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…how restorative practices can help in real life?

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When you learn how to take responsibility for your actions, make things right when you've harmed someone, and repair relationships, it can help you not only in school but in real life, too. There are always conflicts in real life, and knowing how to resolve them before they turn into big problems is useful. Here are some examples of how what you learn about restorative practices in school could be helpful in real life.

School

Think of the worst name that someone could call you. The name that would hurt the most or make you so angry that you could not think of or do anything else. Now imagine that you're walking down the hallway and you and another student accidentally bump into each other. The other student calls you that name and walks away.

Restorative Practices

You walk up to the person and say "hey can we talk?" You explain to the person how much what they said hurt you.

School

You had one of those mornings where everything that could've gone wrong, did. By the afternoon, you're understandably tired and frustrated. You're walking down the hall and a student deliberately trips you up. This is the last straw. Because you're not at your best, you call this student a mean name and keep walking. You don't normally do this, but it was a really bad day so it slipped out.

Restorative Practices

The student you called a mean name turns around immediately and says "hey can we talk?" He tells you about how he was hurt by what you said to him.

Real life

You are at work and your boss just called you incompetent (unable to do something well). You put a lot of effort into what he asked you to do, but it obviously wasn't good enough.

Restorative Practices

You walk up to your boss and say "could I have a minute to talk with you?" You proceed to explain to her how what she said made you feel.

Real Life

You are late to work and the person in the car in front of you is going at a snail's pace. You have a chance to pass, step on the gas, roll down your window, and as you pass the car you let the driver know what you really think of him. You pull into the parking lot at work, and the car you passed pulls in behind you.

Restorative Practices

The driver from the other car walks up to you and says "are you having a rough day?" He explains to you how what you said made him feel.