Restorative Circles

Teachers tell how their school has strengthened connections among students and empowered them to resolve their own conflicts. The key? Circles.

We offer our gratitude for the practices of Indigenous peoples, and share our land acknowledgment statement.

The Brooklyn Academy of Global Finance is using circles to bolster students and the school community, with support from Morningside Center. This week their great work landed them in the news.

We have to talk about race, and how the racism that permeates our society is manifesting in our schools.

This lesson begins with activities aimed at creating a sense of community among your students, then invites them to explore issues in the news, and to consider how these issues are connected to their own lives and community.   

We've been doing circles at my school as a study skills course since the start of the year. It's been challenging when students act out, not respecting the talking piece. It impacts the rest of the group and their willingness to share. Do you have any suggestions of how to handle disruptive behavior...

In our feature Ask the Keeper, senior trainer and staff developer Marieke van Woerkom answers your questions about restorative circles and related practices in schools.  Send your questions to: keeper@morningsidecenter.org.

Much of the power of the circle process resides in the talking piece - the object that we pass in order from person to person around the circle as we invite each person to speak or to pass.