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Restorative Practices
Our Strategic Plan in Action
Our Strategic Plan in Action
Glastonbury Public Schools uses restorative practices to build relationships and community. These practices help to prevent challenging behaviors and to repair relationships after harm. Restorative practices focus on understanding and solving problems with open communication, accountability, and mutual respect.
Glastonbury Public Schools uses restorative practices to build relationships and community. These practices help to prevent challenging behaviors and to repair relationships after harm. Restorative practices focus on understanding and solving problems with open communication, accountability, and mutual respect.
This work is tied directly to GOAL 2 of our strategic plan: Provide safe, supportive, and inclusive learning environments.
This work is tied directly to GOAL 2 of our strategic plan: Provide safe, supportive, and inclusive learning environments.
How Do Restorative Practices Work?
How Do Restorative Practices Work?
We know “good teaching” is relationship-based. Strong relationships strengthen classroom and school communities. Restorative practices prioritize the development of positive school and classroom climates as a preventative measure to challenging behaviors. The majority of restorative practices are proactive, aiming to foster strong, supportive relationships before conflict arises.
When conflicts or problems occur, restorative practices create opportunities for everyone involved to work together to resolve the issue. For example, this might involve:
Circles: Groups of students and teachers come together to talk about how they’re feeling or to solve problems.
Conferences: A structured conversation where students, teachers, and sometimes parents discuss an incident and agree on how to move forward.
Agreements: Students take responsibility for their actions and make commitments to repair any harm caused.
Glastonbury Educators Discuss Restorative Practices
Glastonbury Educators Discuss Restorative Practices
Why Use Restorative Practices in Schools?
Why Use Restorative Practices in Schools?
Improves Relationships: Restorative practices help build stronger connections between students, teachers, and parents, creating a more positive school environment.
Teaches Life Skills: Students learn how to communicate effectively, resolve conflicts, and take responsibility for their actions—skills that will help them throughout their lives.
Increases Accountability: Students understand the impact of their behavior and take active steps to repair any harm caused. Restorative practices often go hand-in-hand with traditional school consequences. In fact, consequences are more effective with the added layer of restorative practices.
Creates a Safer School: When students feel heard and respected, they are less likely to engage in harmful behavior, leading to fewer conflicts overall.
The Benefits for Parents and Students
The Benefits for Parents and Students
Parents: Restorative practices often involve parents, giving them a voice in their child’s education and behavior. This collaboration helps create a united front to support the student.
Students: By focusing on solutions rather than punishment, students feel supported and valued. This approach helps them grow as individuals and improves their school experience.
Human beings are happier, healthier, more cooperative and most likely to make positive changes in their behavior when those in positions of authority do things with them rather than to them or for them.
Human beings are happier, healthier, more cooperative and most likely to make positive changes in their behavior when those in positions of authority do things with them rather than to them or for them.
—Ted Wachtel, Founder of the International Institute for Restorative Practices
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