Morton Jr/Sr High School has begun implementing a restorative justice program ito the school wide behavior and dsicpline process in order to support our Positive Behavior, Interventions, and Supports (PBIS) framework.
What is Restorative Justice?- Restorative Practices build community and can help set things right when the integrity of the community is challenged by harmful behaviors.
- When people come together for restorative interactions they sit in circles. Circle dialogue is a fundamental element of restorative dialogue.
- Classroom circles support the two main goals of restorative practices: building community; and responding to harms through dialogue that sets things right.
What are the goals of implementing restorative justice?
Student goals:- Students will learn to value and regularly use pro-active, positive ways to build and maintain a peaceful classroom community.
- Students will develop and enhance positive and
- supportive connections with peers.
- Students will develop an understanding of the principles and vocabulary of restorative justice.
- Students will learn how to participate in circle dialogues, including the four circle guidelines.
- Students will learn to use and respect a talking piece.
- Students will learn how to use restorative questions to support conflict resolution and other types of communication.
- Students will learn to identify who is affected by misbehaviors, and how.
- Students will contribute to developing appropriate ideas for how to make things right when harms have occurred.
- Students will learn how and when to ask for a restorative circle.
- Students will learn to communicate how they are affected by given situations using affective statements and restorative questions.
Teacher Goals:- Teachers will understand the core principles of restorative justice and restorative practices and how they differ from traditional or punitive approaches.
- Teachers will know how to use restorative practices in many situations where punitive discipline
approaches might have been used in the past. - Teachers will know how to introduce and lead circle dialogues.
- Teachers will know how to transition into and out of “circle time” and can switch roles between circle keeper and teacher effectively.
- Teachers will have an understanding of the principle of “connection before content” as it applies to restorative circles.
- Teachers will know how to sequence activities to build trust among students so they become more willing to communicate authentically.
- Teachers will know restorative questions and how to use them.
- Teachers will understand affective communication and will experience how it supports classroom discipline and community building.
Classroom Community Goals:- The classroom community will have established agreements about how to participate in circle.
- Community members will share a sense of responsibility for maintaining agreements and many members will do so proactively during circle time and at other times, including out-of-classroom time.
- The classroom community will identify specific issues to address and will have honest, authentic discussions about these issues.
- Procedures will be established for calling attention to issues and conflicts and for requesting help.
- Procedures will be established for engaging in restorative dialogues around issues and conflicts.
- It will be emotionally, psychologically, and physically safe for students to share concerns about conflicts, issues, and behaviors that are affecting them.
- There will be high participation by students in circle dialogues, with little or no passing.
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Morton School District 
