Restorative Justice Circles in the Elementary Classroom

Social complications are inevitable in an elementary classroom. The way that these complications are handled can have a great effect on the classroom environment. Restorative practices are alternative discipline methods whose main values focus on developing good relationships while restoring a positive classroom environment (Costello, 2009). The purpose of this study is to explore how incorporating restorative practices through weekly restorative justice circles affect the classroom environment. Students were in charge of the topics that were discussed during the circle facilitation. I found that students were willing to discuss disputes even if they were directly involved in the particular conflict at hand. Incorporating restorative justice circles encouraged students to develop the confidence to identify and understand their own and their peers’ feelings.