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April 2024
Ideas and Suggestions for Restorative Practitioners
Deepen Your Practice
Join your colleagues in expanding and deepening your practice beyond Circle 1 and Circle 2, Restorative Chats or Circle to Repair Relationships. We are currently offering the following online skills sessions.
- Restorative Mindfulness and Energy Care; June 10, 11, and 12, from 9 a.m. to noon
- Trauma Informed Restorative Practices; June 10, 11, and 12, from 1 to 4 p.m.
- Reflect on Repair: Improve Your Practice; June 10, 11, and 12, from 1 to 4 p.m.
- Exploring Anishinaabe and Oneida Values; June 10, 11, and 12, from 9 a.m. to noon
- Social Media, Bullying and Restorative Practices; June 10, 11, and 12, from 1 to 4 p.m.
- Affinity Circle for Paraprofessionals; June 10, 11, and 12, from 9 a.m. to noon
Skills sessions are also being offered in Bemidji, Cloquet, and La Crescent, as well as in Crystal. You can find the lists of skills sessions and other trainings being offered through the registration links.
Registration Links
Read the Frequently Asked Questions on Restorative Practices Trainings for information on how to register a group. If you have questions about navigating the registration site, contact Jolene King at Lakes Country Service Cooperative, 218-737-6521.
Retrieve Your Learnings
Evidence comes in many forms. Research and evaluation provide us with insight, guidance, and more questions. But evidence also comes from lived experience. One person who has embodied what it means to be restorative is Mary Johnson-Roy. Mary lost her only son to an act of violence. She later forgave the person who was responsible and was part of the circle of support for him when he left prison. Mary Johnson-Roy passed away March 27, 2024. Read about Mary Johnson-Roy's story.
Build Your Knowledge
The restorative questions can be used to explore more than conflict or harm. Consider using them as a means of exploring a book (see Books and Manuals on Restorative Practices in Schools as a start), journal article (search "restorative practices in schools" or "restorative justice in education"), story, poem or lyric. Use them in staff development, as a way of digesting and exploring a lecture or training, on anything from the Minnesota Reading to Ensure Academic Development (READ) Act to equity to crisis response training. The questions encourage both left- and right-brain thinking, both head and heart.
- What happened when you read this article/explore this teaching approach/listened to the speaker?
- What were you thinking and feeling at the time?
- What have you thought and felt since?
- Who has been affected and in what way?
- What needs to be done next?
The questions follow the “balance in the process” outline of circle (See Principles of the Restorative School, Page 8). Start with a “meeting, getting acquainted” round, such as “Share your name, the pronouns that make you feel seen, and one person you are grateful for today” or “one value that you are carrying today.” You might also give everyone a fuzzy stick and offer that they can share how their day was for as long as it takes them to wind the stick around their index finger. “What happened?” and the thinking and feeling questions are the storytelling rounds, followed by addressing issues—who has been affected and in what way? Finally, the circle comes to making plans—what needs to be done? Exploring “what needs to be done” helps circle participants identify actions they can take based on what they have read and learned from each other.
Resources
Ongoing Nonexclusionary Discipline (NED) 101 Offerings
An introductory-level discussion about what nonexclusionary discipline is, the importance of fostering a sense of belonging, and understanding "root causes" as a way to address behaviors.
National Conference
The National Association of Community and Restorative Justice (NACRJ) will be holding the 9th National Conference on Community and Restorative Justice, July 29–August 1, 2024, in Washington, DC. Registration details can be found on the 9th National Conference on Community and Restorative Justice website.
Save the Dates for Restorative Practices Trainings
Trainings will be offered August 12–15 in the metro area and online. Trainings include circle and repairing relationships.
Further Information
For further information, visit the Restorative Practices website or contact Grace Yang or Nancy Riestenberg, Minnesota Department of Education.
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