Restorative Practices Resources

• Fix School Discipline Toolkit for Educators (February 2017)
• Restorative Practices: Fostering Healthy Relationships & Promoting Positive Discipline in Schools (March 2014)
• Teaching Restorative Practices with Classroom Circles (n.d.) by Amos Clifford, Center for Restorative Process
• Circle Keeper’s Handbook by Kay Pranis. For greater detail, see The Little Book of Circle Processes by Kay Pranis.

• Restorative Practices Planning: What Approach Fits Your School/District?, C-DRUM
• Restorative Practices SWOT Planning, C-DRUM
• Restorative Practices Initial Planning Questions, C-DRUM
• Minnesota Department of Education: Stages of Implementation

For Implementation and Training

• Community Building Questions
• Sample Prompting Questions/Topics for Circles
• How restorative am I? – by Margaret Thosborne for a quick self-assessment by educators
• Implementing Restorative Practices (RP) in Schools (Implementation Science Guidelines) by Lauren Abramson, Barbara Sugarman Grochal, Timothy Johnson, Kathryn Rockefeller
• Implementing Classroom Circles, C-DRUM
• Issues for Which Circles May be Appropriate, C-DRUM
• The Restorative School Survey – by Margaret Thorsborne for use in the implementation of the whole-school approach to restorative practices
• Using Circles as an Instructional Tool, C-DRUM

• Students of Color with Disabilities are Being Pushed into the School-to-Prison Pipeline, study finds, ABA Journal (July 24, 2019)
• The Challenge of Culture Change: Embedding Restorative Practice in Schools by Peta Blood and Margaret Thorsborne
• From Reaction to Prevention: Turning the Page on School Discipline by Russell J. Skiba, Daniel J. Losen
• School Climate, the Brain and Connection to School (2012) by Chuck Saufler
• Defining Restorative by Ted Wachtel, International Institute for Restorative Practices
• Lincoln High School in Walla Walla, WA,Tries New Approach to School Discipline (April 23, 2012) by Jane Ellen Stevens
• Restorative Practices: Whole-School Change to Build Safer, Saner School Communities by Laura Mirsky, International Institute for Restorative Practices
• Applying the Framework: Positive Youth Development and Restorative Practices by Nancy Riestenberg, Journal of Youth Development, vol. 3, no. 1 (2008)

• Improving School Climate, Evidence From Schools Implementing Restorative Practices (2014). A report from the International Institute for Restorative Practices
• Restorative Justice: A Working Guide for Our Schools (2011) Alameda County Health Care Services Coalition
• Applying Restorative Practices to Minneapolis Public Schools Recommended for Possible Expulsion: A Pilot Program Evaluation of the Family and Youth Restorative Conference Program (2013), Barbara J. McMorris et al.

• Circle Forward: Building a Restorative School Community by Carolyn Boyes-Watson and Kay Pranis
• Circle in the Square, Building Community and Repairing Harm in School by Nancy Riestenberg
• The Little Book of Circle Processes – A New/Old Approach to Peacemaking by Kay Pranis
• The Little Book of Restorative Discipline for Schools – Teaching responsibility; creating caring climates by Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz and Judy Mullet
• Restorative Circles in Schools, Building Community and Enhancing Learning by Bob Costello, Joshua Wachtel and Ted Wachtel
• The Restorative Practices Handbook for Teachers, Disciplinarians and Administrators by Bob Costello, Joshua Wachtel and Ted Wachtel
• Teaching with Mind and Heart: Affect in the Restorative School (2016) by Graeme George

• Oakland Unified School District Peer Restorative Justice Program Guide 2nd ed. , Oakland Unified School District
• Baltimore City Public Schools Restorative Practices Report, Open Society Institute-Baltimore
• Out-of-School Suspension in Maryland Public Schools, 2008-2014, by Matthew Henry
• School-to-Prison Pipeline: A Comparison in Discipline Policy Between Maryland and Texas Public Schools by Meredith Bouchein
• Take Part Live: Series Teach: Government Releases New Guidelines to Fix School-to-Prison Pipeline, What Do Teachers Think? (Jan. 14, 2014) by Suzi Parker
• WAMU 88.5: Maryland Schools Using Conflict Resolution to Curb Bullying, Suspensions (Feb. 24, 2014) by Armando Tull

• Schools Resolve Conflicts By Getting Kids To Talk Things Out (June 9, 2018) PBS News Hour Weekend. This video highlights the positive impact some New York City Schools are seeing with restorative justice.
• Restorative Approaches to School Conflict Management:The Center for Dispute Resolution at Maryland Carey Law (C-DRUM) partnered with Callaway Elementary School in western Baltimore City in the implementation of restorative practices. The focus was in providing teachers and administrators with conflict management strategies designed to increase student engagement in school, lower suspensions and expulsions, and improve overall school climate. This project was generally funded by the Charles Crane Family Foundation.
• Second Chances: School Profiles, Wide Angle Productions
• Second Chances: Robert Murphy Intro, Wide Angle Productions
• Restorative Circles, Wide Angle Productions
• Rita Pierson: Every Kid Needs a Champion TED Talks: Education (May 2013)
• From Hostility to Harmony, International Institute for Restorative Practices Graduate School (May 6, 2009)
  A group of teenage girls in Albany, New York, had recently fought each other in a violent brawl. The International Institute for Restorative Practices videotaped a facilitated restorative circle involving the girls (friends since childhood), their family members and supporters. This short film telescopes the remarkable transformation that takes place as all individuals in the circle are given a chance to freely express their feelings about what happened between them. Before the circle process begins, the room is heavy with belligerence and anger. By the time the circle ends, the mood has changed to hopefulness and affection, and the participants have moved From Hostility to Harmony. (4:30 minutes)
• Introducing Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth, Cassidy Freeman (Mar. 27, 2011)
  The nonprofit organization Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth underscores the shift from punitive to restorative in this segment focused on urban high school youth at McClymonds High School in Oakland.
• Restorative Justice Introduction, Central Michigan Restorative Justice (Sept. 8, 2008). Overview of the circle.
  When a high school football player in Lansing, Michigan finds himself in a serious conflict, restorative conferencing provides a mechanism all concerned to address accountability, empathy, respect and justice (5:45 minutes)
• Restorative Justice: It’s Elementary, Central Michigan Restorative Justice (July 21, 2009)
  This video contrasts a punitive approach to a restorative approach at the elementary level in Lansing, Michigan, with an emphasis on developing social emotional skills. (5:23 minutes)
• Restorative Justice (RJ) in Schools, Restorative Justice Colorado (Oct. 19, 2010)
  When a student has money stolen from her locker, a restorative conference is used to provide a means of productively addressing the conflict at Montebello High School, Colorado. The data reflects a reduction in suspension and expulsion rates by 30% through Restorative Justice. (6:36 minutes)
• Restorative Justice in Schools, Restorative Resources (Apr. 19, 2013)
  School suspensions and RJ have different messages and focus. Video about building relationships, teachers talking, mixed with facts in power point. High School students talking about their experiences and the different outcomes – focus on healing and accountability. (10:46 minutes)
• Restorative Welcome and Re-entry Circle, Cassidy Freeman (Apr. 22, 2013)
  Filmed at Bunche High School in Oakland, this video conveys the critical importance of re-integration when a student has been removed, in this case returning from prison. The film was made in collaboration by Oakland Unified School District and Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth.
• Restorative Practices; Student Voices, San Francisco Unified School District (July 1, 2012)
  San Francisco Unified School District has rolled out a District-wide implementation of Restorative Practices in dozens of schools. Restorative Practices is based on the assumption that students respond better when things are done WITH them rather than TO them. Students, of a broad range of ages, exposed to Restorative Practices reflect on how they feel regarding the use of Restorative Circle in the classroom. (3:57 minutes)
• The Transformation of West Philadelphia High School: A Story of Hope, International Institute for Restorative Practices Graduate School (June 25, 2009)
  Teachers and students talk about their experiences and the great results using RJ circles. This video includes interviews with staff and students of West Philadelphia High School, which was on Pennsylvania's "Persistently Dangerous Schools" list for six years, but has improved immensely, due to strong administrative leadership and the implementation of restorative practices. (9:04 minutes)
• Using Dialogue Circles to Support Classroom Management, Edutopia (July 4, 2014)
  The video provides a brief example of dialogue circles at Glenview Elementary School in a diverse population in Oakland, California. The teacher demonstrates how she uses mindfulness to begin circles. This segment includes students collaborating to resolve conflict around issues such as bullying and disrespect. (4 minutes)
• School Climate, Baltimore County Public Schools (2018)
  This video highlights Baltimore County Public School's work in introducing restorative practices in their school communities.

• Restorative Practices, Minnesota Department of Education
  The Minnesota Department of Education helps schools develop programming, curricula and intervention practices to create safe schools by teaching social skills, building positive school climate, and repairing harm when it happens. Restorative practices can be used to hold students accountable for harm and address the needs of students or staff harmed and the school community.

• Restorative Practices, San Francisco Unified School District
  San Francisco has embraced the implementation of restorative practices since 2014 when it supported this philosophy and focused on building capacity as an extension of School-wide Positive Behavior Interventions and Support at all schools. This site provides a wide range of resources including videos, brochures, and training materials.

• Restorative Practices for Schools by Graeme George, Brisbane, Australia