happened?
• What were you thinking at the time?
• What have you thought about since?
• Who has been affected by what you have done? In what way?
• What do you think you need to do to make things right?

What are the challenges of restorative practice?

Lack of Understanding or Buy-In Among School Staff on the Importance of RP Getting buy-in from school staff on the importance of RP can also be a challenge, especially for administrators who may be trying to implement RP in an environment where it is not yet widely accepted or understood.

Does restorative practice work in schools?

An independent evaluation of restorative justice in Bristol schools found that restorative justice improved school attendance and reduced exclusion rates. On a practical level, restorative approaches provide a structured and consistent response to the inevitable incidents of conflict that arise in the life of a school.

What are the benefits of restorative practices?

Proactively, Restorative Practices allow individuals and communities to come together and engage in a manner that is inclusive, predictable, and genuine. Elevating the importance of relationship building allows people to feel seen and heard, encourages connection, and facilitates trust and cooperation.